Wout van Aert starts the Tour de France. Wout van Aert, a Belgian rider, has been on the podium three times without ever winning. However, he dominates both the general classification as well as the points classification. "I have to force myself to be happy. The yellow jersey was a dream of mine for a while. That's why I prepared my preparations. I like to win races.
Today was close. It gives me mixed emotions. Despite that, I wasn't expecting to win today. Even though I consider myself a sprinter, pure sprints aren't my favourite. That's it. I won the Champs-Elysees in the 2021 Tour. This Tour will offer me more opportunities.
Wout van Aert regrets the 2022 edition for the first time. "Today is my first major disappointment. The first two days I was defeated by stronger players. It's all my fault this time, even though Dylan (Groenewegen), was strong. I should have waited longer to get in the seat of Christophe Laporte. If I stay longer in his wheel, I believe I can win. He is a very good pitcher, and I should have believed him more.
The Jumbo-Visma sprinter looks forward to the next stages, and especially the cobblestones. "What lies ahead is extremely challenging. The fourth stage will not be easy, and then there will be cobblestones. These two stages will be more difficult than in Denmark, and I'm sure that this will work in my favor.
We will combine our two ambitions (yellow jerseys for the team and green jerseys, editor's notice). I'm in a good place in the green jersey. We now have the rest day. It's a new experience for me in this Tour. There were usually nine to ten days of racing before the first break. Tomorrow (Monday) I'll have to start the engine to get good legs Tuesday. Although it is new, it's nice to be able rest after the trip.
