Patrick Lefevere was in a refective mood as he spoke to SBS interviewer Christophe Mallet after the conclusion of the Vuelta a Espana.
"Yeah, I’m happy," said Lefevere. "I took this kid when was 17 from the juniors, he was a former football player.
"I had a tip… that this is the one. You’ve followed what he’s been through to get here. This is probably one year before the plan, but sometimes you have to change the plan."
One of the youngest riders to come into the professional peloton in recent years, Evenepoel skipped the Under 23 ranks, coming straight from juniors and immediately wowing with his 2019 and 2020 performances, before suffering a crash at Giro d'Lombardia that saw him fracture his pelvis and suffer a collapsed lung.
His return to racing was slow, necessitated by the severity of the crash, with a number of setbacks that ultimately saw the young Belgian return to racing at his debut Grand Tour, the 2021 Giro d'Italia.
He was up there with the best on the general classification for a while before suffering in the second part of the race, ultimately quitting after Stage 17. He reset and was able to return to winning form, if not the all-conquering style that had seen him win every stage race he participated in during 2020.
2022 saw him take a massive victory at Liege-Bastogne-Liege for his first Monument win, and then refocus for the Vuelta, where he took out the overall victory with a two-minute buffer over Enric Mas (Movistar). That he did it all under intense scrutiny and criticism from the world and particularly Belgian press was something that Lefevere noted.
"Everyone sees the crash at Lombardia where he broke his (pelvis)," said Lefevere. "He lost six months to a year with this crash. He wins twice, Liege and San Sebastian, this one. He has thirty victories. He can not sprint, they say he’s not a real climber, it doesn’t matter."
The celebrations were about to get underway in Madrid, but Lefevere noted that it be a more muted party for Evenepoel, who was set to jet off to Australia to start his world championships preparation.
"We going to party, not too much with him because he leaves tomorrow for Australia," said Lefevere.
With the majority of the favourites preparing for the flat course with punchy climbs at the Canadian classics rather than the Vuelta, Evenepoel will have his work cut out to reset for the specialised efforts at the world championships, but Lefevre was bullish on his chances.
"Win," said Lefevere when asked what the young Belgian could achieve. "There’s two possibilities, decompression after this – but I don’t think so, he’s so focused – or he goes on from what he’s learned today that he will be very dangerous in Australia."
