Wout van Aert has showered for the first time in almost two weeks following his heavy crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen.
The Belgian suffered a broken collarbone, fractured ribs, a fractured sternum and extensive road rash when he hit the tarmac in the cobbled Classic last month. He underwent surgery days later, and is now slowly returning to fitness.
In a Strava post, shared on Monday, Van Aert revealed his latest recovery milestone. "First shower in 12 days," he wrote, titling a 5.5km walk out his hometown of Herentals, Belgium.
At Dwars door Vlaanderen, Van Aert was pictured sitting at the roadside, jersey in tatters, with a throbbing, red graze covering his right shoulder. His team-mate Mick van Dijke said after the race that, when he cycled past, "Wout was crying out in pain".
"I saw that Wout was actually completely undressed," Van Dijke said. "As cyclists, we have little protection."
Asked how Van Aert has been washing since, if not showering, a spokesperson from Visma-Lease a Bike told Cycling Weekly this was "not something the team knows and shares". A cloth, sponge, and warm water is, however, the presumed answer.
The Belgian’s latest Strava post marked his third since the crash on 27 March, the previous two also short walks. The 29-year-old was down to ride both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix this month, but had to withdraw from both races due to his injuries. He captioned his walk on the morning of the latter "Sunday not in hell".
In an Instagram post shared at the weekend, Van Aert said he was "start[ing] to feel a little bit like myself again".
"I hope to be back on my bike soon but at this moment a full recovery of my wounds and broken bones has my absolute priority," he said. "I can’t point out enough how overwhelming the support is from all of you. I never received more messages, presents, mails,... This made me smile more and suffer less."
Van Aert, a nine-time Tour de France stage winner, was scheduled to make his Giro d’Italia debut next month, with his participation now in doubt. "He must be 100% to go," Visma-Lease a Bike sports director, Merijn Zeeman, told Het Nieuwsblad on Sunday. "He won’t go to the Giro just to ride along. That is clear as day. It’s short notice, but we hope to gain insight into Wout’s situation in the coming weeks."
