Card game tantrums, altitude hotels and steep climbs: how Vuelta a España leader Remco Evenepoel prepared for glory

Evenepoel has based himself across Europe to prepare himself for what he believes is a genuine chance of winning the Vuelta

Remco Evenepoel
(Image credit: getty)

There’s a memory that gets passed around the Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl team frequently whenever discussion turns to Remco Evenepoel, the current leader of the Vuelta a España

It’s not of a race or any of his extraordinary performances, but of a supposed relaxed evening at a training camp in Tenerife last winter.

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Chris Marshall-Bell

A freelance sports journalist and podcaster, you'll mostly find Chris's byline attached to news scoops, profile interviews and feature writing across a variety of different publications. He has been writing regularly for Cycling Weekly since 2013.


Previously a ski, hiking and cycling guide in a number of places, but mostly in the Canadian Rockies and Spanish Pyrenees, he almost certainly holds the record for the most number of interviews conducted from snowy mountains.


He lives in Valencia, Spain.