French rider rips up Van Aert fan sign, Belgian responds in hilarious way: "Alaphilippe, give that sign back"!

During the final Pyrenees stage, riders were climbing into the clouds. It was wet, cold, and many were zipping up their jackets in preparation for the descent. Alaphilippe, however, couldn’t get hold of a wind jacket. The two-time world champion had to improvise, by tearing off part of a fan’s cardboard sign and stuffing it under his jersey for warmth.

The fan, clearly heartbroken, yelled out “Pourquoi?”: why? She had made the sign for her favorite rider, Wout van Aert. The message read: “Wout doesn’t know it yet, but we’re getting married.” A romantic gesture, ruined in a flash. Before the start of stage 15, Alaphilippe was asked about the incident. “I didn’t see what was written on the sign,” he told Eurosport. “I think it was for Wout.”

Wout van Aert couldn’t resist making a joke. Before the start of the stage, the Belgian handed Julian Alaphilippe a cardboard sign that read: “Alaf, give that sign back.” And so it happened, just one day after the incident, Visma | Lease a Bike stepped in. The Dutch team invited the fan to the team buses, as seen on Instagram. Alaphilippe was there too, offering a sincere apology and returning the piece of the torn sign. He posed for a photo with the fan, alongside Van Aert. All was forgiven, and in the end, the fan had an even better day than she could’ve imagined.