The blood, the sweat, and the tears: Visma capture Van Aert's remarkable spring in a stunning documentary

Wout van Aert's victory at Paris-Roubaix has already written itself into the history books, and it will stay in the minds of cycling fans for a long time to come. But the journey that led to it makes the win so much more powerful. Visma | Lease a Bike have now documented the full story of their Belgian leader's spring in a beautiful film on YouTube — from a crash in the cyclocross to the cobbles of the Roubaix velodrome.

Many fans must have thought: here we go again. The fall at the Mol cyclocross appeared innocuous, but Van Aert broke his ankle. Recovery went smoothly, but after everything that followed, it is easy to forget how much misfortune the Belgian endured this spring. He fell ill before Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, then punctured on his comeback at Le Samyn, with any chance of a win gone in an instant.

It is all there in the team's documentary. Milan-San Remo brought more bad luck: he crashed before the Cipressa and looked out of contention. "I forced myself to keep fighting until the end, but before the descent of the Poggio I never believed I could get a real result," Van Aert says. He made it back to the chasers, and a late attack earned him the podium — third place.

Head of Racing Grischa Niermann had already seen enough by then. "That was the moment I saw that Wout was truly ready for the Classics, and that he would fight for them," the German says. Confirmation came at Gent-Wevelgem, where the Visma | Lease a Bike leader went head-to-head with Mathieu van der Poel in the finale, only for the pair to be caught in the final kilometre.

"But of course it was a good sign that we saw him up there together with Mathieu in Gent-Wevelgem. Mathieu could play the Philipsen card tactically, but if we had Matthew [Brennan], we would have done the same. That's racing," Niermann reflects.

The bitter cup was not yet empty. A phenomenal ride at Dwars door Vlaanderen ended with Filippo Ganna flying past him in the final hundred metres. "It's cursed here," Van Aert said after crossing the line. And he meant more than just that defeat. "In 2014, I was disqualified in Waregem at a cyclocross race." There had also been a second place behind Neilson Powless, and of course the devastating crash of 2024. To put it plainly: Waregem is not Van Aert's favourite place. "It was one of the first thoughts that crossed my mind after the finish."

At the Tour of Flanders, Van Aert could not match Pogačar and Van der Poel and finished fourth. Visibly disappointed, he was grumbling at the finish — but Niermann already saw enough there for what was coming. "Wout is mentally incredibly strong. He always goes for it and doesn't stop racing when he realises he can't win. Unfortunately he has also had a huge amount of bad luck in his career, but he always fights. That is also what makes him a good leader for our team, and why people admire him so much."

And then, in northern France, it finally happened. Even there, Van Aert's luck first deserted him — a puncture in the finale. But he came back, and engineered the situation himself until it was just him and Pogačar. We all know the images that followed: the sprint, the tears, his children, his wife, his parents. And the tribute to Michael Goolaerts. All of it still just as magnificent.

Van Aert has since built a kind of shrine to that particular Sunday in his home. The bike hangs there, together with his kit from the day. "The bike and the jersey mean the most to me. But because I had that special helmet, I thought it was great to combine the whole setup. It will stay here as special motivation, every time I go training."

Life became even more of a whirlwind than usual for Van Aert as the media attention poured in. He even received a call from the King of Belgium — but the ever-grounded man from Herentals responded in his own characteristic way: "Hopefully everything will go back to normal someday."

That normal stayed away a little longer still. This Monday, Van Aert was honoured at the Visma | Lease a Bike High Performance Centre — a magnificent celebration, yellow smoke and all.