Wout van Aert crashed in training before Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes as he sports knee and elbow bandages at start

Wout van Aert has admitted that he suffered a crash in training on Monday, leaving him with bandages on his right knee and elbow at the beginning of stage 1 of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.

The Team Visma | Lease a Bike star returns to racing for the first time since his emphatic Paris Roubaix victory in April, capping off a career pursuit of the monument and sealing his status as one of the best one day riders in the modern era.

After his cobbles triumph, the Belgian took some time away from the spotlight and has been training hard with goals such as the Tour de France and Saturday's arrival at the French stage race circled in his calendar. But after an unexpected crash earlier this week, the well laid-out plans were almost abruptly dashed.

Sporting bandages before the opening stage, a battered van Aert admitted that he hit the ground while training on his time trial bike on Monday - unexpectedly losing control of his handlebars as he claimed the moment of "inattention" caused the incident.

“I fell during training on Monday, I can’t hide that,” he told Sporza before the start of the first stage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. “It was due to a moment of inattention, my own fault. I was training on the time trial bike when I suddenly lost control of my handlebars and ended up on the ground.”

However, despite it being a setback before a tough week of racing in preparation for July's Grand Depart in Barcelona, van Aert insisted he arrived to race and his injuries won't hold him back. He confirmed: “Otherwise I wouldn't be at the start here. I don't think it will bother me much.”

It's a brutal week of racing for the non-climbers in the south-east of France, with just a handful of stages favourable for the faster or more versatile riders, van Aert knows the window to strike is slim in his pursuit of stage victories.

He concluded: “There won’t be many opportunities for non-climbers. But there are a few tough stages where the finish is a bit flatter. That’s where I can take my chance in the sprint or with a breakaway.”

Van Aert is joined by a returning Matteo Jorgenson with Visma also bringing Edoardo Affini, Bruno Armirail, Per Strand Hagenes, Jorgen Nordhagen and Ben Tullett in a squad packed with experience and strength.