Remco Evenepoel left the Tour de France after struggling for three consecutive days, feeling exhausted and not up to his usual standards. He acknowledged that he entered the race in poor training condition, unable to handle any intensity following the Dauphiné. Evenepoel's sport director, Klaas Lodewyck, encouraged him to withdraw for the sake of his health and future goals. Soudal-Quickstep management supported his decision, prioritizing his well-being over a disappointing Tour experience, emphasizing the need for caution to avoid prolonged fatigue and training setbacks.
"It just wasn't working, I was empty," Evenepoel told Dutch and Flemish journalists, including Nieuwsblad. "Having a bad day once in a while is fine, but three in a row isn't something I'm used to."
Up until today, everything actually looked okay. I won the time trial and was in third place. But today it really didn't work out.
"You just have to call it in time because you feel something is wrong, already the third day in a row that he doesn't feel right," Steels added. "But you have to be careful not to go over the limit because otherwise you lose months, not days."
Evenepoel suggested that despite his time trial form, he entered the Tour in poor training condition. "After the Dauphiné, I haven't been able to do a single training session either," the Olympic champion said.
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