Remco Evenepoel: "Those Games were the number one moment of my career"
CyclingWednesday, 01 January 2025 at 16:11
Remco Evenepoel has in a recent interview talked about his confidence following the Tour de France and how he believed that he would go on to win at the Olympic Games - which he did, on two occasions, the first male rider to ever do so.
"I quickly felt after the Tour: I can create something unique. I know myself and I knew: if I take care of myself, it can work," Evenepoel said in words to Het Laatste Nieuws. In his Grand Boucle debut he achieved most of what was expected of him: A stage win and a place on the podium alongside Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard; in a performance that was as consistent as he's ever shown.
He went into the Olympic Games and won the time-trial ahead of Filippo Ganna by 14 seconds. "After that first gold medal, I drove home and when I was eating with my parents and grandparents, I was in a flow and I said: 'If nothing happens – no fall, no bad luck – I will win again.' That's how much self-confidence I had".
"My loved ones already knew then that I would also win that second gold. The next morning we left for vacation and lying by the pool it started to sink in. That what I had achieved was 'out of this world'." Evenepoel won the road race with a brilliant performance where he won after a long-range attack and tactical superiority by Belgium.
This was, by all means, Evenepoel's greatest achievement and ultimate career goal. The weight was largely off after two years of great performances, but this was the victory that he had dreamt the most and has already achieved.
"I realize very well: those Games were the number one moment of my career. That's pretty crazy. My career is maybe not even halfway through, I don't know what's coming, but I've already had my number one."
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leedorney02-05-2025 - Anna Kiesenhofer used the same method to prepare for the Tokyo Olympics, intervals while wearing her winter gear. Seemed to work really well for her!RidesHills02-05-2025
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I think anyone setting out obsessed to win it is doomed to fail. It only happens to a couple of handfuls every generation, maybe just a handful during anyone’s best career years. We had a period without « outstanding » riders (almost 10 different winners in 10 years) where it would have been easy, he may be resigning himself to the fact he just came along at the « wrong » moments and it may be best to focus on other challenges whilst waiting to see if a good opportunity to win after all comes along. He’s probably weighing choices, copy JV by sacrificing everything for the TdF or do his own programme and hope the right opportunity to win presents itself. He still has time on his side.