Remco Evenepoel (Soudal QuickStep) played a starring role in the build up to last year's Giro, before going on to take the race lead. However, after he had climbed to the top of the general classification he was forced to abandon with Covid-19.
And now his team boss, Patrick Lefevere, has said Giro owners, RCS, did not want to pay the Belgian rider's starting fee. They were aggrieved he left the race, saying the full fee was not owed as a result. But they also took issue with the manner Evenepoel departed.
“For Remco, the Giro is of course unfinished business, after he had to give up last year due to Covid," Lefevere said in his column in Het Nieuwsblad on Saturday.
"As we know, the organisation then – rightly – blamed us for not personally informing them that Remco could not continue. That was very emotional and very Italian. According to RCS CEO Mauro Vegni, the pink jersey had left like un ladro nella notte , a thief in the night.
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“Until a few months ago, there was still a financial dispute with RCS about this. Because Remco did not finish the Giro, they did not want to pay the agreed starting fee. I thought that was nonsense because the word starting money says it all: money to start.
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"I don't want to be too cynical about that, but no one can claim that Remco did not play his role as a poster boy in the Giro, with promotional videos and interviews before and during. He was simply sensational in the opening time trial. I thought it was a shame to skimp on the price with a forced forfeit. It is not that Remco simply left the course.
"Starting fees are not huge sums, but I won't reveal a secret when I say that in a cycling team, every little bit helps. To give an order of magnitude: Remco's starting money in the Giro - in practice a sum for a package of RCS races - can ensure that we just have a budget for an extra rider.
"In the winter, when the Giro-Tour was double on the table, RCS came up with a kind of amicable settlement: if Remco rode the Giro again, they would still match the amount owed, on top of the starting fee for 2024.”
Evenepoel is currently out of action, as he is recovering from his crash last month at Itzulia Basque Country (2.UWT) exactly one month ago. However, Lefevere said that during the winter, Evenepoel had suggested he might ride both the Giro and Tour de France this year.
His logic, which Lefevere said he understood, was that he could go to the Giro and do the best he could and then start the Tour with no pressure on the basis he had already ridden the Giro. However, the coaches in the team believed it would be too much for Evenepoel, with Lefevere saying he did not want to overrule that decision.
