Wout van Aert (Visma–Lease a Bike) will not start the 2026 Tour de France after an inflamed elbow wound became too severe to allow the preparation he needed, the team revealed on Wednesday. The same injury had already forced the 31-year-old out of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes on June 12 and kept him from joining the team's planned altitude camp in Tignes.
The Tour de France begins with a team time trial in Barcelona on July 4th and Van Aert would have been a key component in the line-up on that day as well as throughout the race as he supported Jonas Vingegaard. He might have been expected to bring home his own stage win too.
His absence leaves the team looking for someone capable of providing the same team role. "This is of course a big disappointment," Van Aert said.
How the elbow problem developed
The injury to the Paris-Roubaix victor's elbow came after Van Aert came down while out training on his TT bike at home. He said He said he lost control of his handlebars after hitting a big pothole. It had looked like he was slowly getting back into shape after a disappointing opening few stages where he struggled with the pace at the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes including only lasting 8 minutes in the TTT. However, he grew as the race went on and looked good in sprint stages.
He won stage 5 in Villars-les-Dombes with an impressive sprint against pure sprinters such as Hugo Hofstetter (NSN), Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious) and others. However, after that win the pain in his elbow became too much and forced him out of the race. It turned out that the wound had become infected and the situation was much more severe than expected.
Race coach Marc Reef said in a team statement: “Wout is one of the most important riders in our team and we would obviously have loved to have him at the start of the Tour. In recent days we have explored all options, but ultimately his health comes first."
"With the recovery process required, it is not possible for him to reach top form in time for the Tour de France. It is unfortunate that he will not be there, but we are convinced this is the right decision for his recovery and the rest of his season.”
Van Aert went home to Belgium for further medical examinations in Herentals. Sporza reported that the irritation likely worsened because of the pressure his elbow absorbed while riding in the time-trial position during the team time trial earlier in the race.
By Monday, June 15, Visma–Lease a Bike confirmed Van Aert had not departed for the team's altitude camp in Tignes. Altitude camps in the final weeks before a Grand Tour are a central part of conditioning, designed to boost oxygen-carrying capacity ahead of high-mountain stages. Missing the block meant Van Aert's Tour build-up was already compromised before the final decision came.
Van Aert added: "The Tour de France is one of my main goals every year. Unfortunately, a crash during training has put a spanner in the works, and the injury to my elbow has worsened and still has not healed sufficiently."
"Together with the team, we have concluded that starting the Tour in top form is not feasible at this point. My full focus is now on my recovery so I can return to my best level later this season.”
Cover image credit: Gaetan Flamme
