The Belgian is hugely motivated for his first year as World Champion.
Remco Evenepoel was a man in high demand at the Soudal Quick-Step Family Day, the event held at the Plopsaland Theme Park in De Panne, where we presented our 29-man team for this year and met the fans who came in large numbers to see the riders.
Having written history in 2022, when he captured Liège–Bastogne–Liège, the Vuelta a España and the World Championships – a performance not seen in decades – the soon to be 23-year-old took the stage Friday afternoon to talk about his annus mirabilis, which culminated with him winning the prestigious Velo d’Or trophy.
“I can tell you for sure that I will never forget 2022. I won my first Grand Tour, I took the rainbow jersey, I got married and I received the Velo d’Or, which is the biggest award you can get in our sport. At the same time, during La Vuelta, I learned a lot about myself, I learned how to handle the pressure better and how to be more relaxed. All this will definitely help me this season, a special one for me in the rainbow jersey, which I will start with a lot of motivation and desire to get good results together with the team”, said Remco, who will get things underway at Argentina’s Vuelta a San Juan, in just a few weeks.
Evenepoel’s road in his fifth season with the Wolfpack will lead to the Giro d’Italia, where he is eager to return after two years, but will see him also pin a number for “La Doyenne”, the spring’s final Monument, an appointment he already looks forward to.
“I think Liège–Bastogne–Liège will be the most special day of the year, because I will race it as the reigning champion and with the iconic rainbow jersey on my shoulders. After that, my focus will move onto the Giro d’Italia, my biggest goal of the year. We’re exactly four months away from the race and I can tell you that my objectives going there are to get at least a stage win and do a good general classification. But we also know a lot can happen in three weeks, so we’ll take it one step at a time, just like we did in the Vuelta, and see how things go”, added Remco, who will be one of the stars of an upcoming docuseries on Amazon Prime about the team’s memorable 2022 season.
Photo credit: ©Luc Claessen / Getty Images
