"When you're too focused on cycling, you risk losing control of your personal life" - Remco Evenepoel on managing burnout, Pogacar, Islam and Hour record
Cycling
After a tremendous debut at the Tour of Flanders, Remco Evenepoel has once again gotten back on track form-wise, and continues to perform on a season where a lot has changed in his career. His move to Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe ultimately has the goal of him being being able to challenge Tadej Pogacar, whilst he has discussed several other topics days ahead of Amstel Gold Race where he returns to competition.
"I want to achieve the best version of myself I've ever seen, the one I haven't seen yet. On the bike, and as a person. There's a lot I can learn. I believe there's a lot of room for growth, and I think I'm in the right environment to try to achieve my goal," Evenepoel said in an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport.
His move to Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe was particularly looking at his performance, which may have reached a plateau at Soudal - Quick-Step. A different training environment, staff and a stronger support crew for the mountains may be what the Olympic Champion needs in order to fight for a Tour de France win - although so far, his best performances this year have been away from the long ascents.
"With this team, I'm discovering new things about myself, too; it was really the right time for a change. Every race will be an opportunity to see how this process goes. The change in coach and teammates gives me greater motivation, first of all. I need to speak English more, obviously. There's great communication, connections, and exchanges between every aspect of my preparation."
Managing burnout risks
Evenepoel is at the top of his game and, at 26 years old, he's got a good mix of quality on the bike and experience racing at the very top, as well as handling all aspects of the professional cyclist life. "... In any case, I'm focusing primarily on myself, on what I can do. And compared to previous seasons, my intention is to compete more."
For this, it is necessary to find a great deal of balance, specially in a moment in time where riders are retiring younger than ever due to the extreme demands at a young age and also the hawk-eye focus of top teams to seek young talents above many others.
"Each of us has a different mindset about how to live life and find balance with cycling. I'm 200% professional when necessary. But there are also times when I "switch off," especially at home with my wife, Oumi," he admits. "If I come back from training, she asks me how it went, and then that's it, we don't talk about cycling anymore. When you're too focused on cycling, you risk losing control of your personal life."
Asked about his religion, he also provides an answer on what has been something that he states helped him tremendously during the 2025 winter where he spent months away healing a serious set of injuries after colliding with a postal van during a training ride.
"Yes, it's no secret that since Oumi and I got married in 2022, we share a common religion (Islam, ed.). It's something I'm learning day by day, month by month, year by year... and I'm happy about it."
"Cycling isn't forever. Being a husband, a father... it's more than that. That's how I see it, and I must say that I find this philosophy in the team too. We're very serious, but when the "work" is done, you have to enjoy the moments," he adds. "We mustn't forget that, and the more you enjoy the good times, the better you can handle the bad ones."
This year he's already experienced a difficult moment at the UAE Tour whilst his crash at the Volta a Catalunya derailed what would have been his major climbing test of the spring, where he had his teammate Florian Lipowitz and also Jonas Vingegaard racing alongside him wanting to prove themselves.
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Handling the pressure in Belgium
But at this point in his career, Evenepoel has learnt how to deal with the intense media pressure that has come from Belgium ever since he was a junior. "I think so. I've been in professional cycling for seven or eight years now, and that helps. I was already the center of attention at my debut, but now the pressure and expectations are no longer a problem."
The Italian news outlet asked him about Giulio Pellizzari, Evenepoel's incredibly promising teammate who has already delivered great performances this spring, and is very likely to be a podium contender at the Giro d'Italia in the team's leadership. "I met him at the winter training camps, and we rode together in the Valenciana for the first time. He's a little younger than me, but we have the same energy," Evenepoel details.
"He's cheerful, he boosts your morale, he's very nice. As a rider... the moment when he can think about standing on the Giro podium is very close. And when you're ready for the top three, you can aim to win. He has a great future ahead of him, to become one of the best Grand Tour riders in the world."
The Belgian, current Olympic, World and European time trial champion, was also asked about a potential tilt at the Hour Record, currently held by Filippo Ganna. However, he has pushed away the idea of doing it anytime soon:
"Definitely not this year, not even in 2027. And besides, I've never spent much time on the track. We have someone like Dan Bigham on our staff who was also a record holder in the Hour, but... As far as I'm concerned, if it happens, it won't be before 2030," he concluded.
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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