“I didn’t show much, and that’s a pity,” Wout van Aert said about the Spanish sand that was in his engine.

On Sunday, the sound of “Woet! Woet! Woet!” could be heard ringing through the streets of the northern area of Benidorm. The term “Woet” alludes to Wout, also known as Wout van Aert. At the beginning of the cyclocross competition in Spain, the Belgian rider of Visma | Lease a Bike was the most popular and garnered the most support from the crowd. However, in the end, he was forced to settle for fourth place. According to what he said to IDLProCycling.com after the race, the Belgian, who is known for his pragmatic outlook, could live with it.

A remarkable amount of reconnaissance was carried out by Van Aert prior to the cyclocross race in Spain, where he was supported by teammates Attila Valter and Tiesj Benoot. Yes, the legs are in good shape. I put in a lot of work during this time, which was really intensive. But on Saturday, I had a rest day, and during the recon, I was able to do an extra lap, so it was wonderful to ride around for a bit longer on the cyclo-cross bike,” he remarked after the training camp with his squad in La Nucia, which is located just north of Benidorm.

At the very beginning of the race, the Belgian was not able to make it through with the top 25 riders in the competition. In my opinion, it was a very rough race. After a poor beginning, I did not feel very rejuvenated, and it took a considerable amount of time before I was able to make it to the first group. It wasn’t my day, and I was already aware that I was pushing myself to my limits there. He commended Nys, who ended up winning the race, saying, “I had to gamble on one acceleration in the last laps, but Thibau was better in the final lap.”Because it was such a quick course, I wasn’t in the best of health. In Benidorm, he analysed his race and concluded that the fact that it took him such a long time to get to the front of the pack was already not a positive omen. I had to take some time to settle in, but if you have terrific legs, you may quickly charge to the front of the pack on the first lap. I never really got involved in the race at all. Due to the fact that everything was not working out, it took me half a race to get in front of the pack. Unfortunately, I had to play catch-up in order to win the race.

The well-known uphill portion in Benidorm presents an opportunity for Van Aert to improve his position on the course. Although it is one of the few areas on the path where you can make progress, doing so requires a significant amount of energy. I’ll be honest: I didn’t have the best legs, and then I had to bet on an acceleration. Normally, that works out perfectly for me, but I’ll say it anyway: I made a mistake.

Although I was aware that I needed to conserve my energy, I was already in a position where I needed to bridge the distance between Lars van der Haar and Eli Iserbyt two laps before the finish line. Following that, I was merely attempting to follow, as I did not have a specific plan in place. “I was too far away when Thibau went, but he was powerful on that hill,” said Van Aert, who was outsprinted by a powerful Van der Haar in the battle for third place. Van Aert was unable to catch up to Van der Haar.

A clarification is not something that the Belgian is seeking for. I put in a lot of effort in my training, but I know that everyone selects their own way of getting ready, and I don’t want to use that as an excuse. Every day is unique and distinct from the one before it. Despite the fact that I wasn’t bad, I didn’t have the legs to make a difference in things. As soon as I got to the top of the pack, I knew Thibau was the driver to keep an eye on, and the way he accelerated on the final lap was absolutely incredible,” Van Aert said.

Below the photo, you can read more!