Wout van Aert is out of the Tour de France due to the effects of an elbow injury which resulted in an infection, his team announced on Wednesday morning.
The Visma-Lease a Bike rider was expected to be a key support rider to Jonas Vingegaard's attempt to win the yellow jersey back, but will now miss the French Grand Tour for the first time since 2018.
Van Aert injured his elbow in a training crash the week before the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, with an infection developing which meant a trip to hospital was required. The team and Van Aert have decided that full recovery is the priority over attempting to be on the start line of the Tour in just over two weeks' time.
The Belgian appeared to be struggling at Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes last week, leaving the race on stage six, but not before he won stage five, allaying some fears about fitness. However, there were reports this week that he had missed the start of Visma's pre-Tour training camp, and the problem appears big enough to force him out of the team's key target for the season.
"This is of course a big disappointment. The Tour de France is one of my main goals every year," Van Aert said in a statement on the squad's website.
"Unfortunately, a crash during training has put a spanner in the works, and the injury to my elbow has worsened and has still not healed sufficiently. Together with the team, we have concluded that starting the Tour in top form is not feasible at this point. My full focus is now on my recovery so I can return to my best level later this season."
Van Aert hasn't missed a Tour since joining Visma-Lease a Bike in 2019, winning 10 stages in that time, and the green jersey in 2022 as well. The 31-year-old was also a key part of Vingegaard's overall triumphs in 2022 and 2023, so his absence is a huge blow for his team.
"Wout is one of the most important riders in our team and we would obviously have loved to have him at the start of the Tour," sports director Marc Reef added. "In recent days we have explored all options, but ultimately his health comes first. With the recovery process required, it is not possible for him to reach top form in time for the Tour de France. It is unfortunate that he will not be there, but we are convinced this is the right decision for his recovery and the rest of his season."
It is not the first time that misfortune has struck Van Aert, who fractured his ankle in a cyclo-cross crash at the beginning of the year, before fighting back to form to win Paris-Roubaix in memorable circumstances.
In 2022, he tested positive for Covid days before Flanders, depriving him of an opportunity at Belgium's biggest race; Mathieu van der Poel went on to win. A year later, Van Aert finished third at Roubaix after puncturing on the Carrefour de l'Arbre. Van der Poel won. In 2024, Van Aert looked in great form, before crashing at Dwars door Vlaanderen and ending his tilt at the Classics early. Last year, he raced them all, but was coming back from the serious knee injury he suffered at the Vuelta a España the previous summer.
