A World Championship without van Aert? The Belgian’s cyclo-cross calendar lacks a championship in Tabor

The Jumbo-Visma cycling stable has unveiled the cyclocross calendar of one of its biggest stars, Belgian Wout van Aert. However, to the surprise of many fans, the February World Championships in Tabor are missing from the list of races. Will the three-time world champion miss out on the rainbow jersey this time?

From the programme released this week by the Jumbo-Visma team, it is obvious at first glance that this year’s cyclocross season for van Aert will be considerably shorter than last year. He will line up at the start of the cyclocross for the first time on December 9 in Essen, after two months without racing.

The peak of the star Belgian’s season should come over the Christmas period, when he will race on courses in Mol, Antwerp, Asper-Gavere and Heusden-Zolder. Meanwhile, January’s World Cup events in Zonhoven, Belgium and Benidorm, Spain remain with a question mark.

“It was a deliberate decision to limit the programme. Last year it was mentally challenging for me to focus on the cyclocross season and then move on to the spring road races. I don’t want to leave anything to chance when it comes to the spring classics. That’s why, although with a heavy heart, I’m going with a shorter program this time around,” van Aert said in an article for the Jumbo-Visma website.

“It will definitely be tough to get to the top level. I only have a few races to get in shape and then I’ll be right back. It’s going to be different than what I’ve been used to so far. But it’s for the sake of a higher goal,” added the 29-year-old Belgian.

The decision to cut the cyclocross season short confirmed that van Aert is expected to focus on big road races next year. Spring classics are his target, and he is also expected to take part in the Giro d’Italia for the first time in his career.

Other important milestones include the Summer Olympics in Paris, where he should take part in both the road race and the time trial, and the world road championships in Zurich, Switzerland.

The fight for the rainbow jersey

Van Aert’s published cyclocross calendar, unlike his long-time rival and current world champion Mathieu van der Poel, does not include the world championships, which will be held in Tabor in early February next year. This suggests that Czech fans will not see another of the legendary duels between the Belgian and the Dutchman this time.

Van der Poel is the only one of the current trio of cyclocross superstars who has confirmed his participation in the World Championships. It is not yet known whether British Tom Pidcock will also race in Tabor. However, given the increased attention he wants to pay to mountain biking because of the Olympics, it doesn’t seem too likely.

Source: Jumbo-Visma, CyclingUpToDate.com