Jumbo Visma will shift its role from team leader to support rider in Sunday's Paris-Roubaix, but Belgian champion Wout Van Aert said he would rather ride with different expectations than miss the race entirely.

Van Aert, who returned from COVID-19 and has already been forced to miss the Tour of Flanders and the Amstel Gold Race, was cleared by the team's medical staff to race in Paris-Roubaix earlier this week.

"Fortunately, I'm fine. I'm perfectly healthy and ready to race again. So I'm happy to be able to compete in Paris-Roubaix. My role will be different. I'm usually the leader. This year, I'm racing with a lot of people in the race. But usually I'm the one who can stay quiet the longest.

"I expect something different this time. I mainly mean that I want to support Christophe [Laporte], Nathan [van Hooydonk] and Mike [Tunissen] somewhere in the final. Of course, I hope I don't have to lead at the beginning. If it's okay, I want to be able to make it to the final and support the riders

"At least that's the plan. It's an unpredictable course. A lot of the players have already come this far in a support role. I'm secretly hoping for that, but anyway, I'm going to start with that kind of approach."

Asked if he would feel comfortable in a support role in a race that should be one of the biggest goals of the Spring Classic campaign, VanArt said "yes."

"But like I said, it wasn't fun watching Rondo from the chair and seeing Amstel. 'I'm happy to be part of it again,' he said. Even if I have a bad leg. It would be even harder if I had to give up this race too."

Juan Art started the season by winning the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, the Paris-Nice time trial stage, and the E3 Saxo Bank Classic. Four days after Ghent-Wevelgem, he said he became symptomatic while previewing the Tour de Flanders route.

"I was exposed to a lot of contact there. I guess that's where I got infected. I do the best I can, but once you're in the race, there's nothing you can do. That's life."

Jumbo-Visma and Van Aert later released a statement saying that they will miss the Tour of Flanders because they tested positive for COVID-19 after two PCR tests and there is no timetable for their return.

"Fortunately, I was not terribly ill. There was no fever. I had a sore throat, a stuffy nose, a heavy headache, and other symptoms similar to a cold. I had been suffering from fatigue for a long time. Only in the last few days did I feel a little better," Van Art said.

Despite the mild symptoms, Jumbo Visma's medical team closely monitored his health. They also sought advice from his family doctor in the weeks before he was cleared to resume training.

"He was at the highest level, as expected by the team. I kept in touch with the team doctor and also with my home doctor, who had been seeing me throughout my career. Every day, first and foremost, he took care of my health. Corona often has heart problems and things like that.

"It is still a viral infection. We are cautious about that. The ultrasound showed that despite our best efforts, everything was normal. That was very reassuring to me. I was very cautious in my initial training, but after that I was able to follow the normal process of someone who is ill. It went well

"Fortunately, I was more or less okay again soon. We did all the necessary tests, including heart tests and blood tests, and waited for my physical condition to change. Once I was feeling better, I tried to resume training again. But I felt okay the last few days, and I really wanted to get on."

Van Aert said that while he has been able to train with more intensity over the past three days, it will take time to regain the form he lost during his recovery from COVID-19. Nevertheless, he hopes to be a part of Jumbo Visma's success in Paris-Roubaix.

"It's a beautiful race and I'm someone who always races to win. The choice to run anyway, even if I'm not in the best condition possible, is mainly so I don't feel like I'm missing out on everything. I have come here with that approach and it has given me a lot of doubt. Of course, I want "that" leg, but that's not realistic.