"How many riders have won 3 in a row? Achieving something historic would be special" - Remco Evenepoel 'at his best' prior to Worlds TT vs Tadej Pogacar and co

Remco Evenepoel insists he has never felt stronger heading into a World Championships than he does now, as the Belgian prepares to defend his time trial crown on Tuesday in Kigali. The 25-year-old is chasing a third consecutive rainbow jersey in the discipline, a feat achieved only by Michael Rogers and Tony Martin in the modern era.

“Once you’ve worn that jersey, you don’t want to give it back – especially when you know the course suits you,” Evenepoel told HLN. “How many riders have won three in a row? Two. That’s a great challenge: I want to add my name to that list, and even rise above it. To achieve something historic here would be special.”

The Kigali route, with its long straights, rolling terrain and relatively untechnical profile, appears tailor-made for Evenepoel’s power-based approach. “It’s the kind of parcours I like: wide, lots of straight sections, not too technical, with plenty of positioning battles. There will be a lot of rhythm changes because it’s constantly up and down – which makes it harder – but that’s something I tend to enjoy,” he said.

Evenepoel stressed the importance of pacing on a course where the hardest climbs come deep into the effort. “You definitely can’t go over the limit in the first half. The last ten minutes will be brutal – you have to be able to go all-out twice.”

If the parcours looks favourable, Evenepoel believes his form is just as promising. After a disrupted first half of the year, he claims to be peaking exactly as planned. “I don’t want to shout it from the rooftops, but I don’t think I’ve yet had the form I have now. It’s logical: I’ve had a proper build-up, a long altitude camp, and I’ve now got five months of racing in the legs, like everyone preparing for the Tour. It’s the first time I’ve been able to complete everything perfectly in training.”

Standing in his way is an all-star line-up led by Tadej Pogacar, fresh from a dominant summer that included Tour de France. The duel between the Belgian and the Slovenian has been billed as the headline act in Kigali, though other time trial specialists will be eager to capitalise if the pair misfire.

For Evenepoel, however, the opportunity to carve his name into history looms largest. “If I take two of the four titles still on offer – Worlds, Europeans, Lombardia – it makes the season look a lot brighter. But defending this jersey in Rwanda would already be something truly special.”