Van Aert's coach on his current form: "To be clear: I did not decide this"
Wout van Aert's performance in this cyclocross season is far from what the Belgian is used to. However, everything seems to point to a very calculated plan according to the statements that in recent days have been made by both the Visma-Lease a Bike cyclist and his coach in different Belgian media.
Wout van Aert has a plan for this season that does not involve cyclocross
The form that Wout van Aert is showing in the latest cyclocross races is raising alarms among fans who do not understand how a cyclist who last year was dominating the mud specialty with one leg, only an inspired Mathieu van der Poel could beat him in the final stretch of the campaign, this season seems unable to not only win but even to fight his archrival.
In fact, even Van Aert himself was surprised by the form that Mathieu was showing as he pointed out in statements to the newspaper Het Niewsblad. “If you see how Mathieu is going, you have to be realistic. It will be very difficult to win one of the two races that I have left,” the Belgian pointed out a few days ago.
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From the outset, the very reduced cyclocross campaign that his calendar proposed, in which the dispute of the World Cup is dispensed with, gave us a good idea that this year the winter discipline was not in Wout's plans, not at least as a competition in itself, only a way to do quality training on the days that it touched and, of course, to make money thanks to the starting cache that the two great stars of the modality have in the races.
However, as we could already imagine, all this points to a perfectly established plan, something that Mathieu Heijboer, Wout van Aert's new coach, confirmed, indicating that the cyclist had intentionally reduced his race load looking for his best form for early April, the magical week of the cobblestones with the linked Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix in which Wout van Aert has the great debt of his record.
“We want to keep improving steadily, to be at our best in April,” the technician explained. “Last year was different, his level was very high in cyclocross and this was followed by a physical and mental downturn as well as being sick. In the end, time ran out to prepare for La Primavera”.
Heijbboer also pointed out that the change in planning was Wout's idea “To be clear: that was not my decision. It was already decided after the analysis after the Spring Classics at the end of April”. Wout's coach also ruled out that the defeats he is suffering in this cyclocross campaign will affect the cyclist's morale “That is not a problem at all. The only thing that matters to him is that he likes cyclocross. He is competing in a discipline he loves”.
Wout van Aert's road campaign will start at the Jaén Paraiso Interior Classic to link with the Volta ao Algarve and the 'opening weekend' of the Belgian classics. From there, he will prioritize training over competition with a high-altitude concentration that will mean he is not present in either Strade Bianche or Milan-San Remo. We will have to wait until the second week of April to find out if Wout van Aert's plan has been successful.