Remco Evenepoel mastered a flat, slippery urban time trial course through the heart of Paris to emerge as gold medalist in the men’s time trial. The Belgian – the last rider to start – was fastest at every time check along the bumpy course made treacherous by steady rain and rode a masterful race of pacing and technique to beat Filippo Ganna of Italy and Belgian national teammate Wout van Aert.
Top 10
- Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) 36:12
- Filippo Ganna (Italy) @ :15
- Wout van Aert (Belgium) @ :25
- Josh Tarling (Great Britain) @ :27
- Brandon McNulty (USA) @ 1:04
- Stefan Bissegger (Switzerland) @ 1:26
- Nelson Oliviera (Portugal) @ 1:31
- Stefan Küng (Switzerland) @ 1:35
- Max Schachmann (Germany) @ 1:38
- Mikkel Bjerg (Denmark) @ 1:43
How it happened
- The largely flat Paris time trial course lacked much in the way of technicality on paper, but steady rains that started during Friday’s Opening Ceremonies continued to Saturday. When combined with numerous cobblestone stretches and the ubiquitous painted crosswalks in corners, it made for a tricky ride. After numerous riders in the women’s event crashed, several men’s riders went down too, including the USA’s Magnus Sheffield, who had turned in a top-five time at the first time split.
- Australia’s Luke Plapp and Norway’s Søren Wærenskjold didn’t finish after also being involved in crashes; prior to his crash, Plapp had laid down the fourth-best time at the first intermediate checkpoint.
- Stefan Bissegger of Switzerland turned in the fastest early finish time and stayed in the hotseat as rider after rider failed to better his 37:39 post. But with the fastest riders starting last, he knew it would be difficult to stay in the medals. It was Van Aert who finally dislodged him with an exceptional ride, shaving a minute off Bissegger’s mark.
- Britain’s Josh Tarling, a fashionable pre-race pick despite being just 20 years old and racing in his first Games, looked to lay down a medal-winning ride, but a front flat early in the race required a bike change and cost him roughly 15 seconds. He fought back but at the finish was two seconds shy of Van Aert’s time, with Ganna and Evenepoel still on course.
- Each of the two veteran favorites set the fastest marks at the intermediate checks as they passed. But Ganna looked less smooth and comfortable in the corners and had his most serious scare on a flat section with a narrow paved strip next to the barriers on an otherwise-cobbled road. His front wheel slipped and he fishtailed wildly, almost riding into the barriers before saving it, and managed to better Van Aert’s time at the finish by 11 seconds.
- But Evenepoel would not be denied. He took corners with speed and confidence, neatly threading through the slick paint stripes and powering out of the apex out of the saddle to regain speed. At the finish, his margin was safe enough that as he sprinted to the line he took one hand off the bars to emphatically punch the air as he crossed.
Brief analysis
- The pre-race assessment of Evenepoel, Ganna, and Tarling as favorites played out almost perfectly, and had Tarling not had a mechanical he likely would have been in contention for a silver medal. Instead, the young British phenom finished one spot out of the medals and by only two seconds, a close call he’ll no doubt ruminate on in the four years until Los Angeles hosts the next Games.
- Sheffield’s crash appeared to cost him. Prior to his fall he was pacing around 53.5 km/h, or roughly similar to Tarling. But post-crash his average dropped a solid 2 km/h and he eventually crossed in 16th position. It’s unknown whether he sustained any serious injuries in the crash.
- For Belgium, it’s a near-perfect start to the Games for the men’s team, with a gold and bronze medal and both riders staying upright and out of trouble. Evenepoel and Van Aert now look to the men’s road race August 3, where both are also medal contenders.
- For Evenepoel specifically, it marks yet more confirmation that he’s the best time triallist in the world. He’s renowned for his exceptional aerodynamics, but on a flat course it was thought that the higher overall power of big riders like Ganna, Tarling, and Van Aert would give them an advantage. Instead, it was pacing, power, and handling skills that delivered Evenepoel to gold. As the reigning world time trial champion and winner of the first TT stage at the Tour, Evenepoel is now TT king until and unless someone dethrones him.
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