After staunchly denying the rumours all winter, it has now been officially confirmed that
Wout van Aert will indeed compete at the 2025 Cyclocross
World Championships in Lievin next weekend!
A three-time cyclocross world champion in (2016, 2017 and 2018), Van Aert had initially been planned to end his winter before the trip to Lievin. Speculation continued throughout the winter though, that the Belgian would actually be competing for the Rainbow Jersey and now, those rumours have proven well-founded. "We’re thrilled to announce that Wout van Aert will compete in the cyclo-cross World Championships this Sunday!" says Visma. "Motivated by his passion for the sport, Wout expressed his strong desire to be on the start line. After careful discussions, we fully support his decision and can’t wait to watch him give it his all at the worlds."
“I’m feeling good, and my winter has gone well. The World Championships only recently came into my mind and after Maasmechelen the Belgian team coach, my coach at Team Visma | Lease a Bike and I decided to compete,"
says Van Aert himself in an official Visma press release. "I am excited to start in such a beautiful race, and I think that this extra boost is doing me good in the lead-up to bigger goals on the road. Obviously the preparation has been very different, but I’ll give it my best.”
Admire the decision having seen Mathieu's performances this weekend