Red Bull-Bora-hansgrohe has been overseeing the Belgian’s preparations for the Tour de France changed his plans. Instead of a traditional race block in June, Evenepoel is undertaking an extended altitude training programme on Mount Teide in Tenerife. On his YouTube channel, Evenepoel has often shared updates on his training, or his recovery following a crash. In his newly released video, he speaks very openly about his stats and performance metrics – something that happens extremely rarely among the world’s top cyclists.
Remco Evenepoel: An insight into his performance data
Remco Evenepoel has not competed in any races since Liège–Bastogne–Liège. The plan is for him to head straight to the Tour de France without taking part in any further races, which means that every single training session takes on even greater importance in the run-up to the season’s most important stage race.
The YouTube video shows not only moments away from training, but also a threshold session supervised by performance coach Dan Lorang. Lorang, who is set to join the German Lidl-Trek team in August, described the session as a deliberately controlled threshold training session: designed as a building block for longer climbs and the sustained racing efforts that are crucial day after day on the Tour.
425 watts as a reference value
But what is likely to really interest most fans is something Remco Evenepoel mentioned himself: a threshold power of 425 watts. At the very top of the sport, figures like this are usually kept under wraps and analysed by outsiders. This disclosure is therefore a major exception. Back in February, Tadej Pogačar’s Strava upload had already attracted attention when more performance data than usual became visible. The discernible zones pointed to a threshold range of over 400 watts FTP (Functional Threshold Power).
What this means for Remco Evenepoel and the Tour
With such a high threshold power output, Remco Evenepoel is, at least on paper, closing the gap on the currently dominant Grand Tour duo. Figures of this magnitude are considered absolutely world-class and are generally exactly the level required to consistently challenge for the overall victory in a three-week stage race. Should Evenepoel maintain this form until the start of the Tour and be able to sustain it throughout the race, he is likely to be more competitive than ever before. This promises added excitement in the duel with Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard, as with such performance figures it seems at least conceivable that the Belgian could stay close to them for the long haul and actively challenge for the yellow jersey.
Leon Weidner
Working student
