The Tour de France is over (for the men, that is) so it’s time for some of the top finishers to brush up on their acting. By acting, that means some fun little post-Tour crits.
Remco Evenepoel didn’t have much time to celebrate his runner-up finish at the Tour de France before pinning on a ‘race’ number again. And surprise surprise, even though he’d just finished a tough Grand Tour, somehow the Double Olympic champ managed to win!
What’s next for Evenepoel
Less than 24 hours after the Tour wrapped up in Paris, the Belgian star was back in his hometown of Aalst for the opening post-Tour criterium. It marked his first appearance in the event after completing the Tour, with his next major objective coming at Saturday’s Clásica San Sebastián.
“It’s my hometown, and this race fits perfectly into my schedule,” Evenepoel said to Sporza. “It keeps me going before San Sebastián.”
The 26-year-old admitted the turnaround from Paris to Aalst was anything but relaxing. After celebrating with his Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe teammates following the Tour, he didn’t get to bed until around 2:30 a.m.
“We had a small celebration with the team, some food and drinks,” he said. “It was a short night.”
Even so, Evenepoel said he is looking forward to the rest of the season.
“My energy isn’t very high right now, but my motivation certainly is.”
Best Tour yet
Evenepol became the first Belgian since Lucien Van Impe in 1981 to finish second overall. Granted, the unfortunate withdrawal of Visma-Lease a Bike’s Jonas Vingegaard certainly helped that, but the Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe rider had a great Tour, with two stage wins, including one in the mountains just ahead of Pogi. (Whether or not that was an accidental gift by the yellow jersey, we will never know, but it was clear his heart wasn’t exactly into it given the abandonment of his arch-rival and friend, Vingegaard.)
Although the men’s Tour de France is done, The Tour de France Femmes begins on Saturday with a 138-km stage in Lausanne. Start lists are being confirmed but already there are already a few Canucks on it, and certainly more to come. Each stage is being broadcast on FloBikes.com, and there will be daily reports on Canadian Cycling Magazine.