"I thought about it in the shower today," says an ambitious, improved, and fitter Evenepoel: "Remco is flying again"

Evenepoel actually started the rollercoaster ride in April 2024. In 2023, he won three stages and the mountains classification in the Vuelta a España and, after a good winter in 2024, he immediately won the Figueira Champions Classic, the Tour of the Algarve, and a stage in Paris-Nice, finishing second overall. Everything was going according to plan, just as in 2022 and 2023. Until he took that corner too fast in the Tour of the Basque Country...

The crash, which also involved Jonas Vingegaard, resulted in a broken collarbone and shoulder blade, and when Evenepoel returned to racing in the Dauphiné, seventh place was not enough. However, in his first Tour, he immediately finished third behind Tadej Pogacar and Vingegaard, with a stage win in the time trial. After a successful debut, he became the Olympic champion in the road race and time trial in Paris and retained his world time trial title.

Evenepoel had overcome the setback in the Basque Country, but in the winter, disaster struck again. In December, he collided with the door of a van during training and suffered bruised lungs, a dislocated collarbone, and three fractures. His shoulder bothered him the most, as a nerve had been damaged, and he had to undergo a lengthy rehabilitation process to regain mobility. Evenepoel admitted that he even considered quitting during the winter.

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It was not until April 18, 2025, that Evenepoel raced again, and, as you would expect from a superstar, he immediately won the Brabantse Pijl. A lack of rhythm (and content) meant that he came up short in the Ardennes classics that followed and on the climbs in the Tour de Romandie, his first stage race of 2025. Nevertheless, Evenepoel finished fifth and won the time trial, much like he did in the Dauphiné a year earlier, but a month and a half earlier.

And that is precisely what coach Koen Pelgrim focuses on in conversation with HLN ahead of this season's Dauphiné and Tour. "Remco is ahead of last year's schedule," said the Dutchman, referring to "a good altitude training camp” in Sierra Nevada. “That was not the case last year. From the start of the training camp, you could see that he was struggling. His level was not where we had hoped. This year, he reached a high level from day one."

"He has been able to do all his training as he wants. He is clearly a step further today," said Pelgrim, who spoke of good metrics. "But training and racing are two different things. You also don't know how good the competition will be. Pogacar and Vingegaard are participating: I suspect the level will be high." We will know more in the Dauphiné, to win the time trial on day 4 and then the uphill tests against his Tour rivals in July.

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As a result of a good altitude training camp ahead of the Dauphiné, Evenepoel is already one and a half kilos lighter than last year. Last year, he still had to lose that weight after the Dauphiné. "Last year, it was a rush to get ready in time, and we had to lose a few kilos quickly. Now, it's been a more gradual process. That's an advantage, yes. If you have to lose a lot of weight quickly, it always costs you something in terms of strength recovery or both. The faster you lose weight, the greater the risk of a negative effect," Pelgrim emphasizes.

Due to the crash in December, the trainer still refers to it as 'not a perfect winter,' so we won't know until the Tour whether the Belgian will be closer to Pogacar and Vingegaard. "All in all, he was out of action for four months, which you can't just erase with two months of training. It's not magic. But if I had to choose between this year's situation and last year's, I'd choose this year. His basic condition is okay. It's now a matter of those last few percent."

Teammate Pieter Serry could only agree, also speaking to HLN. "The whole team is good. The leader, too, yes. You feel that as a teammate. When you're putting in a serious effort on the climbs, and he easily passes you, you know enough. He often did one more block than the rest or trained for an hour longer. He's also lost a lot of weight. Remco is flying again; I don't think he's had a bad day in those three weeks," said the Belgian veteran about the altitude training camp in May.

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With a fresh haircut, Evenepoel was ready for an online press conference on Saturday afternoon. He said, "I think the Dauphiné is a first test for all of us to see where we stand in terms of form. It's not necessarily a battle between the three because others will also be in good shape. In the Dauphiné, some are already very good, others are still growing towards top form. It will be day by day, and I'll mainly be looking at myself. I hope to achieve some good results in the run-up to the Tour."

Patience is the magic word because Evenepoel prefers not to draw any conclusions from his Dauphiné. "Of course, the result is important; every leader wants to see where he stands. I don't have any specific ambitions, but I am starting with ambitions. Tadej has been riding great all year, and Jonas will want to know where he stands. There will be a desire to prove ourselves to each other, ourselves, and our teams. The level will be higher than last year so that it will be a good battle and spectacle."

Evenepoel echoed Pelgrim's words about the preparations. "I have more confidence in my condition than two months ago. I've got race rhythm, had a good altitude training camp, and am happy where I stand. The signals I'm getting now are the ones I only got last year, ten days before the Tour. Everything is fine, so hopefully that will show. And there's still room for improvement. I think I can get closer to Tadej and Jonas regarding climbing and the GC. The Dauphiné will be a good test for that."

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It speaks volumes about the eagerness with which Evenepoel rides. It's the result of the rollercoaster ride he's been on, which he has emerged from with a fresh mental outlook. When asked by IDLProCycling.com whether he now enjoys the heights more after hitting rock bottom in 2024, he responded at length: "That's actually an excellent question because I don't know why, but standing in the shower today after training, I thought about how nice it is to be back in top form finally."

"I feel good in my body, my weight is good, the metrics are good," he continued. "Precisely because I am back in shape now. It is an excellent question because it is always easy to say that you will come back stronger after an injury, but of course, you never know for sure in advance. When you're back at your level, you reflect on that period and conclude that it was worth it to keep fighting and pushing. But it's not really pleasant when you're in such a difficult period."

Evenepoel emphasized: "You have to suffer through a period like that. I'm happy and proud now that I feel that way again and how I'm riding with my teammates. The metrics in training and tests are good, and that's what you live for, to get in that shape. You don't live for crashes but for victories, and that's why I enjoy cycling more now than I did two or three months ago."

Bram van der Ploeg (Twitter: @BvdPloegg | email: [email protected])