Wout van Aert said he “screwed up” in the uphill sprint in Limoges on stage eight of the Tour de France, which was won by Lidl-Trek’s Mads Pedersen.
The Jumbo-Visma rider was part of a reduced group of riders - which was full of puncheurs, but with some sprinters hanging on - as the riders tore into Limoges ready to scrap it out for the win.
After seeing himself pipped to the line by Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Van Aert explained that his missing out on the win was entirely of his own making.
“It's always frustrating when you can't finish the team's work,” he said. “I made an error in waiting too long. Mathieu [van der Poel] and Jasper [Philipsen] passed me just as Christophe Laporte dropped away.
“I was in Laporte's wheel and he expected me to pass on the right, but I was on the left of his wheel. Then I had to brake and I came up short in the sprint. That's my own fault, I screwed it up myself there.”
Missing out on the win in Limoges left Van Aert frustrated, particularly after earlier chances had gone begging in stages earlier in the Tour’s opening week.
The Belgian explained that his form and fitness was not a problem, and that he would look to go again in the coming days.
