Tour de France: Remco Evenepoel first Belgian on podium since 2010

Remco Evenepoel has finished third in the general qualification of his first Tour de France, behind Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard. In doing so, he became the first Belgian to make the podium of the Tour since Jurgen Van den Broeck in 2010. That he managed this historic feat on the Belgian National Day, 21 July, makes it extra special.

Unlike Van den Broeck, Evenepoel could celebrate his third place on the actual podium of the Tour. Van den Broek initially finished fifth in the 2010 Tour. The original numbers 1 and 3 in the final standings - Alberto Contador and Denis Menchov - were dropped from the results due to doping, so Van den Broeck moved up two places.

Before Van den Broeck, Lucien Van Impe was the previous Belgian rider on the podium, 43 years ago in 1981. The 1976 Tour winner finished second, behind the untouchable Bernard Hinault.

Evenepoel was in tears after the final time trial, in which he also finished third behind Pogacar and Vingegaard. “I went through a lot again this year, I felt a lot of external pressure and doubts,” he said in an interview after the podium ceremony with Sporza, VRT's sports channel. “But I just worked very hard, so I could reach this level.”

“Finishing after the two best riders in the world is beautiful and special,” he said, but he also already expressed his ambition to do better. “There is still room for improvement and I will come back to try to win.”

^{#FlandersNewsService | Jonas Vingegaard, Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel on the podium after the final stage of the 2024 Tour de France © BELGA PHOTO DAVID PINTENS}