After contributing to the chase which ultimately led to Wout van Aert losing Dwars door Vlaanderen in the final few hundred metres, Belgian racer Florian Vermeersch has opened up about the online abuse he received following the race.
The race ultimately saw a dramatic victory for Ineos Grenadiers' Filippo Ganna following a last-gasp catch in which the Italian denied Wout van Aert victory, who attacked in the final 40km and rode solo for much of the final phase of racing.
However, Vermeersch's role in the chase was also significant, though it may not be reflected in his finishing place of 31st, with the Belgian following Ganna's late acceleration out of the bunch with 4km to go and helping pull through until he ultimately ran out of steam.
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The Italian still had gas in the tank, however, and delivered lone leader Van Aert his third heartbreak at Dwars in a row, which garnered Vermeersch negative attention from a subset of cycling fans online, who made him the villain of the day.
Chasing down a Belgian national hero like Van Aert, Vermeersch said on Sporza's Vive le Vélo show that he was labelled a "traitor" and a "coward" by individuals online for his part in the race's outcome, with them adding that "he ruined everything".
"I was shocked by it, yes. It was the first time I received hate messages and minor threats," said Vermeersch. "Something like that had never happened to me before. It shook me for a while, but I have been able to come to terms with it now.
"It is confronting, because I hadn't thought it would affect me so much."
He went on to acknowledge how widespread such incidents are in top-level sport, noting similarities with the reaction to Alessandro Bastoni's red card for Italy last week, which ultimately contributed to them failing to qualify for the World Cup against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
"I also realise that I am not an exception. I saw an article about the Italian defender Bastoni, who had made a blunder and received death threats," he said.
"So it is commonplace, but this was the first time I was a victim and it hit me harder than expected."
A consistent presence at this year's cobbled Classics, UAE Team Emirates-XRG's 27-year-old one-day specialist, Vermeersch, has undoubtedly been one of the stand-out riders of the spring so far.
Recording third-place finishes that propelled him onto the podium of both Omloop Nieuwsblad and E3 Saxo Classic, Vermeersch has also impressed at In Flanders Fields and the traditional midweek Tour of Flanders warm-up race, Dwars door Vlaanderen.
Vermeersch will try to put the experience behind him as he lines up in Antwerp on Sunday for the start of the Tour of Flanders, as a key part of the team riding in support of Tadej Pogačar. The Slovenian takes aim at his third victory in De Ronde, and given his current form, Vermeersch could prove a dangerous wild card for UAE in the later stages of the race.
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