The Belgian became the youngest rider to amass multiple medals since the discipline was introduced at the competition, in 1994.
Remco Evenepoel was in Brugge Sunday afternoon, not to visit the alcoves in the Koningin Astridpark, but to receive a well-deserved bronze medal at the end of the first race of the World Championships – the flat 43.3km individual time trial.
Runner-up in his first participation two years ago in his first pro season, Remco returned to the start after missing the 2020 competition through injury, and was the first of the big names to roll down the ramp in Knokke-Heiste, getting raucous cheers and an extra kick of adrenaline from the huge crowds that gathered to watch the event.
Pedalling smoothly and confidently, the 21-year-old smashed the reference time at both intermediate checkpoints and kept the speed high all the way to the finish, where he stopped the clock in 48:32. The result brought a lengthy spell in the hot seat for Remco, who remained there until the final minutes of the race, when Filippo Ganna (Italy) and his countryman Wout Van Aert bumped him into third place.
“I am really happy, because I got the most out of this course. I came here having learned a valuable lesson in Trento, where I had a powerful start and paid for that towards the end. This time, I paced myself better and this allowed me to increase the tempo in the second part of the race, which made the difference at the end. It’s a great satisfaction to be on the podium in this company. I didn’t have an easy year, but I kept believing and working hard, and that paid off today”, said Remco, who less than two weeks ago took third also at the European ITT Championships.
Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images
