Another major championship and another silver for Wout Van Aert. Sunday's UEC Road European Championships brought the Belgian's 13th silver as he finished second behind trade teammate Christophe Laporte atop the Col de VAM.
Van Aert now has silvers at the Olympic Games (one), Cyclocross Worlds (four), Road Worlds (four), European Cyclocross Championships (two), and Belgian Nationals (one) – in addition to a host of golds, of course.
He finished the best from a chase group that almost made it back to Laporte at the finish line after the Frenchman had attacked 12km out. He and teammate Arnaud De Lie led the chase behind but fell just short of catching and passing the eventual winner.
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"I agreed with De Lie that we would draw my card," Van Aert told Het Nieuwsblad after the race. "I think he felt that I was the better of the two. That was a good decision.
"But Arnaud chased so hard – which was necessary to close the gap – that I couldn't get out of Laporte's wheel. We underestimated how much he had left at the end."
Van Aert discussed the tactics of the final, saying that his Belgian team "didn't really do anything wrong" while also acknowledging that he or De Lie should've been on the attack rather than Laporte.
"De Lie or I should be leading, not Laporte," he said. "After that, we didn't really do anything wrong. He rode smartly to have something in reserve."
De Lie, meanwhile, rode to fourth place behind bronze medallist Olav Kooij of the Netherlands. The race marked his pro debut at a World or European Championships, and the 21-year-old impressed and maybe could've been the chosen man for Belgium rather than Van Aert.
"It was super tough at the end," De Lie told Het Nieuwsblad. "I talked to Wout 5km from the finish. I said, 'It’s for you'. It was a good opportunity to give him a nice title, but unfortunately, he finished second behind a super-strong Laporte.
"Looking back, I might still have had the legs to win, but you can never be sure. Maybe we started the sprint a little too early, but that's how it goes in a race."
Regardless of the what-ifs, Van Aert came away with a familiar placing – this was his eighth second place of the season and 20th of the past two years. Later, Van Aert reflected on the "mixed feelings" after another runner-up spot.
"I didn't think about it during the race, but it's an observation I can't deny," he said of his silver medal record. "Of course, that's on my mind. I try to win every race, and that's how I rode today.
"It leaves mixed feelings. On the one hand, it's nice that I'm always there, but this year I'm not quite there. I'm confident things will be different in the future."
