An indignant Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) has slated fellow Belgian racer Jasper Philipsen for a manoeuvre within the finale of stage 6 of the Tour de France that noticed Van Aert blocked in and unable to dash, and which later price Philipsen a relegation.
Sixth within the end, Van Aert later accused Philipsen of a ‘dangerous behavior’ saying that he was as soon as ‘once more’ boxed in by his compatriot, a reference understood to confer with a bunch dash in Bayonne in final yr’s Tour the place the 2 additionally crossed swords.
Van Aert additionally referred to as for Philipsen’s relegation, one thing that subsequently in reality occurred, with the Alpecin-Deceuninck racer demoted from second to 107th, severely impeding his choices of combating for the inexperienced jersey at the very least on this stage.
Phlipsen’s crew defended their rider, with crew supervisor Christoph Roodhooft saying, “I did not assume it was a manoeuvre that 100% justifies the declassification. There’s something to be stated by either side.”
Nevertheless, Van Aert was visibly upset after the end, with Sporza reporting, ‘The steam virtually got here out of his ears.”
“I used to be as soon as once more boxed in by Jasper Philipsen within the dash , everybody noticed that. That could be a dangerous behavior of his, “ Van Aert stated.
“It wasn’t essentially tremendous harmful, as a result of I used to be simply in a position to brake in time. However I sprinted as much as his stage, and I do not perceive why he then swerved in the direction of the boundaries.”
“That’s not knowledgeable option to ‘shut the door’. He should have sensed that I used to be subsequent to him. However he did this final yr within the Tour and now he’s doing it once more.”
Talking earlier than the information of the commissaires verdict towards Philipsen, Van Aert stated he was glad to remain upright, however that he could be indignant if Philipsen didn’t obtain a penalty. He additionally stated such manoeuvres have been a part of a worrying pattern in racing.
“I am particularly glad that I stayed upright. But when there is not any sanction, that may make me indignant. They should not throw him out of the Tour, however he ought to be declassified.
“Right this moment you noticed one loopy stunt after one other in these final kilometers. If they do not punish that severely, everybody thinks that something goes. It is an more and more large drawback.”
A winner of a Tour de France TT again in 2021, in addition to a stage 24 hours afterward the Champs Elysées, Van Aert stated he was very a lot trying ahead to the time trial on Friday. Other than being a superb goal itself, the 25 kilometres race towards the clock would act as a key reference level for the upcoming Olympic Video games TT – the place he will probably be racing for Belgium – given his crash-blighted first half of the season. As for bunch sprints, there’ll seemingly be one other one within the Tour de France on Saturday.
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