Belgian cycling star Remco Evenepoel has won the Grand Prix Québec, claiming victory in a sprint finish after 205 kilometres of racing on a hilly city circuit in the Canadian province of Quebec. The 26-year-old, riding for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, outsprinted Italian rider Giulio Ciccone at the line to take the top step of the podium in the 15th edition of the race.
The race was run over a demanding ten-kilometre loop featuring an 800-metre climb, repeated 20 times. With four laps remaining, an attack by Paul Seixas blew the race apart and a lead group of around 20 riders formed. Evenepoel then bridged across in one effort to join the breakaway group, which also included Italians Alberto Bettiol and Alessandro Pinarello, along with Danish rider Anthon Charmig. Charmig managed to follow the pace until one and a half kilometres from the finish, but Evenepoel ultimately launched a commanding sprint from the front to seal the win, with Ciccone in second.
The victory carries particular significance given what lies ahead. Québec is part of a Canadian double-header — Evenepoel is also set to race the Grand Prix Montréal on Sunday — and the city of Montreal will host the UCI Road World Championships the following week. Evenepoel is considered one of the pre-race favourites for both the time trial and the road race at the worlds. He has won the world time trial title three years in a row and claimed the world road race title in 2022.
His path in the road race has arguably been cleared by the absence of defending champion Tadej Pogačar, who suffered a serious crash during the Vuelta a España. With Pogačar out of contention, Evenepoel heads into the championships as arguably the rider to beat. He arrives in strong form: earlier this summer he finished second overall at the Tour de France, and he also won the Clásica San Sebastián for a record fourth time in August.
It was Evenepoel's first appearance at the Canadian races since 2019, when he finished 99th in Québec — a reminder of how dramatically his career has developed since then. For Belgian cycling fans and neutral observers alike, the Grand Prix Québec result will be read as a clear statement of intent ahead of what could be a defining week at the world championships.