Wout van Aert is racing the UCI Cyclocross World Championships in 2023 and he desires to win. In line with an interview in Het Laatste Nieuws (opens in new tab) that’s his solely purpose for the cyclocross season. He’ll start his ramp-up towards February’s Worlds in Hoogerheide on the World Cup in Antwerp on 4 December.
“I like to point out my ambitions. I am going to try this now. The World Championship is near residence, on a course the place I turned world champion within the U23s. The World Championship is my solely large purpose of the winter,” Van Aert stated.
Van Aert received three world titles between 2016 and 2018 earlier than launching his enormously profitable street profession. Nevertheless, he is continued to maintain his foot within the cyclocross scene with a restricted calendar of races.
Final 12 months, Van Aert got here into the cyclocross season across the identical time as he plans to this 12 months. He began with a victory in Growth then took six extra wins in a row and his fifth Belgian nationwide title. He remained reticent about Worlds till asserting in January that he wouldn’t journey to Arkansas for the championships in Fayetteville.
The Worlds additionally went off with out defending champion Mathieu van der Poel, who was battling a knee damage that knocked him out of many of the cyclocross season. Tom Pidcock claimed the rainbow jersey in Fayetteville.
This 12 months, Van Aert expects Van der Poel to come back again extra motivated than ever to win his fifth elite world title.
“It is also a house cross for him. He can even be motivated. For me, the season has but to begin,” Van Aert stated. “It stays to be seen how we examine to the remainder. We will not say something significant about that earlier than then.”
Jumbo-Visma revealed Van Aert’s schedule yesterday, with the Antwerp and Dublin World Cups in early January and a full menu of Christmas ‘kerstperoide’ races with 5 races throughout eight days.
“I do know I can deal with that, plenty of ‘cross races in a short while. I would like to have the ability to make amends for the ‘cross rhythm I am lacking. Over the Christmas interval, I need to put together in addition to I can for January.”
