Yesterday during the Flanders Fields classic we witnessed an exciting duel between Wout Van Aert and Mathieu Van der Poel. The two rivals, working together, had broken away and were heading towards the finish line. Some, seeing that scene, thought of a tacit agreement to contest the sprint in two, to be repeated at the Tour of Flanders thus neutralizing an awkward customer like Tadej Pogacar. But that breakaway had two different truths: for Van Aert it was a way to contest the victory with Van der Poel, while for the Dutchman it had been a tactical choice that would have favored his teammate Jasper Philipsen.

At the finish line the Visma-Lease a Bike Flemish rider was very upset and explained what really happened in those final kilometers of the breakaway. What didn't appear entirely clear on television, Van Aert perceived all too well: "Until Ypres, about twenty kilometers from the finish, we worked well together, but after that Mathieu no longer pedaled at full speed and decided to adopt a tactical approach. When you see Jasper (Philipsen, ed.) win it's a tactic that can be understandable, but for me it was annoying".

It was since the 2020 Tour of Flanders that we hadn't seen a shoulder-to-shoulder duel between the two champions and at Wevelgem the public hoped to witness a two-man sprint. "I felt we had the victory in hand. Yes, this certainly made the difference".

So the Belgian was certain that by collaborating and pedaling at full speed, they would have sprinted in two at Wevelgem. The consequence of Van der Poel's tactics and his teammates was only one: no first victory for Van der Poel in Flanders, but also no increased confidence for Van Aert in case of a sprint victory against Van der Poel. On the second climb of the Kemmelberg, the Flemish rider dropped the group and only Van der Poel and Vermeersch managed to follow him. Van Aert stated that he felt among the best riders in the race and almost certainly both he and the Dutchman were clearly superior to the others.

"We should be satisfied above all with the fact that he managed to follow Van der Poel - also commented positively Wynants, team manager of Visma-Lease a Bike - At Tirreno-Adriatico, Van der Poel was still the strongest and it seemed that nothing could stop him in the Spring Classics. Now we are able to follow him. That gap on the third climb of the Kemmelberg? He bent, but he didn't break. But Van der Poel was going at full speed, make no mistake. It was incredible what I saw and when they tackled the Kemmelberg climb at breakneck speed, I thought they wanted to knock each other out".

Yesterday we saw a very strong Visma-Lease a Bike, but problems were not lacking and the yellow-black team lost Timo Kielich due to a crash. The verdict for him is a fractured collarbone and the end of his spring season. The Belgian for the Tour of Flanders will have to be replaced by Axel Zingle, Owain Doull or Filippo Fiorelli.

For Van Aert, thirtieth place is his worst ever result at Wevelgem in seven participations. On Wednesday, Dwars door Vlaanderen will be raced and Van Aert will be there but not Van der Poel and the two champions will meet again on Easter Sunday at the Ronde, where once again they will have to find a way to stop Tadej Pogacar's mad race.