'We start with confidence' - Remco Evenepoel leads Soudal-QuickStep at Tour de France

Soudal-QuickStep have announced their eight-rider squad for the 112th Tour de France, which starts in Lille on July 5, with Remco Evenepoel and Tim Merlier headlining the team. The Belgian team will aim for both a successful general classification with Evenepoel and sprint victories with the European champion Merlier.

Evenepoel returns to the Tour after securing a third-place finish and the youth classification twelve months ago on his debut, when he became the first Belgian to stand on the final podium since Lucien Van Impe in 1981. Evenepoel also claimed a stage victory in the individual time trial on stage 7, a discipline in which he is currently the Olympic and World champion.

The 25-year-old has highlighted his ambitions for the general classification and stressed the importance of navigating the likely chaos of the opening week of the Tour before the mountains even begin.

“It’s my second Tour de France and I’m looking forward to the Grand Depart, which won’t be far from Belgium,” Evenepoel said. “I think it’s obvious that I’m aiming for a good general classification, but the most important thing will be to not lose time in the first half of the race, which should be a very nervous one, with lots of traps and tricky roads.

“Just like last year, I want to win a stage there and do a good GC, while taking it one day at a time.”

Merlier returns to the Tour de France four years after making his debut, where he was victorious on stage 3. Merlier will target the flat stages and will be eyeing the opening stage in particular as an opportunity to take the yellow jersey in Lille.

The team's line-up is completed by experienced riders Mattia Cattaneo, Pascal Eenkhoorn, German time trial champion Maximilian Schachmann, and Ilan Van Wilder, alongside Tour debutants Valentin Paret-Peintre and Bert Van Lerberghe.

“The race can be divided into two parts. A hectic first half, without a proper mountain stage, but with a flat individual time trial where gaps can be made, and plenty of opportunities for the sprinters and the puncheurs. Tim and Remco will have a couple of chances, but important will be that everyone makes it through those ten stages safely," said sports director Tom Steels.

“The many mountain stages and the uphill time trial that come in the second part will make for an incredibly hard race, but also the last stage in Paris should play a role in the general classification. We have a strong and experienced team, capable of some nice things this summer, and so we start with a lot of confidence."

• Remco Evenepoel (BEL)
• Mattia Cattaneo (ITA)
• Pascal Eenkhoorn (NLD)
• Tim Merlier (BEL)
• Valentin Paret-Peintre (FRA)
• Maximilian Scachmann (DEU)
• Bert Van Lerberghe (BEL)
• Ilan Van Wilder (BEL)