Wout van Aert felt like he was "boiling" in the French heat and marks an important day for himself

Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) had already finished second, third, fourth, and sixth in this Tour de France, but in Nimes, he added a fifth place to his achievements. In Southern France, he watched his fellow countryman Jasper Philipsen win, but he himself could not contend for the stage victory.

Speaking to Sporza, he gave his reaction. "I was well-positioned with Christophe (Laporte, ed.) in the last kilometers, but those roundabouts were treacherous. A kilometer from the finish, there was a serious roundabout where it turned into a bit of an elbow fight. We lost our momentum there, and I also lost Christophe who was supposed to lead me out," he analyzed his final moments. "We had to brake there."

"It was unfortunate, but I was able to sprint freely in the end, though I didn’t have the legs to get any closer," the Belgian candidly stated. "I felt that way all day. Maybe I wasn’t fully active after the rest day. I must also remember that sprinting at 70 km/h after an easy day isn’t exactly my strongest suit. I'm not looking beyond that."

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Van Aert struggled with the French heat

"I also didn’t feel fantastic in this heat," Van Aert admitted. "Normally I can handle it well and even enjoy it." Speaking to the English press, Van Aert said he felt like he was 'boiling' in the French heat. "It was the first really hot day. I definitely struggled with it, but of course, we still tried. There aren’t many opportunities left."

"I don’t really doubt my legs," the Belgian further noted. "They were good last week and they haven’t just disappeared. Wednesday’s stage is tough, with a challenging finale that might be too tough for me. That also applies to the weekend, so I'll still try in the next two days. The stage on Thursday then looks like the better opportunity."