Major setback for Van Aert as surgery required for fracture | Videos

Wout van Aert has endured a disastrous cyclocross campaign which has now ended in a serious injury that will significantly interrupt his road season preparations (Photo: Kristof Ramon)

Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) has suffered a serious setback as the 2026 road race season looms large as he has been diagnosed with a sprained and fractured ankle following his crash at Exact Cross Mol today.

The injury is to his right ankle, the same leg he damaged significantly in his Vuelta 2024 crash, after which he did not look at his best until the end of this year's Tour de France, almost a year after that smash in Spain. He also injured his right leg in an horrific crash in the 2019 Tour de France which ended his season.

Van Aert could today be seen limping as he abandoned the race following a heavy fall on a sweeping righthander, in the snow, while leading the event in the company of Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech).

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The Belgian got up after the incident and tried to struggle on but was quickly forced out. As he was leaving the venue later, to get medical checks, he could be seen with a pronounced limp, though not using any support, such as crutches.

His team has now confirmed he "sprained his ankle and sustained a small fracture", adding he will "undergo surgery on Saturday, after which he will focus on his recovery".

The crash, the latest and most serious racing incident in a series of disasters since he started his campaign last month, means his cyclocross season is over. It is a blow as he had been toying with the idea of riding the Worlds and now faces a lay-off just as his training should be on point for the road campaign.

“Of course I am very disappointed to have to end my cyclocross season like this,” Van Aert said in a statement issued by his team. “I was feeling better and better, including today in Mol.

"I was really looking forward to the race in Zonhoven and the Belgian Championships. But my focus will now be on recovery and, later on, the preparation of the road season.”

In contrast to Van Aert, his great rival van der Poel, who has now pulled far ahead of him in both road and 'cross, rode to another victory today, seeing off runner-up Toon Aerts (Charles Liégeois-Deschacht) by 1:23.

That maintains van der Poel's 100 per cent record, taking eight wins from eight starts, since his season began less than three weeks ago. His victories have included four rounds of the UCI World Cup. His preparation for the road season looks right on track.

Van Aert's crash damage mounts

Though today's injury, on the face of it, should be straightforward, it is the latest crash in which Van Aert has done damage requiring surgery. He suffered two much more serious crashes in 2024; at Dwars door Vlaanderen in March and at La Vuelta in September.

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He broke his collarbone and fractured ribs during the first crash, at high speed on March 27th, 2024, and was out of race action for two months. He had only regained top form when he crashed again, on September 3rd, during stage 16 at La Vuelta.

He had already won three stages on the race and was leading the climbers’ and points classifications. In the crash he suffered a bruised bone near his knee, which he smashed open after hitting a rock face on a descent. The bruising and wound resulted in a slow return even to walking, never mind training.

Back in 2019, Van Aert also suffered another heavy crash, slicing his leg on a roadside barrier during the stage 13 TT in Pau, which ended his season. He suffered a deep wound into the muscle of his hip and leg, again on the right side, and later said as he lay on the road "it felt as if I was burning alive".

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