Wout van Aert's wife opens up about the hard job of 'patching up' after each downfall: "You ask yourself whether it's all worth it"

Wout van Aert's victory on Piazza del Campo was an emotional moment not only for the struggling Belgian, but also his family.

Sarah De Bie was in tears after her husband's victory on Sunday, after which she told Sporza: "It's really not nice to have to patch things up every time. At those moments you ask yourself whether it's all worth it. But it makes it all the more beautiful."

Friedel Guldemont, another "cycling wife" identifies enormously with De Bie's story. "After the gripping interview with Sarah De Bie after Wout's impressive victory in Siena, I felt the need to make my voice heard as a fellow cyclist's wife. Not as a reaction, but as an addition. Out of support, but also to share a bit of recognition," she writes.

"The goodwill for Wout and his family is rightly very high. The picture that Sarah painted of the 'patchwork every time', the pressure that is sky-high, the fight to come back every time... it touched me. Because it is the reality of so many in this sport, including us."

"What many people don’t see or understand is what it really means to live next to a cyclist. My partner Alex [Colman] also had three bad falls last year, including one thta was very reminiscent of Wout's at the Kanarieberg in June. At the time, I was pregnant with our son Phil. The big difference between Wout and Alex? Wout has his place, his career, his security."

Guldemont also mentions the crushing pressure to perform, especially on riders from smaller teams. "In the meantime, they are judged as if they have to win a monument every week. They ride against top riders, dream of a place in the World Tour peloton, but often live with the fear that one crash can mean everything. One mistake, one bad moment, and your dream, your future, your security are at stake."

"We have had to swallow a lot together. But we have also learned a lot: about resilience, about love, about invisible struggle. And about life in the shadow of the peloton, where the stakes and the risks are just as great," she concludes.