Evenepoel hits the mark at National Championships but key Tour teammate skips race

Evenepoel started as the top favorite and left little doubt that he was the strongest from the first intermediate point. “But it was pretty tough. It was a time trial where you had to keep pushing and couldn't recover much. I had to stick to my consistent pacing and rely on the intermediate times. I was able to maintain my pace well,” he explained in his flash interview. 

“In the end, my goal was to keep up with Alec Segaert, and that made me accelerate even more. I didn't want to risk being behind him in case of a crash,” said Evenepoel. “I'm happy with how I felt and with the result. After the training camp, I feel good, and everything is fine.”

Evenepoel did not prepare specifically for the Belgian National Time Trial Championships. “I didn't arrive at the hotel with my bike until late in the evening on Thursday. We had a lot of delays from Lyon, but you have to accept that.”

Evenepoel came from Lyon, where he had a final altitude training session in Tignes with some teammates. “The training camp went pretty well. We didn't train too hard due to the heat and altitude. I was going to use this weekend as my last intense block anyway, and it's off to a good start. Sunday will be different because that course suits a lot of riders,” he says, looking ahead to the Belgian Championships on the road in Binche.

“It's also going to be very hot, which could be an advantage. We have a strong team of riders and are in good shape. The most important thing is to get the jersey back with our team,” said Evenepoel, who saw his teammate Ilan Van Wilder withdraw from the Belgian time trial championships because he wasn't feeling well.

Finally, the Belgian looked ahead briefly to the Tour. “Fortunately, the first week is fairly flat, so I might be able to use it to build up a bit. But with the weather forecast and the wind, it will be full throttle right from the start. The Tour only really starts for the GC contenders in the second week, but that doesn't make the first week any less important. I just have to trust that everything will work out.”