“In those two weeks Remco was never super... results don’t lie” - Philippe Gilbert sounds Evenepoel warning as Belgian pressure ramps up ahead of European Championships
Cycling
Remco Evenepoel has barely had time to leave Montreal behind before another major championship arrives with expectation already piling up around him.
The Belgian left Canada with a fourth consecutive world time trial title but without the road race result he had wanted, finishing 12th after admitting from the first lap that he simply did not have the legs.
Gilbert questions what went wrong in Montreal
“In those two weeks in Canada he was never really super, apart from in the time trial,” Philippe Gilbert said on RTL Sport. “In the road races he was stable, but his results don’t lie. He’s honest about that too.”
Gilbert believes the balance between Evenepoel’s time trial preparation and the demands of the road race left him short by the final Sunday in Montreal. “He simply wasn’t at his best,” Gilbert said. “He put a lot of work into the World Championship time trial and, although that was a fantastic performance, it isn’t really compatible with the road World Championships.”
Evenepoel offered no excuses of his own afterwards. “From the first lap I could feel that I wasn’t having a good day,” he said. “It sucks that it had to happen today, but there are no excuses.”
The disappointment extended well beyond Belgium’s leader. Wout van Aert also faded after attacking from distance, while Jan Bakelants questioned how an entire team expected to challenge for the rainbow jersey had ended up struggling on the same afternoon. “It’s too strange that everybody had an off-day,” Bakelants said. “This is something for Pauwels to investigate: where did it go wrong?”
Evenepoel was already back on the bike in Belgium by Tuesday, posting “Sunset to clear the head” before attention turned towards Slovenia.
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Pogacar out as Evenepoel targets missing European jersey
Sunday’s elite men’s road race runs 196.3 kilometres from Ljubljana to Šenčur, with 2,571 metres of climbing and five laps of a 22.1-kilometre finishing circuit. Each lap includes the Možjanca climb, 2.1 kilometres at an average of 10.2% and reaching 15.8% at its steepest.
The final ascent is followed by rolling terrain, a technical descent and just over seven kilometres from Strmol Castle back to the finish in Šenčur.
Tadej Pogacar will not defend his European title on home roads after Slovenia confirmed its squad without him. Primoz Roglic and Matej Mohoric instead lead the home challenge.
Wout van Aert is also absent, leaving Evenepoel at the head of a Belgian eight-man team alongside Jenno Berckmoes, Ramses Debruyne, Sander De Pestel, Quinten Hermans, Maxim Van Gils, Ilan Van Wilder and Louis Vervaeke.A very different Belgian setup from Montreal, where Van Aert and Evenepoel arrived as two genuine winning options.
Evenepoel also has unfinished business with the European road race itself. The continental jersey is still missing from a collection that already includes world and Olympic road race titles, four consecutive world time trial championships and Olympic time trial gold. He finished second behind Pogacar at the 2025 Europeans.
This time Pogacar will not be on the start line. Evenepoel will arrive carrying the questions left behind in Montreal, but also with another chance to fill one of the few remaining gaps in his championship palmares.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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