In beating his most dangerous rival, Italy’s Filippo Ganna, by nearly a minute, Evenepoel became the first cyclist to win four individual time trial (ITT) world titles in a row. Fabian Cancellara (Switzerland), Tony Martin (Germany), and Jeannie Longo (France) all won four time-trial world titles during their careers, but none did it four years in succession.
It was also an excellent day for young riders as 19-year-old Paul Seixas of France finished third in the men’s race and 21-year-old Zoe Bäckstedt of Britain came second in the women’s competition. But shed a tear for the 23-year-old Swedish rider Jakob Söderqvist, who seemed to be on the way to a podium finish when he crashed just 2.3 km from the line and finished fifth, just 13 second behind Seixas and the podium.
Evenepoel dominates (but can he do the double?)
“It’s amazing. It was obviously the goal to come and win here for the fourth time in a row,” Evenepoel told TNT Sports. “It was a big motivation. I just have to thank the whole team around me again for the preparation. I have to thank Specialized for all the new material that they made with me.”
He called the 39.2 km course through the city of Montreal “very demanding […] with a technical start and finish and a power part in the middle. I thought at the first intermediate [time check] that I kind of over-paced, but I just could keep pushing. I must say that I’ve just had a wonderful feeling all day. It’s a pretty good start to the Worlds.”
After his controversial training regime, which kept him out of racing for 69 days before tackling the Tour de France, Evenepoel appears to be in the form of his life, and, next Sunday, could very well become the first male rider to win the ITT and Road Race World Championships in the same year. “I think there’s quite some time to rest out now and enjoy this special one,” he said. “Full focus on Sunday from Tuesday on.”
Longo and Anna van der Breggen of the Netherlands won both titles in the same year, but no male cyclist ever has.
The much-anticipated contest between Evenepoel and Italy’s Filippo Ganna, the last rider not named Evenepoel to win the ITT world championship, never really materialised. The Belgian had a 22-second lead over Ganna at the first time check, 40 seconds at time check number 2, and his margin at the end was 57 seconds.
So, Ganna was actually battling Söderqvist and Seixas for second place. That contest was close for a while, but the Italian was the strongest over the final 10 km and beat Seixas by 13 seconds.
Teenager Seixas rode a marvellous race, but trailed Söderqvist and Ganna by 5 seconds at the third time check, 9.4 km from the line. To earn a bronze medal in his first elite world championship race is a marvellous accomplishment. When you combine this skill with his undeniable climbing ability, it makes for a future Grand Tour champion and a rider who will thrill us for many years.
His success stimulated his ambitions. “I think now it’s definitive proof that I’m one of the [ITT] specialists,” he said at a post-race press conference. “The two guys ahead of me have both been World Champions multiple times, and they are two of the greatest riders in the discipline. […] Today, Remco is the best specialist in the world in time trials, and today the proof is clear. Maybe in the future, if I progress physically and on my position [on the bike], I can bridge part of that gap.”
Seixas turns 20 on Thursday. They grow up so fast, don’t they?
Reusser saved her best for last
Like all time trial champions, defending champion Reusser saved her best for last. She was fifth at the first timing point, 10 seconds behind Bäckstedt, and still trailed her 14-years-younger rival by 2 seconds at the second time check. But at the third intermediate, 9.8 km from the finish of the 39.2 km course (the women rode the same course as the men), she led the British rider by 13 seconds and won going away, with a final margin of 40 seconds. Germany’s Franziska Koch finished third, at 45 seconds.
The winner said it was a wonderful way to celebrate her 35th birthday. “It’s a good present. I also thought, ‘If I win or not, anyway I have something to celebrate’.” Asked how she dealt with the pressure, she said, “I still don’t understand what pressure is and how it feels. But I always tell myself there is no pressure.”
She was also asked on TNT Sports how she had coped with the long course. She laughed and said, “Apparently I coped well.” Then she added: “It made me really nervous. On one hand, I was really looking forward to it because it has so many technical challenges, and these are much more interesting to ride. I’m used to doing 20k, so we had huge discussions with the team, with performance coaches, like what is good pacing. Until an hour ago [before the start of the race], I was not sure, and on the course I was not at all sure. So, yeah, it was challenging.”
She went on to say that she did not want to be informed about the gaps between the riders and had expected Bäckstedt to be faster at the beginning “because the first part is quite technical and honestly some corners I don’t do so well.” She added that she was in the dark until she passed pre-race co-favourite Demi Vollering – who had started 90 seconds before her – with 7.5 km left to ride. “But until the finish line, I did not know what happened.”
Vollering finished eighth, 1:49 behind Reusser, but she wasn’t overly disappointed. “I thought I was doing a good time trial, but then Marlen came from behind, and I thought, ‘Oh, she’s flying today.’” She went on to say, “Of course, I came for more. You can say, ‘I want gold’, but in the end, if the others are stronger, it is how it is. I cannot change that anymore, and I had the feeling I did a good TT. Actually, I was happy about my own performance. The legs were actually feeling good, and I think I had a good rhythm.”
As for the delighted Bäckstedt, she told Cycling Weekly, “At the Tour [time trial] I was fourth, and I was really disappointed with this, and I think that was also a super good ride. But immediately when I crossed the line here, I was over the moon.”
Last year’s U23 time trial world champion could have defended that title in Montreal but chose instead to race against the elite. “I didn’t know what to expect in a result,” Bäckstedt said. “I could’ve been anywhere from the win to top 10. And to come away with second… I felt strong on the bike, which was really a positive thing.”
Results World Championships Elite Women’s Time Trial, in Montreal (39.2km)
| Pos. | Rider | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Marlen Reusser | Switzerland | 50:24 |
| 2 | Zoe Bäckstedt | Great Britain | +0:40 |
| 3 | Franziska Koch | Germany | +0:45 |
| 4 | Elisa Longo Borghini | Italy | +0:50 |
| 5 | Cédrine Kerbaol | France | +1:10 |
| 6 | Lotte Kopecky | Belgium | +1:47 |
| 7 | Antonia Niedermaier | Germany | +1:49 |
| 8 | Demi Vollering | Netherlands | +1:49 |
| 9 | Dominika Włodarczyk | Poland | +1:59 |
| 10 | Vittoria Guazzini | Italy | +2:05 |
Result World Championships Elite Men’s Time Trial: in Montreal (39.2km)
| Pos. | Rider | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Remco Evenepoel | Belgium | 44:53 |
| 2 | Filippo Ganna | Italy | +0:57 |
| 3 | Paul Seixas | France | +1:13 |
| 4 | Brandon McNulty | USA | +1:25 |
| 5 | Jakob Söderqvist | Sweden | +1:26 |
| 6 | Isaac del Toro | Mexico | +1:38 |
| 7 | Stefan Küng | Switzerland | +1:44 |
| 8 | Kasper Asgreen | Denmark | +1:48 |
| 9 | Daan Hoole | Netherlands | +2:02 |
| 10 | Callum Thornley | Great Britain | +2:02 |