"Returning to Cycling: Remco Evenepoel Resumes Riding Sixteen Days After Withdrawal from Tour de France"
Remco Evenepoel Preparing for 2023 UCI Road World Championships in Rwanda
Remco Evenepoel, the Belgian cycling sensation, is gearing up for the UCI Road World Championships scheduled to take place in Rwanda at the end of September.
Evenepoel's training regime has been intense, leading up to this prestigious event. His preparations culminated in winning the time trial event at the 2023 World Championships held in Scotland on August 11. This victory added another feather to his cap, making him one of the few cyclists to have won both the road race (in 2022) and the time trial world championships.
Regarding his team and transfer news, Evenepoel has confirmed that he will stay with Soudal–Quick-Step for the 2024 season, despite some dissatisfaction and ongoing speculation about a potential move to Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe. Despite the allure of a team with greater Tour de France ambitions and a larger budget, Evenepoel aims to strengthen his position as a top contender in Grand Tours, especially with a view towards the post-Pogačar era at the Tour de France starting potentially in 2029.
In terms of recent performance, after the 2023 Worlds, Evenepoel achieved further success in 2024. He won Olympic gold medals in both the time trial and road race events in Paris and secured his third world championship time trial title in 2024. He also notably debuted in the Tour de France in 2024 with a third-place overall finish and a victory in the young rider classification.
If Evenepoel can return to form, he is likely to lead the Belgian team at the hilly World Championships in Rwanda. The cyclist, who is known for his strong focus on time trials and stage races, will undoubtedly be a force to reckon with in the African nation.
Meanwhile, Soudal-QuickStep has also bolstered its Classics roster with the signing of Edward Planckaert and Jasper Stuyven last week. The team's management is yet to make any significant moves to strengthen its Grand Tour squad around Evenepoel.
In other news, Evenepoel marked the first anniversary of becoming a double Olympic champion in Paris in 2024, posting about it on Instagram. He also completed a 105km training ride on Monday, 16 days after abandoning the Tour de France due to fatigue. The cyclist named his ride with a phrase from French rapper Werenoi.
Evenepoel struggled at the Critérium du Dauphiné and eventually on the roads of the Tour de France, where he struggled with fatigue during the Peyragudes mountain time trial and climbed off during stage 14 to Superbagnères. Despite these setbacks, he managed to win the stage 5 time trial around Caen during the Tour de France.
There have been reports of a transfer of Evenepoel from Soudal-QuickStep to Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, though Evenepoel has long played down such reports. As of August 2025, the transfer remains unconfirmed.
[1] Cycling News [2] CNBC [3] The Guardian [4] BBC Sport
Evenepoel, with the 2023 UCI Road World Championships in Rwanda approaching, is preparing to compete in various sports, specifically in cycling. Notably, Evenepoel's recent victory in the time trial event at the 2023 World Championships, held in Scotland, showcases his dominance in sports, particularly in cycling.
