Cycling – Tour de France 2024 – Remco Evenepoel : “I expect Tadej Pogacar to be almost unreachable”

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Remco Evenepoel va faire ses grands débuts sur le Tour de France samedi ! À 24 ans et après cinq saisons et demie de professionnalisme, il est l’heure pour le prodige du cyclisme belge de poser ses roues sur les routes de la plus grande course du monde. À trois jours de s’élancer pour trois semaines qu’il espère bien évidement couronnées de succès, le leader unique de la Soudal Quick-Step s’est confié lors d’une conférence de presse organisée ce mercredi soir. Durant celle-ci, il a notamment expliqué qu’il ne sentait “pas encore” l’atmosphère particulière de la Grande Boucle.

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five minutes because Belgium is playing thank you hey Remco um hello Remco what’s your feelings three days before the the true France in terms of form and and confidence uh for the moment uh all good I think um it was uh pretty good weather in Belgium which is always uh very welcome so uh I had uh quite some good days at home uh recovering from the the small illness so everything should be pretty okay with that so um yeah for the moment all good and Remco obviously at the end of the do you said you still had some work to do um how close are you now to where you would have wanted to be if you know if I’d asked you at the start of the Season how you want to be going into the toor of France how close are you yeah at the start of the season I would always have said that I didn’t want to crash in in Basque so uh for sure there I uh I had to put some steps back um but overall I think I uh I Tred to push myself as much as possible on the altitude Camp um in terms of uh trainings nutrition just everything I try to to improve everything um in a positive way so uh I think for now I I need to be happy with what I I did the past two weeks three weeks so uh I think uh I arrived in uh for what was the best shape possible um seeing from doof on so um yeah I just try to push myself to the maximum every day and I think uh yeah on that side I don’t have to uh to blame myself for not training hard enough or not uh focusing enough so I uh I tried my best hello rco there’s been a lot of talk about your four top guys for for the tour of rounds uh who do you expect being on on the highest level of you four guys going into this tour I expect T to be unreachable almost so uh I think what he showed in the in thej was already super impressive and knowing that he didn’t have to go deep in the races almost to to get the results will uh will definitely not have tired him out to come here to the tour so I think that will be the man to beat for this two def fronts the team has made um a big transformation to support you in this tour uh first how satisfied are you with these changes and um um how much influence you had on the selection of the writers coming with you uh in terms of the selection I think I I am not having much influence for sure the the coaches the DS’s um the doctors they all have to to look into the data who is in in the best shape uh for a moment who is not ill who is just performing well so I think uh that speaks for himself that I I’m not the guy with the last word in terms of the selections um and then um yeah I think it’s it’s it’s a very nice way to start a tour with seeing that many guys in in um yeah in uh in work for me so uh I think it’s a privilege to have strong Riders like Mikel Elan all those big names uh riding and working for me so it gives extra motivation and extra power in the legs to to do my best the coming three weeks the coach of finger guard said um if he’s going to start in a good shape then I’m not afraid he will bottle of how do you say it off bot um in the in the second and third week he will always get better um do you think you’re the same kind of Rider because after the grand Tours you did uh I hope so I mean um if we look at this first week it’s especially day one and day four that are very difficult days um which are quite in the beginning so that means that there will not a lot of fatigue in the in the body yet uh by that time uh so I hope after that that I can um yeah that that I can use this first week to to improve as well uh still a little bit so so I think um maybe I I should hope for the same situation uh or for the same explanation that you just gave me about yonas so um I think that would be good for me as well to to still go into my Peak towards the second weekend uh the third week so um yeah I think uh I hope it’s going to be like that but for sure it’s always more easy to say than uh to really have it like that I spoke to Casper Peterson yesterday and he told me that he was very dedicated to support you this this year so so I I want to ask you what does he mean for your tour and and also will you miss Casper ESR and the team this year uh yeah I think both caspers are very strong Riders I think um for sure the team always has to make decisions and uh sometimes it’s uh yeah bigger decisions to leave somebody at home or not um but I think with the the three rulers that we have here with uh Casper Pon moscon and lumy I think we have three three very strong Riders who can also survive uh some climbs uh and I think Casper his main task will be to help me in the flat days uh when I need to to go for a a p stop or when I have a mechanical or whatever he’s the guy to to bring me back to really ride with his nose in the wind for me um and we all know that he has the capabilities and the the engine to do that uh and he’s also very flexible I mean he will never uh doubt any decision that I make so I think Casper is a guy that I’ve been racing with in par and also doof and everything was working very well so I mean then it’s already an easier decision to to take a guy like that uh to have that task for me hco we are three days before your your first two of rounds how will you describe your excitement and what are you looking forward the most uh honestly for the moment I feel quite relaxed so no stress or uh anything uh that would bother me um and uh yeah I’m just looking forward to everything actually it’s uh it’s a first time for something so uh that’s why I look forward to a bit of everything already starting with the team presentation of tomorrow um and also just yeah the start of day one um the first rest day also so I mean uh it’s uh it’s going to be quite an exciting um exploring for me so um I think I’m looking forward to a bit of everything and uh hopefully also that we will have good weather in the next three weeks um well I think uh for sure the Olympics are following up quite quickly but luckily uh the travel from n to Paris is not that long it’s not like uh Paris Tokyo for example so uh I think um after the tour if I will have to go all out till the last day uh I think in a few days I will I will be recovered um like I said the travel is not that long so uh some easier days at home or uh straight away in Paris will uh will do me very good and uh it will just be important to not um yeah to not become sick to not uh lose the shape and just stay busy on the bike keep the legs rolling um so yeah I think um it’s uh it’s