Focaccia, date with Van der Poel and Oumi's life lesson: Evenepoel talks about all after World Championship title

Remco Evenepoel = history maker. The Belgian of Soudal Quick-Step impressively claimed victory Sunday at the World Time Trial Championships in Zurich. Afterward, the two-time world champion was beyond chatty in the conference center in the Swiss city overlooking the iconic lake. "How I felt between Ganna and Affini? A focaccia," we pick one of the statements from Remco's repertoire.

Everything indicated that Evenepoel would win the time trial, but there was a nervous moment just before the start. The Belgian's chain flew off just before the start, causing him a stressful minute. In the end, (almost) everything was fixed in time, because presumably, due to the problem, the power meter didn't work. However, Evenepoel proved that it can also be done by feeling.

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This is what Remco Evenepoel said after the World Time Trial Championships

How did you pace yourself without a power meter because that's a challenging task?

"That's not pacing; it's more about feeling the rhythm and the pain in the legs. Working yourself through it. I could have climbed faster, but I couldn't push through there. Without knowing my abilities, that was tough. It was unfortunate, but in the end, I managed to keep my advantage and get the jersey. Although I still struggled in the last five kilometers, it was a special ride."

What exactly was the problem?

"I don't know. There are often a lot of camera crews around the start, so it happens more often that the signal from the power meter drops. This is already the second or third time this year. Perhaps it had something to do with the chain problems, that something was jammed there. The past few days have worked fine, but now something has gone wrong."

What was running through your mind at that moment?

"A little bit anyway. I was a little worried because, of course, I almost had to pull out. There, I had some stress. They already came with my backup bike, but we eventually got the chain back on and had some seconds left.

If there's one thing my wife Oumi has taught me over the years, I only control what I control. And that was not the case now, so I focused on the ride ahead of me. Of course, you'd rather be able to focus, which isn't the case now. The fact that I didn't see anything on my Garmin was also a slight disaster. Let's say it was a good test, which I didn't fail."

Have you had any doubts over the past few months?

'"ust before the Tour of Britain, I did. I couldn't handle intensive training, so I was concerned about being in shape in time. That's why we also skipped the European Championships, which was a good decision. In the past few days, I have rebuilt my confidence, which I also needed. I had faith that it was going to end well."

How high do you rate this win, after all the time trial victories you have already achieved?

"The time trial victory in the Tour and the one in the Olympics are a bit above that. I could have gone a lot faster if everything was sorted out. I don't want to sound arrogant, but I felt good, and the pacing plan could have given me another 20-second advantage."

You ended up standing on the podium between Filippo Ganna and Edoardo Affini, two Italian giants. What was that like?

"I felt a little focaccia. Two big pieces of bread and me as the mozzarella. (Laughter starts in the room)

They performed very well. Filippo showed once again that you should never forget him. I already saw some pictures of him during the week, and I noticed he was very fit. He trained in long pants, which is always a good sign. He is a classic time trialist, and you can see that. But it's good that I was on the highest platform; otherwise, I would have needed to fit in the picture."

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You rarely see riders crossing the finish line cheering in a time trial. Why did you choose to do that?

"Actually, I had discussed it with Mathieu van der Poel and Freddy Ovett in Spain. I wanted to do a celebration move, but the bike started shaking, and I had to hold my handlebars again. But so it was something I had agreed with my training mates in Spain. My time was still in the green, so I knew I would win. Winning the World Championship with my gold bike and helmet was special. And I wanted to enjoy that."