Remco Evenepoel successfully defended his world time trial title in Zurich today, adding to his Olympic gold in what he described as the most difficult time trial of his life. The Belgian completed the 46.1km course in 53:01, narrowly beating Filippo Ganna (Italy) by six seconds, with Edoardo Affini securing the bronze medal for Italy.
Evenepoel’s race got off to a rocky start when his chain dropped just a minute before he was due to launch down the start ramp. Mechanics swiftly resolved the issue, and the Belgian champion was able to begin his effort on time, albeit without a working power metre for guidance. “I pushed quite hard on that second little kick, and I went all-out on the downhill as well. Without having the power metre it was quite crazy to keep the pace in the last five kilometres,” he admitted after the race.
Despite the setback, Evenepoel never trailed at any of the checkpoints. By the final 12.5km, he had carved out a 19-second advantage over Ganna, although the Italian clawed back 13 seconds on the flat run into Zurich. Evenepoel held firm, punching the air as he crossed the finish line to retain his rainbow jersey. “In the end, you have to be able to read your body well if you want to win,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ganna once again found himself just short of gold, finishing six seconds behind his Belgian rival. “Remco is an amazing rider and I can only congratulate him,” Ganna said, reflecting on his second consecutive silver in the discipline. “We’re getting closer and closer, and maybe in a year or two I can come back and win the world title.” The Italian, though disappointed, managed to find solace in his performance, acknowledging Evenepoel’s skill on the technical sections of the course, particularly the descent.
Photo Credit: GettyFor Edoardo Affini, the bronze medal marked his best result at a World Championships, coming just 10 days after his European title. Affini was all smiles post-race, saying, “I didn’t expect to be on the podium. I was hoping for a place in the top 10, and when I was in the hot seat, I started to believe a podium finish was in the cards. It was a great feeling.”
Further down the standings, Great Britain’s Josh Tarling took fourth place, 1:17 behind Evenepoel. Australian Jay Vine, who had been in contention for a top spot, crashed on a fast descent near the shore of Lake Zurich. Despite suffering cuts and bruises, Vine remounted and finished fifth, 1:24 back. His bloodied appearance at the finish line echoed last year’s European Championships when Stefan Küng crashed under similar circumstances.
Vine’s crash, which wasn’t captured on live television, occurred after he had been the third fastest at the 26.6km mark. He lost significant time in the following section, ultimately finishing just 30 seconds away from the podium. Although visibly battered, Vine was reported to have avoided serious injury and received immediate medical care post-race.
2024 Men’s World Championships Time Trial result
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Main photo credit: Getty