it’s quite short but it’s not impossible so uh it’s also something I’m looking forward to but for sure now it’s uh full focus on the tour first about um the first stage um there are people who says it’s going to be a m Pon kind of stage there’s people UA is going to destroy everything and they are going to ride very fast um what do you think of this first stage with 26 uh flat kilometers in the end well I think uh I saw Matt Peterson climbing in doof he was going up very well um so I think if he has the legs and if he can uh handle the pressure that maybe a team like U can put then uh he’s in my opinion the top favorite for stage one um personally I also think somebody like w or mat could do it if they are in top shape um but yeah like you mentioned If U Goes Bananas from CL one then uh it will be a very small group going to the Finish Line I think or maybe even a guy alone so um it will all depend on on how the race will develop um but if if the race develops like how I think it should develop then probably Peterson can be favorite number one um but yeah also with Matthew and W in the back of uh yeah of our heads let’s say you’ve just mentioned uh uh about not getting sick before the Olympics as well and getting through the three weeks all right uh in the T to France you were of course A bit sick after the Criterium to do how has that affected your preparation for this tour to France and are you ready to fight uh immediately in the first four days for GC as well uh well yeah uh I think everybody knows I couldn’t participate in the Nationals which uh could and would have been her last big test for the tour um also the trainings before I couldn’t really uh train uh intensive uh or like high power trainings high intensity trainings so uh on that side I couldn’t do 100% what I needed um but overall I could handle uh more calm trainings longer trainings also were not the problem but uh specific intensity trainings were were not possible till uh till yesterday so that was uh a bit tricky um and will it affect for the for the tour we will see um but then on the other hand I hope to to be up there already in the first days not necessarily to to win a stage or to uh to win um but more to not lose time and then be brave and strong enough to to follow the group a question I know we’re looking a long long way ahead but you’ve got Stage Nine a long way ahead of you the white roads stage and um those are difficult uh uh surfaces to ride on where you’ve you’ve suffered in the past um what are your thoughts about that stage and has does it cast a shadow or influence the way that you think about your approach to this year’s Tor of France thank you R uh honestly it’s a very beautiful stage of course we did a Recon of it I think all the teams did a Recon of it so uh yeah I think um you’re obviously speaking about the the Juro stage where I uh lost some time but I think comparing myself now and then is unfair um seeing from what kind of in injury I was coming back so uh I think yeah I’m I’m feeling ready for that stage it’s something uh something special it will probably in my opinion be one of the most viewed sports events of of this year on a Sunday grael Road in Rose in in the tour I think everybody wants to watch that on television so it will be a day with a lot of pressure in the bunch in the um alongside the bunch as well um but yeah I’m actually quite excited for that stage um uh for sure the gravel sections can can be tricky but I think it’s uh more a day where you can uh oh sorry they almost uh they were going close to the goal uh so I think um it’s not a stage that can can make you win the Tour but it can make you lose some time uh Stupid time actually with Mechanicals and stuff but yeah I mean uh we will have to see after the race who was in uh in trouble who was not so uh but honestly I’m looking forward to that stage it’s uh it’s something exciting it’s something uh that I’ve learned to do so um yeah I’m looking forward to next Sunday already a question about the opening weekend how do you rate your own chances rco you said you won’t go for the win and try to limit the losses talking about Ms and rout uh but well some say it’s a sort of like Le B Le stage so we know who won it over there a couple of times uh yes I agree it’s a it’s a very hard stage um but the thing is it’s small 30 kilom of down and flat part towards the finish line so um I think for me the only way to to win it is going solo so I think on the on the first day of the tour it’s not really uh smart to do that especially with some GC Ambitions in the back of my head so um I think uh if there is any possibility to win for sure I will not uh leave it on the S but I will not give myself 30 kilom all out on on my own to try and take that stage win um if I can do it in a Sprint of a small group then it’s Qui in an economic way um but if it’s if it has to be in a non-economic way then for sure I will uh not even give it a try so um it’s more about surviving the first days and uh getting out staying out of trouble and uh yeah uh seeing how the race develops how the legs feel and uh also breeding in the the tour atmosphere I think that’s going to be also a very important one on the first days I’m curious there’s already already been mentioned of UAE potentially going all out to try and disadvantage Jon me go early on um you and Primus rugi were also injured in in the crotch in nuli and theoretically might be have have had less ideal preparation than uh you would otherwise have had so I’m I’m wondering are you wored wary of UAE um trying to gain time early and indeed if you do feel good will you collaborate with that um in trying to bearing in mind that eus is is coming in and is potentially short of form so is that leg a tactic and is that something that you’re wary of or indeed happy to join in with um I think if they decide that that’s going to be their tactics I think we have to to let them do what they want um and not not not uh borrow too much in in their tactics um and try to to focus on ourselves try to to follow that pace as long as possible and uh and see how it develops um but personally I don’t think that that Jas will uh will crack in in the first days not at all um I think uh uh UA and especially poacha they want to yeah they want to kind of pay back for what uh jumbo did last year to to UA so I think they have a bit the same tactics tactics this year as yonas is now a bit in the situation that t was last year so it might be a bit of a revenge for for them so um I’m actually curious to see how they will approach the first days um but yeah I think U has a team here where where they want to win as much as possible with as much as possible stages and uh yeah especially the GC as well after two years missing out so I think they will be very motivated and uh they just want to uh to show to the world that they are the best team that they are kind of the Real Madrid of uh of cycling so uh no not Manchester City yeah so uh yeah it’s uh it’s actually something very curious to to look forward to and uh yeah special to to be part of as well uh knowing what happened last year and and the year before so uh it’s going to be a special uh a special situation in the race