With help from Evenepoel, Gilbert’s son hopes to turn pro: 'A really beautiful story.'

Philippe Gilbert and Evenepoel have known each other for a while. Gilbert runs his own junior race, La Philippe Gilbert Juniors. In 2017, Patrick Evenepoel really wanted his son to compete, even though his team wasn’t on the start list. Eventually, Gilbert relented. The winner of that edition? That’s right, Evenepoel. “That’s when I thought: that kid is something else,” Gilbert said at the time.

Two years later, they were already racing together at the Elite World Cycling Championships. “Remco has always looked up to Phil,” Remco’s father Evenepoel tells Sporza.

“At the 2019 World Championships in Harrogate, Remco did a great job supporting Phil. That’s where their friendship began. And so many years later, Phil’s son is riding for Remco’s team. That’s a really beautiful story.”

So how exactly did that come about? “Last year, Remco went to check out Liège–Bastogne–Liège with Phil and his son Alan.” There, the 15-year-old made quite an impression. “Remco then told Alan that he should come ride for his junior team.” Gilbert Jr. had previously trained with Tadej Pogačar, but a contract with UAE Team Emirates-XRG hasn’t materialised (yet).

Gilbert Jr. will race for the R.EV Team in the coming year. “What kind of rider is Alan? He’s fast at the finish line, but there’s still plenty of room for improvement and growth. We’ll do our best to guide him along the way.” The team shares more on Instagram. “As a pure sprinter, Alan wants to further hone his speed and timing and learn how to handle every race situation.”

Alan Gilbert also shared his thoughts. He can’t wait to get started. “I’m really happy to be joining the R.EV Cycling Academy, and I’m ready for the next step. I want to keep building my speed, refine my timing, and learn to read the race better. Thanks for all the confidence in me, and I can’t wait to give it my all!”