Wout van Aert recovering from appendicitis

Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) has announced that he is in the process of recovering from appendicitis. The Amstel Gold Race winner took to social media on Saturday, the day which the Giro d’Italia started, to confirm the news.

It’s unclear if the recent operation will affect his upcoming race progamme with the 26-year-old set to race the Critérium du Dauphiné at the very end of May before gearing up for the Tour de France and then the Olympic Games road race in Tokyo in August.

Van Aert took to Twitter to announce the news with the Belgian making the announcement on a morning in which he was meant to take part in a charity run. He instead walked the ‘Wings for life World Run’, an event that raises funds for those suffering from spinal cord injuries and looks into possible cures.

“Just literally out of the running”, the rider said on his social media on Saturday. “I am recovering from appendicitis, so unfortunately no Wings for Life World Run for me. Look ahead to the preparations for the Tour and the Games. ”

Van Aert has not raced since his victory in Amstel Gold Race in mid-April. There, he beat Tom Pidcock in a photo finish, his fourth win of 2021. The Belgian had a busy spring and raced an almost complete Classics campaign.

He also won Gent-Wevelgem, finished third in Milan-San Remo and bookended Tirreno-Adriatico with a pair of wins en route to second overall behind Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates).