Wout van Aert gives son Georges a special gift and meets external expectations: "That’s hard for people to understand"

Wout van Aert competed in his first race of 2025 at Gullegem, and the Belgian province of West Flanders certainly took notice. Following his return to cyclo-cross on December 27 in Loenhout, fans once again lined the streets on January 4 to cheer on the Belgian favorite. Van Aert had extra reason to celebrate, as it was his son Georges’ fourth birthday—a moment that didn’t go unnoticed in Gullegem. Crossing the finish line, he held up four fingers in tribute.

Upon arriving in the town near Kortrijk, a birthday cake awaited Georges, who happily blew out the candles. While Van Aert’s wife Sarah looked after Georges and their youngest son, Jerome, Wout received a unique gift from the event organizers during his warm-up laps: a plush toy with his own face on it. “Personally, I think it’s a bit creepy, haha, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Georges actually likes it,” Van Aert said with a wide smile as he accepted the quirky present.

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Van Aert was able to train well over the New Year period

As we saw on Strava, Wout van Aert spent the past few days training in Knokke. From the coastal town, he traveled to Gullegem for his second race of a planned five cyclo-cross events. "I’ve been able to train well over the past few days, so I’m feeling good. In Loenhout, I was already satisfied with my form, but I haven’t done much cyclo-cross-specific training since then. On the contrary, I focused on longer training sessions, so that could work against me," Van Aert explained.

That potential disadvantage didn’t show during the race. The Belgian had a strong start and was immediately positioned at the front. "But I really had to dig deep," Van Aert admitted. "In the first laps, I felt like I had some reserves. When I pulled away for the first time, Eli Iserbyt, Michael Vanthourenhout, and Joran Wyseure were still close. After that, I set my sights on the finale and tried to crush Eli in the last laps."

The Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal rider, however, put up a tough fight. "I wasn’t surprised that Eli managed to hang on for so long. I didn’t come here expecting to beat those guys. It already felt good just to be competing at the front. On a course with so many corners, it’s tough to drop Eli. At one point, I thought I had lost him, but I just couldn’t see him riding behind me... (laughs) He knows how to hide well," joked Van Aert.

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Van Aert on victory gesture: "It was already in my head"

Then came the winner's gesture: tongue out and four fingers in the air, a nod to his four-year-old son Georges' playful expressions. "Of course, I had thought about it beforehand, but I hadn’t mentioned it to him. From the moment I was warming up on the rollers, it was in my head. But I’m not sure if he saw it clearly, so hopefully, we can watch it back later," said the Visma | Lease a Bike rider, who once again drew a large crowd in Gullegem.

So, 2025 has officially kicked off for Van Aert. "I’m satisfied with my cyclo-cross form. I came into this winter without any expectations. It might be hard for people to believe because they’re used to me always competing for the win. But for me, it’s genuinely surprising that I’m able to do this already. 2025 has started, and it feels really good," said Van Aert, who will also race in Dendermonde on Sunday. "It’s clear that I didn’t hold back today for tomorrow. I’ll try to recover as best I can and have fun again tomorrow."

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