Why Evenepoel prefers time trial over altitude camp, unlike Pogacar, Vingegaard and van Aert

Remco Evenepoel will be doing the double. The Belgian has been training in the Alps over the past few days, where he explored several of the climbs that will feature in the Tour de France one last time. He returned to Belgium on Thursday after completing a tough training session in Tignes on Wednesday, posting a video of it on social media. Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard have opted for a few extra days at altitude to boost their red blood cell count, but Evenepoel has not.

This appears to be a decision made by the world time trial champion himself. “Time trials are simply a discipline he really enjoys,” sports director Klaas Lodewyck explained to Het Nieuwsblad. “And when there's a title at stake, it's hard to keep him away. We didn't think it was a must for Remco to participate, but he insisted on riding. After his altitude training, he really wanted to race again.”

And that's not all, Lodewyck emphasizes; the Belgian time trial championship also serves as a good test for the Tour time trial in the first week. "The effort will be a bit similar. There was no need for Remco to stay at altitude any longer. This altitude training camp in Tignes was already his second in a short period, following the one in Sierra Nevada for the Dauphiné. The fact that Vingegaard and Pogacar can theoretically stay at altitude for a few days longer won't make a difference."

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At HLN they are already saying that it is not a question of whether Evenepoel will win the Belgian Championship title in the time trial but how big his lead will be. Not surprisingly, only Florian Vermeersch (UAE) and Alec Segaert (Lotto) are competitors. And with a perfectly executed altitude training camp after the somewhat disappointing Critérium du Dauphiné. Evenepoel finished fourth, unable to beat Pogacar and Vingegaard on the climbs, but on point in the time trial with a stunning performance.

On his Specialized bike, he hopes to wash away the bad taste of France and, with it, the hay fever pollen that had prevented him from performing at his best in the Dauphiné. “We expect Remco to be in top physical and mental shape. The two Belgian championships will give us an idea of that,” Lodewyck told the other Belgian media outlet. In addition to the time trial, Evenepoel is also hoping to win the road race on Sunday. “This Remco can always make the difference on any type of course.”

If that doesn't work out from the attack, Soudal-Quick Step has a plan B with Tim Merlier. Merlier will also be at Evenepoel's side in the Tour de France. In addition to Evenepoel, Yves Lampart and Ilan Van Wilder will also compete in the time trial on behalf of Soudal Quick-Step, which will start with eleven riders on Sunday: in addition to Merlier, Ayco Bastiaens, Junior Lecerf, Pieter Serry, Dries Van Gestel, Bert Van Lerberghe, Mauri Vansevenant, and Jordi Warlop will also be joining the team.

On behalf of Visma | Lease a Bike, Wout van Aert will skip the Belgian Championship time trial. He is not aiming for the World Championships this year, which makes the Belgian Championship less interesting, although Van Aert will start in the road race on Sunday. Victor Campenaerts and Tiesj Benoot will also participate, as will Julien Vermote, Tosh Van der Sande, and, as planned, Cian Uijtdebroeks. However, he crashed during training on Wednesday.

Other candidates for a good result in the Belgian time trial championship, besides Segaert and Vermeersch, include the other UAE-Belgian Rune Herregodts. In Sunday's road race, the extensive Alpecin-Deceuninck team led by Jasper Philipsen will also be looking for success, as will the always-strong Lotto team with Jenno Berckmoes and Arnaud De Lie. In addition, Jordi Meeus, Maxim Van Gils (Red Bull-BORA), Milan Fretin (Cofidis), Oliver Naesen (Decathlon AG2R), Thibau Nys, Jasper Stuyven (Lidl-Trek), and Tim Wellens (UAE) are also worth keeping an eye on.