Van Aert suspects 'sabotage' after return race scuppered by puncture / Photo: © Belga/AFP
Van Aert suspects 'sabotage' after return race scuppered by puncture
Belgian rider Wout Van Aert claimed he suspects "sabotage" after his return to racing at the Samyn Classic was hit by a late puncture.
Van Aert made his return in the one-day event in Belgium on Tuesday after suffering a fractured ankle in a cyclo-cross race in January.
But he met more misfortune as his hopes of a comeback win were ended by a puncture with 10km remaining of the race.
"Suddenly, there were a lot of shards of glass on the road. It wasn't deliberately aimed at me," Van Aert told Sporza after the race in which he eventually finished 60th.
He said the riders had already ridden that part of the course five or six times earlier in the race without any problems, so the glass "couldn't have ended up there by accident".
"Anyway, I tried to give chase, but you know you're not going to ride faster than a peloton on your own... It smells like sabotage."
Van Aert will be back in action on Saturday at the Strade Bianche in Italy, a race he won in 2020.
V.Gonzalez--VC
