Wout van Aert: ‘Will the Tour ride in a different way this year, was no longer human’

While the riders in the Giro struggle through wind and weather, Wout van Aert and his Jumbo buddies are high and dry on the Sierra Nevada to prepare for the Tour de France via a first altitude training camp. Of course he and Jinas Vingegaard want to excel just as much as last year, but the Belgian indicates that he is opting for a different approach.

No more human

He said that earlier this year in our season guide. In the 2022 Tour, Van Aert was on the attack almost every day. Unfortunately, we won’t be seeing that any time soon in this edition. But he has a good reason for it.

“This year’s Tour I will ride in a different way than last year, because then I was no longer human the week after. If you finish the Tour in a normal way, you can get better. Only last year was so hard. The focus will be more on stage victories and less on the green jersey.”

Getting better is one of the goals, because this year the World Cup awaits quite soon after the Tour – two weeks later. In view of this, will Van Aert also have to do less servant work in the mountains for the team?

I surpassed myself on the Hautacam last year, but I can also win mountain stages. In addition, I am approached almost every day about the Hautacam and that is also worth something to me. It will already make a huge difference knowing that another goal awaits two weeks later. The mindset in Paris will be very different,” says Van Aert.

Giro

Incidentally, Van Aert admitted that he had considered going for the Giro instead of the Tour, also because of that World Cup so soon after the Tour.

“I’ve been thinking about the Giro, but that didn’t fit into the schedule. Ultimately, the Tour is the best preparation. In addition, I am in the best years of my career and so I also want to show myself in the biggest race in the world. Not that the Giro isn’t a big race, but you know what I mean,” he concludes.