Evenepoel credits dominant time trial victory to obsessive preparation: "I knew every turn and it was necessary"

Remco Evenepoel was in a class of his own in the individual time trial at the Tour of the Algarve on Saturday. The Belgian world champion finished seventeen seconds ahead of second-place Magnus Sheffield and, for instance, beat Wout van Aert by a minute over 22 kilometers. The outcome was the result of good legs, but above all, good preparation.

"A perfect time trial, probably. When you win, a time trial is always perfect," Evenepoel smiles from the rollers in the flash interview. "From the start, I had a pretty good feeling, and I knew the course well. After the Figueira Champions Classic on Monday, we scouted the course well with three laps, and this morning I did another two."

Crucial for the victory, Evenepoel asserts. "I knew all the turns by heart, and that was necessary because it was a technical time trial, with bumps and holes in the road. Tight turns too, so you had to know where you could take risks, and where not. Maybe it was a bit too technical in some places, but it was a beautiful time trial in this setting. I enjoyed every meter of it, and closing it off with a victory is even better."

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Evenepoel eyes another stage win in the Algarve

"I had perfect coaching from the car, and we prepared perfectly," concludes Evenepoel, who, representing Soudal-Quick Step, now heads into the final mountain stage on Sunday with a 47-second lead over Daniel Felipe Martínez (BORA-hansgrohe). "It will all be about defending and being smart. The yellow jersey is the most important, but maybe we can go for another stage win."

In a conversation with VTM, the young all-rounder also looks ahead to what's coming on the final day. "It's not secured yet, but the lead is not bad. It's a very good sign that I could perform like this today. I just went full throttle from start to finish. We've adjusted the position a bit this winter, and the mechanics and performance team have looked at my gearing. It went very well. I can only be satisfied with the work of the entire team."