Remco Evenepoel vs Patrick Lefevre on Flanders debut, who is right and who is lying?

Following the announcement on Wednesday of Evenepoel’s participation, Lefevere was naturally asked for his reaction. Speaking to Het Nieuwsblad, he admitted the news came with mixed emotions, given that Evenepoel had consistently resisted the idea during their time together.

“I told him for years that he should ride Flanders, but back then he didn’t want to,” Lefevere said. “Now maybe there are people around him who have more influence. It seems he has changed his mind and that someone has convinced him.”

While Lefevere said he would have preferred to see Evenepoel take on Flanders during their time together, he ultimately views the decision as a positive one. “It’s good news that he’s riding it,” he said. “Of course I could say he should have done it with us, but I’m not losing sleep over it.”

Evenepoel told a different story at the press conference. The Olympic champion stated that he had asked to ride the Tour of Flanders during his final three seasons with Soudal Quick-Step, and that for this season he wanted to start either the Ronde or the Giro d’Italia alongside the Tour de France.

"That was always blocked. This year, I said during the meetings: either the Giro or the Tour of Flanders,” explained Evenepoel. "When I knew the Giro wasn't an option, Flanders was on my schedule. And then we would wait and see how I got through the season. But I knew they wouldn't be able to talk me out of it."

It is not the first time the two have contradicted each other speaking about Flanders. In August 2024, when Evenepoel was still riding for Lefevere’s team, he told Sporza he had no plans to start either Milano-Sanremo or the Tour of Flanders the following season.

In doing so, he pushed back against Lefevere, who had earlier said he wanted to let Evenepoel “discover” those races.

“I didn’t expect that to come out. But we all know Patrick, he can be an open book at times,” Evenepoel said at the time in an interview with Sporza. “Sanremo and Flanders come quite early in the season. Combining those two with the Tour might be possible, but not with the Giro. And I’m not planning to adjust my preparation for a Grand Tour for the sake of a Classic.”

In the end, plans changed after a crash in December 2024. Evenepoel did not ride the Giro and instead focused on the Tour de France following his rehabilitation.

With both men known for their strong characters and willingness to speak their mind, the contradiction is perhaps inevitable. What exactly happened behind the scenes may never be fully clear, but the disagreement itself tells its own story.