Evenepoel continues to dominate: favourite at San Sebastián

Remco Evenepoel 's celebrations for his extraordinary Tour de France turned into a veritable post-race tour de force: a night in a luxury hotel in Paris, victory in the first post-Tour criterium in Aalst , and then, finally, back to bed. A champion's schedule, without a moment's respite.

But the Belgian Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider isn't ready to take a break just yet. Before his well-deserved break, there's the Clásica San Sebastián on Saturday, a race Evenepoel dreams of winning for a historic fourth time . In between, there's also the Natourcriterium in Roeselare on Tuesday evening—with Flemish media reporting a fee of €50,000 per race . Not a bad consolation prize after a month of toil in the Pyrenees and the Alps.

The Aalst Criterium was something special for Evenepoel: his city, his fans. Over 75,000 fans came to cheer on their hero, who before the race rode the circuit in a car alongside Lucien Van Impe , the last Belgian to win the Tour de France and also a native of Aalst. It was a moment charged with symbolism and Belgian cycling history.

"Aalst is my hometown. The race fits perfectly into my schedule because it allows me to stay active until the Clásica San Sebastián on Saturday, keeping my legs moving at high speed," Evenepoel explained to the Flemish media. On the circuit, the Belgian champion prevailed over the new Belgian national champion Rune Herregodts (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) and Valentin Paret-Peintre (Soudal-QuickStep).

Twenty-four hours before racing in Aalst, Evenepoel was still on the Tour podium on the Champs-Élysées, flanked by Tadej Pogačar and Isaac del Toro . Then, he celebrated with his team and sponsors in a restaurant in Montmartre, before retiring to the luxurious Le Meurice hotel, near the Louvre. The alarm clock? 9 a.m. to head to Belgium.

"We celebrated with the team, with something to eat and drink. A small celebration. I ended up going to bed at 2:30 a.m. But it wasn't that bad," said Evenepoel, who doesn't drink alcohol. "My energy level isn't great right now, but I still have a lot of motivation."

The Belgian champion admitted that the reality of what he experienced at the Tour hasn't yet fully sunk in: "It was a wonderful month, it flew by in a flash. Now I'm staying focused until Saturday; only then will everything sink in." His second-place finish behind Pogačar proved to the world that Evenepoel can fight for the overall victory at the Tour de France.