'A new mindset was born' - How Montmartre laid the foundation for Wout van Aert’s Paris-Roubaix triumph

Speaking during a virtual ride with fans on the indoor cycling platform Rouvy, a sponsor of Visma | Lease a Bike, Wout van Aert pointed back to the final stage of the Tour de France, where a key realisation took hold.

“It did something for my morale,” the 31-year-old said about his win in Le Grand Boucle, in quotes collected by Sporza. “At that moment I was maybe a bit too convinced that riders like Tadej Pogačar and Van der Poel are hard to beat on short cobbled climbs.”

In the final stage of last year’s Tour de France, Wout van Aert responded to an acceleration from Pogačar, before countering and riding solo to the finish on the Champs Élysées.

“Of course it was the final day of the Tour. I was fresher than Pogačar, but it still made me realise I had something left in my legs. A new mindset was born,” van Aert said.

Despite that renewed belief, van Aert still had doubts in the build up to Paris-Roubaix, as his legs did not respond as he had hoped.

“I was exhausted after the recon on Thursday. I didn’t feel good,” he said. “As a rider you want to feel good every day. It was a strange build up.”

By the eve of the race, that feeling had shifted. “On Saturday I felt hungry again.”

Twenty four hours later, Wout van Aert found himself in a position to satisfy that hunger as he entered the velodrome in Roubaix alongside Tadej Pogačar. At that point, the race came down to instinct. 

“The hyperfocus took over. I was on Pogačar’s wheel, where I wanted to be. I didn’t doubt myself anymore and I was ready to sprint. I was no longer aware of what was happening around me.”

Just before the final corner, Wout van Aert accelerated, and Tadej Pogačar was unable to respond, allowing Van Aert to finally claim the cobbled Classic he had long coveted.

While almost every cycling fan was celebrating, the victory did not immediately register for the Belgian. “That only came two or three minutes after the finish,” he explained.

Ultimately, one feeling stood out above all others: “It’s strange to say, but that Sunday it immediately felt like a relief.”

That sense of relief was rooted in what came before. After a prolonged period in which results did not always follow expectations, the significance of the moment was different. “I had to be patient for a long time. That made it more special.”

The reaction that followed, both inside the peloton and beyond, proved harder to process.

“Even for me, the madness and the emotions of people are sometimes hard to understand,” Van Aert said. “I just do my job and chase my dream. It’s nice to be part of a great team and a great sport. I never started to be a role model.”

At the same time, he recognises the effect his performances can have, particularly on younger fans. “I do enjoy it. Inspiring kids is the best thing there is. The admiration in their eyes… I think it’s good that I don’t try to understand it too much.”

For now, Van Aert places the Roubaix victory among the defining moments of his career, while keeping his ambitions open.

“I can’t think of a bigger highlight in my career,” he said. “I hope there are more successes to come, but for now I’m still enjoying it.”