Van Aert comes up just short in opening time trial Tour de France
Wout van Aert has just missed out on a win on the opening day of the Tour de France. The Belgian of Team Jumbo-Visma rode to the second time in the time trial. Classification riders Primoz Roglic and Jonas Vingegaard finished among the main competitors for the general classification.
Due to the wet weather conditions, the course was treacherously slippery in some places. Roglic was the first to start on behalf of Team Jumbo-Visma. The Olympic time trial champion rode a strong race, placing him among the general classification's favourites. Vingegaard followed his teammate's example and rode to seventh place in his home country.
After the Team Jumbo-Visma GC riders, it was Van Aert's turn. The Belgian, previously tipped as a favourite for this first stage, held his own in difficult circumstances. In the end, only Lampaert managed to set a faster time.
"It went well. I think the second time proves that"
"I am satisfied with my time trial. On the road, I had a good feeling. I didn't take too much risk in the corners, but I rode good lines. It went well. I think the second time proves that", Van Aert said.
The Belgian had traveled to Copenhagen with big ambitions. "I came to win. When I crossed the line, I knew I had already beaten some strong riders. It was a bit of a shock that Yves was faster in the end. Well done to him."
Sports director Grischa Niermann reviewed his riders' performance after the time trial. "Primoz and Jonas rode well. The most important thing was to ride a good ride and not fall. They both did that well. They only lost time on Pogacar. We can live with it and are satisfied with the time trial of our GC riders."
After his GC riders' excellent race, Niermann also hoped to win. "When Wout came in, we thought we had a good chance of victory. Then Christophe came close, but unfortunately, he fell. Lampaert was five seconds faster, so we were beaten on value", the German sports director said.