Visma too wanted to win Van Aert. The bad tactic has been picked up by her
BRATISLAVA. He was waiting for his wife with a little son on his hands. She believed she would end a long wait for victory and closes her mouth with critics.
Wout Van Aert showed a great performance at Dwars Door Vlaanderen with his teammates, but after crossing the goal they were for fools. They cowned the situation from which they were not to lose.
In the rehearsal for the monumental classic around Flanders, the Visma-Lease team and the bike had three representatives in the leader of the four-member group, but the 28-year-old American Neilson Powless had a sensationally stolen victory.
« Perhaps it is not possible … If the Belgian media were to bring Visma to heaven after today, this is a huge shame. How could it happen?
For Van Aerto, it would be better if he ended up thirty than like this. I think that in the last kilometer, Powless would not even put on it, « the commentator of the Czech version of Eurosporta Štěpán Straka was amazed.
In an immediate interview, Powless admitted that he did not expect to succeed against such outnumbered. In the competition Van Aert, Mattea Jorgenson and Tiesja Benoot would be happy, even if he ended the second.
Video: Shots from Flemish Classic Dwars Door Vlaanderen 2025
« I can’t believe it. I knew Wout was the strongest in the sprint, and I never thought I would overcome it. Not even in a million years.
I went through the last bend very well, so when we started sprinting, I may have had three or four km/h higher speed. I tried to keep it up to the line and it worked out, « the American said.
For the EF Education – Easypost team, he achieved only the second victory in the ongoing season and his most valuable career at all of the seven.
His triumph reminded the situation ten years ago, when the Omloop Het Niewwsblad shocked three Quick-Stepa racers Brit Ian Stannard.
After years, Tom Boonen admitted that after this loss there was a pretty tense atmosphere in the team and almost killed with his colleague Niki Terpstrom.
That is why Soudal Quick-Step on the X social network after the race wrote « we know this feeling » and also known « meme » with a pair of the same Spiderman.
They wanted to win Van Aert
The Visma-Lease and Bike team has recently earned great criticism for unconvincing performances in the spring classics. Riders in yellow-black jerseys often missed at crucial moments.
Four days before the event around Flanders, however, they played a great game and created a « winning position » over 70 km before the finish.
In the end, however, they wished Van Aert’s victory.
He fell last year during these races, which disrupted his entire season. For injuries he lost not only monumental classics, but also participation in Giro d’Italia.
« It was the first time this year that we managed to make our plan. It was almost perfect. Matteo won here last year, I spent time with Wouto and I wanted to win more than me, » Benoot said.
At the same time, a few minutes after the end of the race, a 31-year-old classic admitted that the selected tactic in the final kilometers was not right but stupid.
« Maybe we underestimated it a bit. In the last five kilometers we were supposed to attack and break Neilson. It was very strong, all honor, but we had it under much more pressure, » Benoot told September.
Video: Fall of WOUTA VAN AERTA and others on Dwars Door Vlaanderen 2024
In Visma they pour ash on the head
In the final kilometers, it was seen how Van Aert told his colleagues to dare to sprint. Jorgenson responded with his thumb.
The Belgian was a paper favorite, but again it turned out that the sprint after long races with paved sections is often very devious.
« If you don’t win with three men in a four -member group, you made a huge mistake. I was convinced of my sprint, so I wanted him to come to it. Now I have to take responsibility for it.
I was too selfish, I’m disappointed with myself. We were supposed to attack earlier, alternately, then we would have nothing to blame, « said Wout Van Aert.
The biggest star of the team was subsequently stopped by the sports director of Grisch Niermann when he said he was responsible for the tactics and the failure takes on himself.
« We believed he would win a sprint. But after a long race, there are sometimes strange things I was supposed to predict in the finals. Nine out of ten sprints would win Wout.
However, this is not an apology. We are disappointed because we have left the perfect race until the last Rovinka, « quotes Niermann’s portal Wielerflits.
