Aerts cannot defend European Championship title, but has other priorities following fears of amputation

Aerts made a great impression on the road and competed in the Tour of Denmark with Lotto-Intermarché. In the final stage, Aerts took a hard fall there. “I realized right away that it was a serious crash, but I got back up and was pushed across the finish line by my teammate Taminiaux,” he told Het Nieuwsblad. “In the team bus, they realized pretty quickly that my scaphoid [carpal bone] was broken, but my knee was also starting to act up.”

It turned out my kneecap was broken, and I had to have surgery. Everything seemed to be going well—until it wasn’t. “Three weeks after my knee surgery, I was at home with a fever. My knee didn’t hurt, but I simply felt sick. The team doctor came by to check if I had COVID-19. He also wanted to have my blood tested. The next day at seven o’clock, he was already on the phone.”

The doctor delivered some really bad news. “My inflammation markers turned out to be sky-high; I had to go to the emergency room right away. By then, my knee had swollen up enormously, and I couldn’t stand the pain anymore. Now, this might sound ridiculous and disrespectful to the people to whom this has actually happened, but for a moment I feared I might have to have my leg amputated. The knee was full of debris; I had surgery that same afternoon.'

A few days later, things went wrong again because the infection came back. “Since it was a bacterium that could also attach itself to the heart, I had to see the cardiologist a few times as well.” In total, I spent two weeks in the hospital. I wanted nothing more than to go home as soon as possible, but I realised that wouldn’t do any good. For example, I was given an IV of antibiotics every four hours.”

It was a huge setback for Aerts, who had enjoyed highlights on the road, including a second-place finish in the 12th stage of the Giro d'Italia. He also came very close to a stage win earlier in the Tour of Denmark, and rode his first Monuments in the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. But now, his racing career suddenly seems very far away.

"Yes, it's a painful rehabilitation process. During the week, I go to the physical therapist twice a day; on Tuesdays and Thursdays, we do exercises in the pool. I also go once on Saturday; Sunday is my day off. The sessions are pretty long—similar to my training sessions. I still can’t ride a bike, only on a spin bike with a seat that’s way too high.”

It’s deeply sad for Aerts, who won’t be able to defend his European title in Zeddam. But it’s not all bad news. He and his girlfriend Tamara are expecting their first child in January, after they lost their first child five days after Aerts’s European Championship victory, before the baby was even born. Moreover, the cyclocross rider is hopeful that he can make a comeback this season.

"Yes, I hope to race again this season, though I realise there’s also a chance that won’t happen," he says. "I’d love to make it to the World Championships in Ostend, so I can finally race in a World Championships event with a live audience." He is disappointed that he’ll miss the European Championships, though. “It’s a shame I have to miss Zeddam. A staircase with 99 steps—that would have been right up my alley.”