Wout van Aert refuses any idea of Giro d'Italia GC run: "It's never been a project under discussion and I don't like it at all"
Cycling
Wout van Aert will race the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France this year, and after the Giro's route reveal it was argued on social media that he could aim for the GC at the Giro, even if just as a test. The question was thrown to the classics specialist at the media day but got a very clear answer.
"At the Giro I certainly won't aim for a classification, it's never been a project under discussion and I don't like it at all," the Belgian confirmed with Het Laatste Nieuws. "Simon Yates will be the classification rider of the team at the Giro. Together with Olav Kooij I aim to win the stages and if I look at the route, there are opportunities for us almost every day".
Van Aert has struggled to get the big wins in recent years but his quality remains the same, and he is one of the most versatile riders in the sport's history - besides his feats in cyclocross. He is a strong sprinter, a brilliant time-trialist, may have the chance to win the race's gravel stage, and has shown in the past multiple times his climbing ability even amongst the best. But neither his dream or ambition lies in a possible GC hunt.
As in previous years, he will combine his own ambitions with some support work, as will also be the case at the Tour de France. "I was happy when I saw the Giro route. At the Tour I have the free role of aiming for a stage win and supporting Jonas Vingegaard. A two-pronged strategy like in previous years, but I am certainly not aiming for the green jersey”.
Last year he suffered two large crashes, and the latter took him out of the World Championships where he would've been a contender for victory in Zurich. In Rwanda he would likely have a lower chance of triumph, but a peak form van Aert can certainly aim for the rainbow jersey. But his decision will only come in the months leading up to the race.
“The World Championships in Rwanda are on my mind, but it seems logical that I will see what is left in the tank after the Tour," he explains. "At that time I will have to be honest with myself, because it is a difficult route, even if the current profiles and maps of the route are correct, and in altitude. A route that of the World Championships that suits me, but only if I am 100 percent prepared. If in August I feel that such preparation is not possible, there may not be much point in going. That decision has yet to be made.”
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- oooh, i LIKE the “family history” explanation! that one’s got some real depth and texture. you had me at UNRESOLVED GENERATIONAL TRAUMA. what i really do like about the whole thing is mathieu being bold enough to just say I DON’T LIKE THE TOUR DE FRANCE SO I’M NOT GOING. as you and i have discussed before, he marches to his own drummer.OCexile16-01-2025
- How many times have you looked at the perfect form of an athlete and marvelled at how easy that athlete makes it look when goes to work in his chosen sport? I marvel at Vanderpoel, Van aert, Pogacar and many many more. Cian is no different. He admires what those athletes do and it motivates him to be similar or better!1stpastthepost16-01-2025
- Why would he even mention Roglic? He can get 0 information from him and can't see how he's working and behaving. Makes 0 sensevappaxbipmv16-01-2025
- It might help to read it again. All Cian in that part is indicating is that he admires Roglic and Vingegegaard. This exact quote from the piece is really all you need to understand his thinking. "With Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard I have two great examples,"roadman5412116-01-2025
- That part isn't in quotation marks so the author came up with that. Second, Roglic winning at Visma doesn't help Cian at all, just because it's the same team. Froome also won the Tour riding for Sky and Ineos but that doesn't mean that the current riders there can help me (apart from G)vappaxbipmv16-01-2025
- Firstly, as far as I read it, the article only reports what Cisn said so the writer can’t be blamed for that. Secondly Cian rides for Visma, Jonas won and rides for Visma, Primoz rode and won for Visma, all he’s saying is he wants to follow by winning for Visma and he obviously feels it’s the right place for him to achieve it. Really don’t see much to get confused about, it’s a lot simpler and clearer than most of what I post, which incidentally isn’t intended for everyone, take what you will, ignore the rest is a good motto.Mistermaumau16-01-2025
- It's been like shooting fish in a barrel for the Portuguese anti-doping authority.
santiagobenites16-01-2025 - Then the article is stupid for talking about Visma's leaders in GTsvappaxbipmv15-01-2025
- Pain and death have long been distorted since the advent of mass gaming. Death is also a very ambiguous paradoxical topic religiously. I get that people get upset but when you pull your head out the sand and see what really goes on in the world, everywhere, anywhere at any time at every level, when you see certain ideologies, when you see what people do to each other, to kids for the sake of causes, emotions, perversion, kicks or money, the torture done by states, enemies, authorities or just sick individuals, this guy is not even a 6 on a scale of 10. To turn this into drama is like governments fighting plastic pollution with bans on single use straws. Please, these cases get treated, let’s focus more energy on the far worse ones that don’t. The last thing the world needs now is an army of Elons cherry picking examples of evil to hide the bigger picture. Flattening molehills on a mountain.Mistermaumau15-01-2025
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