Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) was in tears after he crossed the finish line of Il Lombardia in Como, the emotions of a long, hard but hugely satisfying season coming out after a hug from his partner Oumi, who made a surprise trip to Italy to see him.
The Belgian finished a distant second to Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) but was the best of the rest. He was unable to go with Pogačar when he attacked on the Colma di Sormano but paced his effort and then distanced Enric Mas (Movistar) and Lennert Van Eetvelt (Lotto-Dstny) before riding his own race to the finish.
Four years ago, Evenepoel crashed on the descent of the Sormano, flying over a bridge into the river bed. He fractured his hip but could have seriously injured.
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The emotions of the crash came back to him in the final kilmoetres of this year's Il Lombardia.
"Brama, this is for you. You saved my life four years ago," Evenepoel said to directeur sportif Davide Bramati, who was again following him in the Soudal Quick-Step team car.
"When you finish second in such a hard but such a prestigious race there are always a lot of emotions," Evenepoel explained beyond the finish line.
"Coming second here feels like a personal victory. Second to Tadej is still a result and confirmed what I can do and what I've done this season.
"I'm happy with second place. I predicted that Tadej would attack about six kilometres from the top, on the steepest part of the Cormano. There was nothing anyone could do and I didn't want to blow trying to go with him. I paced my effort, went over the top with Mas and Van Eetvelt and then went alone on the descent.
"It was hard to keep the power on the pedals and it was like a long time trial but I enjoyed the ride to the finish, that sparked my emotions beyond the line."
Evenepoel gave himself nine out of ten for his 2024 season, highlighting his Tour de France performance and podium, his double Olympic gold medals in Paris and his ability to recover from his fractured collarbone at Itzulia Basque Country in April.
There is nothing Evenepoel, or apparently anyone, can do to beat Pogčar but he will keep working and keep trying in 2025.
"The results have been the same since the summer, from the Tour de France to now," Evenepoel said. "Tadej's performance at Il Lombardia showed how strong he is. I was just trying to ride the best I could."
Soudal-QuickStep will gather from Oct 21-25 to plan for 2025 but Evenepoel wants to enjoy a well-deserved end-of-season holiday before thinking about 2025.
"I need to keep working on my climbing for the Grand Tours. That's the first task," he said. "I'm not thinking of 2025 yet, I want to savour my 2024 season and enjoy my holidays before thinking about 2025. The only goal is to have another great season."
