Wout van Aert confirmed for season debut on cobbles of Samyn Classic after missing Opening Weekend due to illness

Despite doubts surrounding his health, Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) will make his road season debut at Le Samyn Classic on Tuesday, the race organisers have confirmed.

Van Aert was forced to miss his planned season debut at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad on Saturday after falling ill in the build-up to the race. His Visma-Lease a Bike team did not specify the illness nor indicate whether this would affect his planned appearance at Le Samyn.

However, confirmation came from the race organisers on Monday morning that the Belgian star will be on the start line in Quaregnon, Belgium, on Tuesday.

Van Aert has had a disrupted preparation for the 2026 season, breaking his ankle at the start of the year and undergoing surgery. He was able to train at altitude at Sierra Nevada, but not completely as planned, as weather conditions kept him indoors on a number of days.

He remained on track for his mooted debut at the Classics-opening Omloop until he suddenly fell ill in the week of Saturday’s race, with his withdrawal announced on Thursday.

Van Aert was spotted out on his bike on Sunday, and it has now been confirmed that he is back on track with his season schedule. The 31-year-old is down to compete at Strade Bianche on Saturday, for the first time since 2021, and a stage race in Tirreno-Adriatico next week ahead of the main block of Classics, which will include Milan-San Remo, the Tour of Flanders, and Paris-Roubaix.

Quite how much this latest illness – and indeed the other winter setbacks – will have affected his ability to peak for these major targets remains to be seen. We should get some answers on the cobbles of the Samyn Classic on Tuesday afternoon.

Though not a major Classic like the Omloop, the Samyn Classic is a tough, gritty so-called ‘semi-Classic’ that takes place in the Wallonia region of Belgium, near the French border. It is not so hilly as the Flemish one-day races but includes a number of cobblestone sectors on the finishing circuit that make up much of the 204km route.

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