Danish coach expects big things from Wout van Aert on comeback: ‘A gift to cycling’

Wout van Aert returns to racing this Wednesday. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider will make his comeback at the Tour of Denmark after spending a month and a half on the sidelines. The Danish national team will also be competing in the 2.Pro stage race under national coach Michael Mørkøv. The former world-class lead-out rider expects plenty from Van Aert on his return.

Winning a stage and then failing to start the following day: that was what happened to Van Aert at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. An elbow wound became inflamed, and the problem ultimately also ruled the Belgian out of the Tour de France. On Wednesday, he will finally pin on a race number again at the Tour of Denmark.

National coach Mørkøv will be at the stage race as the man overseeing the Danish selection. “I’m really looking forward to it. As national coach, it is the highlight of the year, and it is the biggest race we have in Denmark. It is also a race I rode many times myself, and it is a great success with the public. It is simply a celebration of cycling,” he told Feltet.

Naturally, the Dane could not ignore Van Aert’s presence. “It is a gift to cycling that one of the world’s best riders is coming here to race. Besides being a great cyclist, he is also a fantastic ambassador for the sport. It is wonderful that the organisers have managed to attract a rider like him. He will provide a real spectacle for the spectators as well.”

There is still some uncertainty over the condition in which the Visma | Lease a Bike rider will arrive at the start. There is always an element of the unknown when a rider returns after an injury, but Mørkøv is expecting a strong showing. “I expect him to perform fantastically in this race and perhaps even be difficult to beat on his best days. But, of course, we are going to take the fight to him.”

The national coach will do so with Brabantse Pijl winner Anders Foldager as the Danish team’s leader. “I have high expectations of him after his excellent performances in the spring. He won Brabantse Pijl, where he produced a very strong sprint. He is a rider who is good uphill and in explosive sprints, while he can also compete in flat bunch finishes.”

“He therefore has all the qualities required to challenge for the general classification at the Tour of Denmark,” Mørkøv continued, setting an ambitious target for the 24-year-old. “In my position as national coach, results are actually of secondary importance. What the national team and I stand for is the development of our riders. My ambition is for Anders Foldager to become one of the best cyclists in the world, and the same applies to the other riders we have with us.”