Remco Evenepoel completed his first training ride on the roads of Kigali and noted that the road surface is excellent, while the traffic, characterized by hundreds of motorcycles used as taxis, created some problems during the morning ride. Today will be different and riders will be able to safely test the time trial course. Evenepoel feels good, is very confident, and believes the race route suits a rider like him.

"I don't want to shout it from the rooftops," Evenepoel said during the Belgian national team press conference, "but this year I've never been in form like I am now. I know I'll need to show my best in the race, and I'm ready to do that."

The Belgian has big ambitions and wants to win the third world time trial title, to enter that select group of champions who have achieved this feat.

Only two riders have done this before him: the Australian Michael Rogers between 2003 and 2005 and the German Tony Martin in 2011, 2012, and 2013, with three consecutive world titles. Evenepoel seems absolutely convinced that no one will beat him tomorrow. The course will be very challenging over a distance of almost 41 kilometers. The main challenges will be the elevation changes, the heat, and Tadej Pogacar as a competitor. "Once you've worn a jersey like this, you never want to give it up," the Belgian said, remembering the world jerseys from Glasgow and Zurich. "Especially when you know the course suits you. So it will be a great challenge to tackle, but I can't wait to do it. I'm not the type of rider who trains much on a time trial bike. Here, I saw it's a bit too dangerous with the traffic. I did a training session with blocks, and it went well. I think it's sufficient, but I don't know the course very well yet, but it was important to review the technical part."

Remco Evenepoel is undoubtedly one of the best time trialists ever, which is demonstrated by the fact that he has never left a World Championship without standing on the podium. This is not his best year, currently with six victories, the most important being Brabantse Pijl and the time trials in Romandie, Dauphiné, and Tour.

The Belgian likes the course, but he will only see the details today. "We'll go over everything, but it doesn't seem like a very technical course. And in the end, it's tough with its 680 meters of elevation. It's a very fast course and you ride at high altitude. The air is thinner, so the speed will be higher. There are no climbs with significant gradients, so you can maintain your position, and this gives me an advantage. There are no particularly critical descents either."

The Belgian wants to close the season in the best way possible and after the World Championships, we'll see him in France for the European Championships, where he will compete in both road and time trial events. "If I win two of the four titles, my season will definitely be better than it is now, and we shouldn't forget about Il Lombardia. So in total, I still have five great opportunities to try to improve my season. If I have to choose the most important day, I think it will be Sunday."

Remco is strong, but there will be other riders who want to win gold and the world jersey in the time trial, and among these is certainly Tadej Pogacar. "Which version of Tadej Pogacar will I see on Sunday? I hope he's at his maximum potential, and then it will be up to me to demonstrate my best version to win. Regarding Vine, it all depends on how he came out of the Vuelta, even though they had a few quieter days. He traveled with us from Brussels by plane, but I don't know how he is. I can say that for the podium, I see four or five riders, but I'm here to be the best, and the rest doesn't matter."

The Belgian national team, in addition to Evenepoel, will have two other time trial riders competing on Sunday in Kigali: Ilan Van Wilder and Florian Vermeersch. The two know that Remco is the strongest, but at the same time want to do well and finish with the best.

"I think it's a course that suits me," Van Wilder said. "I've prepared well and hope to fight for the top 10."

Vermeersch, meanwhile, thinks there could be surprises in the time trial and that nothing is certain. "I think things will happen that will push some riders to their limit or put them in some difficulty, for example, the heat or altitude. It will be an effort of 45-50 minutes, and it's not something you often do at high altitudes throughout the year. But I can't wait to start and can say I have good legs for the race."