It may only be mid-November but Wout van Aert and Jumbo-Visma are already exploring the routes of the 2024 cobbled Classics, including that of the Tour of Flanders.
The Belgian, who will once again be taking aim at his first cobbled Monument victory next April, was joined by several teammates as he hit the Belgian roads in preparation for next season’s spring Classics.
He’ll target the Belgian Monument and Paris-Roubaix next spring, but is set to race a reduced schedule in the run-up to the pair, with Het Laatste Nieuws reporting that the Volta ao Algarve, Strade Bianche, and Dwars door Vlaanderen may be his only races before Flanders. The Belgian paper also reports that he’s in line for a Vuelta a España debut next season.
Van Aert took on a 7.7km run on Tuesday with teammate Tiesj Benoot, who he nicknamed ‘the Gent gazelle’ in a post on Strava. Later in the morning, he took on the route of the Dwars door Vlaanderen alongside Edoardo Affini, Tim van Dijke, Mick van Dijke and team directeurs sportifs Maarten Wynants and Grischa Niermann.
The 111km ride, titled ‘In Flanders with the Killer Bees‘, saw the group ride from Gent to Waregem saw them take on several of the challenges of the race – which Van Aert didn’t ride in 2023 – including Berg ten Houte, Kanarieberg, Knotkeberg, and Nokereberg.
On Wednesday, Van Aert was joined by the same group again as well as Christophe Laporte, Loe Van Belle, and new teammate Matteo Jorgenson as they rode a recon of the Tour of Flanders.
A winding route between Ronse and Oudenaarde saw the Jumbo-Visma men tackle the hills and cobbles of the Flandrian Monument before heading north up the River Schelde to Gent for a total of 164km in a Strava post titled ‘Additional training as the weather is exceptionally good‘.
The five-hour day out saw Van Aert and co tackle 1,775 metres of climbing across the famous climbs of Flanders – Hotondberg, Kortekeer, Wolvenberg, Molenberg, Berendries, Valkenberg, Berg ten Houte, Kanarieberg, Koppenberg, Steenbeekdries, Taaienberg, Kruisberg, as well as two ascents of the Oude Kwaremont-Paterberg duo.
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Van Aert has wasted no time in getting into full training for the upcoming season after a trip to Colombia which saw him take on Rigoberto Urán’s El Giro de Rigo gran fondo. He’s set to compete in a reduced…
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