🎥 Van Aert abandons in Jaén Paraiso after flat tire on very first gravel section, caused by a nail

Wout van Aert began Monday as one of the top favorites in the Clasica Jaén Paraiso, but at the very first gravel section, disaster struck immediately. The 29-year-old Belgian suffered a puncture right at the beginning of the gravel stretch, setting him back irreversibly.

At the fifty-kilometer mark, as the peloton encountered the first stretch of olive road on the course, misfortune befell Van Aert. The Belgian experienced an immediate puncture, received a spare tube, but found himself embarking on a lengthy pursuit alongside Tim van Dijcke and Arnaud De Lie.

"Right as I entered the gravel section, I got a flat tire. The team manager informed me that there was a large nail in my tire. Unfortunately, that's the type of flat you can't do much about," Van Aert explained to HLN after returning to the team bus. "The race blew apart the moment I had the flat. There wasn't much sense in having Sepp (Kuss) and Jan (Tratnik) wait for me. I still made an effort, but it was futile. I stayed with Tim (van Dijke) for a while, and on that climb, I attempted to bridge the gap. However, when that proved unsuccessful, I knew it was all over."

Lees verder onder de video van Eurosport.

Kuss, Wellens, and Tratnik create chaotic start to the race

Certainly, the race start was immediately chaotic, as numerous riders saw opportunities in forming the day's breakaway. At various points, Vuelta winner Sepp Kuss and Marc Soler launched attacks, followed by moves from Tim Wellens, Ben Turner (last year's runner-up), and Visma | Lease a Bike riders Jan Tratnik and Per Strand Hagenes. Both UAE Team Emirates and Van Aert's Dutch team attempted to place their riders in the breakaway, but ultimately only Tadej Pogacar's team succeeded.

Indeed, at the seventy-kilometer mark, as the broadcast began, five escapees remained: Spanish super-talent Igor Arrieta representing UAE, along with national champion Oier Lazkano (Movistar), Frenchman Nicolas Prodhomme (Décathlon AG2R), Ecuadorian Jefferson Cepeda (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA), and Alex Molenaar (Illes Balears Arabay Cycling), who has already demonstrated his breakaway prowess several times this season. The quartet at the front proved to be no pushovers, and Visma | Lease a Bike quickly recognized this. In support of Van Aert, the team took charge of the race, prompting the riders in the breakaway to increase their pace as well. However, this proved to be too much for Molenaar.