Wout van Aert eyes return to Strade Bianche in 2023

Wout van Aert is set to return to Strade Bianche and Tirreno-Adriatico in 2023, having missed those races in favour of riding Paris-Nice this season.

Speaking to WielerFlits, the Belgian has said that his spring campaign will take on a different look to 2022, when he skipped the Cyclocross World Championships and then opened his road season with a win at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

Van Aert has enjoyed success in Italy in the past in the past, winning Strade Bianche and Milan-San Remo in 2020, and then landing two stages en route to second overall at Tirreno-Adriatico in 2021.

"I definitely missed Strade Bianche, as well as Tirreno-Adriatico," Van Aert said of 2022. "I love Tirreno, although the same goes for Paris-Nice. Because I am now focusing on the Cyclocross World Championships at the end of January, my preparation for the spring will be different to last season.

"That means doing some things differently. I definitely see a return to the Italian races. The triptych of Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milan-San Remo is definitely already playing on my mind.

"The Cyclocross World Championships this winter in Hoogerheide is an important goal for me again. Had it been in the USA again or somewhere else far away, I probably would have made the same choice as in 2022."

Van Aert held his high level of form throughout last spring, despite missing the Tour of Flanders with a COVID-19 infection. He won on his season debut at Omloop in late February, again at Paris-Nice, then at the E3 Saxo Bank Classic in late March, before stepping on the podium at Paris-Roubaix and Liège-Bastogne-Liège in April.

"I clearly took another step in 2022," he said. "One of the reasons I was able to make that progression is because we eliminated certain important races from my program. That's definitely a lesson for the future.

"Last season, I further found a good way to maintain my form over a longer period of races. Before I was always good after a training camp but I struggled to maintain that form for a longer period of time. We have found a better balance in that now.

"I achieved my best form ever in the spring classics in the week before the Tour of Flanders. Other than that corona infection, my preparation was perfect. Even after the infection, which kept me off the bike for a week, I still had excellent form for Paris-Roubaix and Liège-Bastogne-Liège."

Van Aert also noted that he felt he had improved in the final stages of the longest Classics on the calendar like San Remo, Roubaix, and Liège. "I could finally also make a difference in the last hour of the main classics," he said. "In previous years I still had a little trouble with those longer distances above 250km."

Van Aert’s absence from the Ronde saw him extend his Classics campaign until Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where his podium finish augured well for his future prospects in the Ardennes. He downplayed the idea, however, that winning all five Monuments is within his reach.

"Of the five Monuments, so far I have only won Milan-San Remo," he said. "If you think realistically, it would be stupid to dream of winning all five Monuments with only one win in your pocket, let alone make it a goal.

"I've never even ridden Il Lombardia, although I believe this is a classic I can handle one day. On the other hand, it's not easy to ride all five Monuments in one year. I'm only focusing on a few of those classics right now. My sights are set on the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix for now."