Dude can’t get a break. Wout van Aert, who made a quick recovery after fracturing his ankle in the ‘cross season, was set to race was set to a major rival for Mathieu van der Poel at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad on Saturday. But alas, it’s aint happening.
“Sadly, Wout van Aert will not be able to start in Omloop het Nieuwsblad on Saturday, as he has fallen ill,” Visma-Lease a Bike announced. “The winner of the 2022 edition of the race will take his time to recover.”
A less than ideal winter
To say that the Belgian has had a string of bad luck over the years is an understatement. The latest crappy thing that happened to van Aert was during the Zilvermeercross in Mol. He and MvdP were having an awesome, classic battle when he went down hard. It was a snowy and slippery day and he cooked it pretty badly on a corner.
He broke his ankle, and had to quit the rest of his ‘cross season and take some time off. After a successful surgery, he gradually began training again and was getting set to race on Opening Weekend.
“Obviously it’s a big blow for me to miss out on my first race, having prepared for the classics season the whole winter. We had a good training camp at Sierra Nevada and I was feeling really strong. But unfortunately, it’s also that time of the year where it’s easy to fall ill,” he said. “I remain positive about the feeling I had on training and am confident that I will be able to return to racing soon. Just not this Saturday.”
Pietro Mattio will replace van Aert on the Dutch powerhouse squad. There are several Canadians racing–the majority in the women’s race. NSN Cycling’s Guillaume Boivin is the only elite man racing, but look for riders like Alison Jackson (St Michel – Preference Home – Auber93), Alexandra Volstad (EF Education-Oatly), Kiara Lylyk (Mayenne Monbana My Pie) and Maggie Coles-Lyster (Human Powered Health) to name just a few.
Canadian Cycling Magazine will have reports from both races.