The first Belgian Olympic athletes set foot on Japanese soil and among them was Remco Evenepoel, accompanied by coach Sven Vanthourenhout.
“How do I feel when I leave? Healthy tension. It will undoubtedly be a great experience”, said Evenepoel. “I did long endurance rides and of course trained a lot uphill. For example, I simulated the Mikuni Pass on the Mortirolo, a climb with comparable gradients.”
“I got a few percent better in Livigno and I feel fresh again. Now I have to do a few good training sessions in Tokyo, then we’ll see what it happens.”
“I think that Wout [Van Aert] has an edge, as I saw him riding up the Mont Ventoux. He’s in good shape. If we go to the finish with a select leading group in the road race and there are still two of us there, I will definitely work on the sprint for Wout. But until the foot of that last climb we will each ride our own race. I have also worked hard”.
The Olympic road race will take place on July 24, while the the time trial is on the calendar four days later (July 28).
