Van Aert: "Winning on your return is special."

Wout van Aert has definitively put his physical problems behind him. The Belgian champion from Visma-Lease a Bike made his triumphant return to racing on Wednesday, just over a month after being forced to withdraw from the Tour de France due to an elbow infection that nearly turned into sepsis. And the manner of his return couldn't have been more eloquent: a sprint victory and the leader's jersey.

In the first stage of the Tour of Denmark , a 197.2-kilometer route around Aalborg, Van Aert outsprinted Czech Lukáš Kubiš (Unibet Rose Rockets) and Danish rider Henrik Pedersen (Uno-X Mobility). He will wear the leader's jersey for the second stage on Thursday.

But be warned: success was far from a foregone conclusion. Van Aert was involved in a massive crash in the final 70 kilometers of the race, a potentially disastrous situation for someone returning from surgery. "It was a dangerous area with a risk of winds, and there was a lot of chaos," the Belgian told Sporza. "I was in the middle of the pack and couldn't go anywhere. Luckily, I managed to stay more or less upright."

With a hint of irony, Van Aert joked about having to elbow his way through the pack, alluding to his elbow surgery, before later clarifying: "It's not really my style to elbow my way through; I prefer to do it with my legs. It's a chaotic race though, with all those motivated local teams and that constant fighting."

The stage was decided on the hilly final circuit, where Van Aert and teammate Christophe Laporte managed to break into the top eight riders, working to neutralize any breakaway attempts before Van Aert could unleash the winning sprint.

"Winning is always difficult, so to do it so quickly after coming back is really special," Van Aert commented. "The plan was for Christophe to be in the lead group, while I would bridge the gap on the final climb. The gap was a little bigger than expected, but luckily I still managed to close it."

The Belgian champion also revealed that he drew on his memories to manage the finale: "I remembered that little climb from 2018, when I raced here for the first time and was taken by surprise by the gaps that opened up there. So I knew that today was already an opportunity to make a difference. My explosiveness is good."

Photo: Sprint Cycling Agency