Reigning champion Remco Evenepoel will lead the Wolfpack at the season’s fourth Monument.
One year ago, Remco Evenepoel wrote history in front of his home fans, soloing to a memorable and emotional victory at “La Doyenne” after attacking on the iconic La Redoute climb, from where he started a 30km time trial that concluded with him becoming the youngest winner of the race in more than 50 years. It was a turning point in the Belgian’s career, who went on to triumph later in the season at the Vuelta a España and the World Championships, capping off the year with the prestigious Vélo d’Or.
“Liège–Bastogne–Liège was special last season. I came at the start without too many expectations, but we had a plan – and that was to go for the win – which we executed perfectly. For sure, the crash in the bunch that took out two of my teammates wasn’t ideal for us, but we found a way to handle that stressful moment and we remained focused on our goal. That victory was the biggest of my career at that point, a moment I’ll never forget”, said Remco, who will lead Soudal Quick-Step this Sunday.
The World Champion will be joined for the 258.5km race that will take on ten climbs, including La Redoute and Côte de la Roche aux Faucons, by Julian Alaphilippe – a two-time podium finisher at Liège–Bastogne–Liège, who is back after the crash in De Ronde – Andrea Bagioli, Mauro Schmid, Pieter Serry, Ilan Van Wilder and Louis Vervaeke.
“Remco comes here from an altitude training camp and will be very motivated, especially as he will be present at the start as the defending champion and owner of the rainbow jersey. He can count on good teammates, who have a strong condition, and this makes us confident. We will see what role Julian will have; he knows the course and this race suits him perfectly, and the most important thing is that he can now train pain-free and be at the start. We’ll also need to see if the wind and the rain expected on Sunday can influence the race, but as we said, the confidence is there”, added sports director Geert Van Bondt.
Photo credit: ©David Ramos / Getty Images
