Wout van Aert confirmed for the six-cyclocross race, but will miss the World Championship

General
Wout van Aert confirmed for the six-cyclocross race, but will miss the World Championship

Wout van Aert and his Visma-Lease A bike team announced that the Belgians will ride only 6 times in this winter's Cyclocross race and confirmed that they will not target the World Championship again in early May 2.

Van Aalto is still recovering from a series knee injury suffered in the crash at the Vuelta A España and is prioritizing the 2025 road racing season. 

He will race six major cyclocross races for the Visma-Lease A Bike training camp and the holiday season. 

Long-term rival Mathieu van der Poel is also expected to announce a reduction in the cyclocross campaign, and tom Pidcock may decide to avoid racing in the mud. 

The first block of Van Aart's cyclocross race will take place in Belgium and will include the Superprestige Mol-Zilvermeercross on 12/23, the exact cross Loenhout-Azencross on 12/27, the Superprestige Gullegem on 1/4 and the Dendermonde World Cup race on 1/5.

Van Aalto will then head to Spain for Visma・Leasebike Training Camp on May 1 and ride the Benidorm World Cup Race on May 1-19. He will end the 1/25 race cyclocross campaign at the Maas Metheren World Cup on 6 November.

"This winter we chose a compact schedule of six races that fit well with my training plan. I will be in the cyclocross season to approach purely out of my love of sport, but I have modest ambitions," Van Aalto explained. 

"After a crash at the Vuelta and a knee injury, it is essential to make the most of the time you have to prepare for the road season. Some cyclocross races fit well with that plan, but the schedule is deliberately more limited than in previous years.

Van Aalto was forced to abandon the Vuelta a España after crashing in Lagos de Covadonga in the descent of Colada Llomena in Stage 16 At that time, Visma・Lease A Bike confirmed that he suffered severe knee pain caused by deep wounds. I confirmed it.

He returned to training on the street on 10/4 and is still combining physical therapy work and training. He will be attending the Visma-Lease A Bike training camp in Spain.

Van Aart is a 3-time cyclocross world champion, but uses 6 races to complement his road training. He does not expect to be in form when he makes his Cyclocross debut on 12/23. 

"That's going to be the first goal, but I certainly won't reach my highest level there," he revealed, alluding to high ambitions in late May that allowed him to clash with van der Poel.   

"There are two great races on the calendar of Benidorm and Maasmecheren. We look forward to getting back on the field and connecting again with our fans," Van Aert concluded.

Categories