Three-time world champion Wout Van Aert (Visma Lease-a-Bike) will make his cyclocross season debut after Visma Lease-a-Bike's first winter training camp on December 19.

The Belgian was forced to end his road season early after a serious crash at the Vuelta a España on September 3, leaving him unable to walk for a period of time as he continued to recover from his injuries.

Van Aat won three stages in the Vuelta and made a sensational comeback after injuries had put his season on hold. However, a crash on stage 16 left him at the top of the points standings. [Visma-Lease a Bike rider will return to road training on October 4, before heading to Spain for a training camp.

“Wout is now leaving for two and a half weeks in Spain for training,” Visma-Lease a Bike coach Jan Boven told Wielerfritz.

“Then we will sit together, but he will only start again after the first team training camp, which ends on December 19.”

The exact date of van Aert's return has not yet been determined; immediately following the Visma-Lease a Bike training camp will be the UCI World Cup in Hulst on December 21, the World Cup in Zonhoven on December 22, and the World Cup in Gavere on December 26.

Last season, the UCI World Cup was held in Hulst on December 21.

Last season, Van Aert kicked off its cyclocross campaign in Essen on December 9. A similar schedule was considered by Van Aert and the team this year, but it proved to be logistically unrealistic.

“Starting in Essen was an option, but that would have meant only racing in Dublin and Sardinia. But then there would only be a race in Dublin and Sardinia.

The 30-year-old has not won a UCI cyclocross world championship since 2018, when he won his third straight. Boven did not confirm whether the World Championships are on Van Aert's schedule this season, nor did he mention how many cyclocross races Van Aert will compete in.

Meanwhile, his big Belgian rival Mathieu van der Pol (Alpecin-Desseuninck) has yet to confirm whether he will participate in this cyclocross campaign.

“I don't know if I'm going to ride cyclocross,” he said, “maybe. If I knew, I would tell you,” Van der Pol said a few weeks ago, according to Wielerflits. I haven't decided yet if I will ride cyclocross this winter. I'm going on vacation first.

The Dutch rider, who has won the cyclocross rainbow jersey six times, recently said he may focus on mountain biking next year and suggested he may skip the 2025 Tour de France to achieve his goal of winning the XCO world title

Last year, he said that he would be riding the Tour de France in 2025.

Last year, Van der Pol won his sixth cyclocross world championship title, the most in history. He later told Eurosport that he plans to break the record by winning for a seventh time in 2025.

“I'm going to accomplish something historic and that's how I'll be remembered,” van der Pol said.

“Breaking records will be my goal next year. That's my first passion.”