Wout van Aert will not be in the next Giro d'Italia
With a brief message on social media, Wout van Aert has confirmed his absence in the upcoming edition of the Giro d'Italia, which will start on May 4th. Less than a month before the start of the Corsa Rosa, the Belgian cyclist continues to be unable to train due to the injuries he suffered after his spectacular fall in Dwars door Vlaanderen.
Wout van Aert won't be recovered in time for the Giro d'Italia
Despite Visma-Lease a Bike expressing confidence in Wout van Aert's recovery in time to participate in the Giro d'Italia 2024, reality has prevailed and, ultimately, the Belgian announced on the team's social media that he would not be able to take part in the Italian race.
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We remind you that Wout van Aert suffered a spectacular crash during Dwars door Vlaanderen a couple of weeks ago, fracturing his collarbone along with several ribs and the sternum. He was successfully operated on for the collarbone fracture, which is a common injury among cyclists that does not pose major complications and barely affects training. However, the ribs and sternum have to heal naturally. In the meantime, they are extremely painful when breathing, coughing, etc., practically preventing the cyclist from doing any training.
This is precisely what Wout van Aert explains in the video where he states that he will not participate in the Giro d'Italia because, although the injuries are healing properly and he has already done some pedaling, the rib fractures prevent him from training properly, making it impossible to reach the start of the race in less than a month with a minimum level of fitness.
A similar situation is faced by the other leader of Visma-Lease a Bike, Jonas Vingegaard, in preparation for the Tour de France, adding a pneumothorax to the collarbone and ribs injuries, which requires a much more careful recovery and raises doubts about his presence in the Grande Boucle. In any case, a real setback for the Dutch team that will have to look for alternative plans. For the Giro d'Italia, the team itself has confirmed that Christophe Laporte will take Wout van Aert's place.
Meanwhile, Wout van Aert does not set deadlines and explains that his recovery comes first, although presumably he should have plenty of time to prepare for the Olympic road race in Paris. Now the question is whether he will compete in the Tour de France as preparation or undergo specific training to arrive in Paris with full guarantees.