Yesterday morning at 7 am from Brussels airport, Remco Evenepoel and part of the Belgian national team departed for Kigali, Rwanda. The objective is to win the World Championship.

Transporting riders and staff is not difficult, but quite different is the matter of all the equipment the national team will need. This is a special shipment weighing 2.5 tons, which includes 94 bicycles, 700 water bottles, a thousand gels and bike spare parts. The Belgian Cycling transport is so extraordinary that Brussel Airline has created a commercial featuring the boarding operations. Regarding food and water, a shipment was already sent the day before: a logistical challenge made even more complex by the European Championships in France, which will begin just a few days later.

Remco is part of the first group of athletes, the time trialists, who will open the world championship on Sunday. But preparations began months ago in Tubize, where the Belgian Cycling base is located. Logistics manager Kris Van Steen explained some of the steps for traveling with such a large group, starting with the 94 bicycles that arrived at Zaventen airport around 8 pm on Wednesday evening. This advance helps prevent airport congestion and ensures no bikes are lost or damaged. The economically precious cargo was arranged during the night when airport personnel traffic was minimal. The Zaventen staff was very excited, as they had the opportunity to load bikes for young athletes, not just Evenepoel, who are going to fight for a world title.

The logistics are similar to three years ago when the World Championships were held in Australia, with the difference that in Rwanda it was not possible to source equipment like rollers, tents, bike components, so everything was shipped from Brussels. "In Rwanda, we don't have all this. There's almost no modern cycling equipment available," Kris Van Steen explained. "So we absolutely must bring everything with us. This was a real challenge because we had to be careful to respect the allowed shipping weight limits. We prepared 104 boxes of about 23 kilos each. They contain every type of cycling equipment. The numbers? 94 bicycles, 33 pairs of spare tires, 700 water bottles, about a thousand gels and bars. What worries us is the return journey, especially because the European Championships in Ardèche are very close to the World Championships."

The Belgian national team opted for a direct flight, not only to ensure comfort for the riders during the 10-hour journey but also to prevent anything from being lost during a potential stopover.

The bikes arrived packed in their special boxes and were then placed in large metal containers in the cargo area and loaded into the hold. They were not transported on luggage trolleys but on special vehicles designed for fragile materials, to prevent potential jostling. The rest of the equipment was placed in slightly smaller containers.

Fortunately, not all this equipment will be needed for the European Championships in Ardèche, because in France it is possible to source equipment that does not exist in Rwanda. When the material returns to Belgium, vans will be waiting in Brussels to immediately depart for France, as the European Championships time trial will be on October 1st, just three days after the World Championship closes in Rwanda.

"The youth categories will be the first to return on Sunday morning and will go directly to Ardèche with the necessary equipment," Kris Van Steen continued. "We cannot risk any delays."

Around 7 pm Italian time last night, the first riders landed: among them Marthe Goossens, Remco Evenepoel, Florian Vermeersch, and Ilan Van Wilder. With them was also national team coach Serge Pauwels, along with Evenepoel's entourage, including coach Koen Pelgrim, technician David Gheeroms, mechanic Dario Kloeck, and team manager Klaas Lodewyck. In Kigali, the Belgian national team spent their first night, and this morning will begin with their first training. There will be time to acclimatize: the mild temperature in Europe at this time is quite similar to Rwanda's, with the difference being the haze that often characterizes Kigali's sky. Remco will be the number one favorite for the time trial but will have to contend with Pogacar, Kung, Plapp, and Vine, and even a very young Del Toro could have a great race. For Italy, Mattia Cattaneo and Matteo Sobrero will be present, while Filippo Ganna, due to course-related issues, will not be present and we'll see him at the European Championships.