Evenepoel 'relieved' and 'proud' to win European title after tough week following World Championship 'disappointment'

Evenepoel led his Belgian teammates for the entire day, after which he launched his own attack. During that uphill attack, he actually took a fall.

Ciccone, the only rider still somewhat close behind, then broke away solo, but eventually saw Evenepoel catch up again. After a nail-biting finish, the Belgian ultimately won by the narrowest of margins.

"It's amazing," were Evenepoel's first words in Sencur.

"I have to thank my teammates so much; the way we rode the race was exactly how we wanted to do it. It was a bit of a tricky situation on the climb, the second time up. I think I launched a good attack there, but I went a little too fast in a turn and slipped for a moment."

Evenepoel blamed only himself for that mistake. “I think I could have kept going there, but in the end we stayed calm, got back on track, and I launched another attack just before the descent, after which I rode at the front with Cicco. We worked together really well,” the Belgian said in the flash interview.

He admitted that he had been plagued by doubts in the days following the World Championships. “To be honest, it was a really tough week for me after the disappointment of the World Championships. I think that was weighing on my mind more than I let on, so it’s a huge relief to be back on top of my game today and to complete my championship jersey. It feels amazing.”

With a photo finish, the race was hard fought to the last metre.

“To be honest, I felt like I was really passing him, so I thought I was going to win, but of course you can never be sure. The footage clearly showed the relief I felt and how proud I am to have claimed the victory today.”

The European Time Trial Championships are on Wednesday, but Evenepoel won’t be competing.

“I’m going to focus on Lombardy now. But first, I’m going to celebrate tonight, because this is a special one. I’ve now won every championship in cycling, so we can celebrate this one in a big way,” he concluded.