'Chameleon' Thijs Aerts rode three races in four days: "Out of respect for the race organizations"

Thijs Aerts, the 27-year-old brother of Toon Aerts, who is returning in February, did something last weekend that no other rider in the entire cyclo-cross guild had done: participate in both the Exact Cross of Essen and (the day after) in the World Cup of Val di Sole. Even more impressive: two days before the cross in Essen, he even participated in the Cyclo-cross Rucphen in the evening. Speaking to IDLProCycling.com, he explained a bit more about this unique story!

We spoke with the amiable Thijs Aerts after the cross in Essen, where he sped his way to a third-place finish behind Jens Adams and Wout van Aert. Just a few hours after that conversation, the Flemish rider had to head to the airport to then race in the snow of Val di Sole on Sunday afternoon, where he eventually finished seventeenth. "A third place here in Essen was the best result I could achieve," the in-form rider began. "I'm quite satisfied with it. Adams and especially Van Aert were simply a bit stronger than me. I noticed that quite quickly, so my task was just to maintain my third place. And that worked out well in the end."

It would be fair to say that Aerts is in good form. Those who look at his results see a progressive line in his performances (and thus many top ten placements). On Thursday, December 8, he finished second behind a unleashed Ryan Kamp in Rucphen. "That was also a nice result. Rucphen was an evening cross, so that took some adjusting. Moreover, I don't have the best eyes, which is not ideal in such a race. But I just made the best of it and ended the day on the podium. Losing to Kamp is certainly no disgrace. He is, after all, one of the great talents in cyclo-cross."

"When someone like Van Aert pushes hard, you certainly feel you really have to give your all," said Thijs Aerts

When we continue to talk about his season so far, it is mainly his progressive development that comes up. "I already knew I was doing well, although the results were certainly not always as they should be," explains the Circus-ReUz-Technord rider. "I just needed a bit of luck. I suspect that that has slowly started now. Usually, you also force that to happen. When you ride at your limit, you make mistakes. Lately, I've less often felt like I'm at my limit early on, and so the results are also better. But when someone like Van Aert pushes hard, you certainly feel you really have to give your all. Still, I don't overdo it and manage to maintain my own pace well."

The main topic to be addressed about Aerts, however, was his busy racing schedule, with three races in four days. "Immediately after the cyclo-cross here in Essen, I'm taking a flight to Bergamo, and from there, I'll head to Val di Sole. It's going to be quite a special trip. However, I'm confident that it will all work out," he said optimistically. But why did Aerts race so many events in such a short time? "I'm not normally in the World Cup selection by default. However, I had already committed earlier on to participating in the races in Rucphen and Essen. And when I commit to something, I want to show the organizers of the respective race that I am happy to be there. After all, they set aside their money for me. That's something I respect. If it's possible to combine them, I was definitely going to race all three. And in this case, it worked out."