A Fast-Paced Career Twelve months ago, Remco Evenpoel was putting the finishing touches on his preparations for the Junior World Championships. Now, the 19-year-old is one of the first five riders selected for the Belgian men's elite team for the 2019 World Championships and a strong contender for the time trial rainbow jersey.

Evenpoel has been a professional athlete for only nine months and a competitive cyclist for only two years, but in that time his routine has consisted almost exclusively of the extraordinary. His Bunyan-like feats as a junior (winning the 2018 European Championships road race by about 10 minutes) have been followed by similarly extraordinary runs in unlimited gear since joining Deceuninck-QuickStep.

Despite winning the elite time trial at the 2019 European Championships in Alkmaar last month, Evenpoel is still eligible to compete in the under-23 event at the Yorkshire World Championships. However, his ambitions have long outstripped his age. Speaking ahead of this week's Grand Prix Cycliste de Quebec in Canada, Evenpoel said that despite expected competition from Slovenia's Primoz Roglic and Britain's Geraint Thomas, his ambition for the elite time trial at the Yorkshire World Championships There was little to say that downplayed the

"Well, I'm European champion, so I can only dream," he said. My goal is to be on the podium. If I don't get on the podium, so be it. I think this season is already perfect, a top five would be nice, a top three would be great, but if I don't make it to the podium, then so be it. [With the likes of Sepp Vanmarcke, Tim Wellens, and Yves Lampaert all vying for a ticket to Yorkshire, being named in the eight-man lineup by national coach Rick Verbrugghe is a testament to his status. However, Lampaert has already been selected to compete in the time trial.

When Verbrugghe announced his pre-selection earlier this week, he said he wanted to give Evenpoel "a taste of what the World Championships will be like."

"It's the longest race I've ever done. But it's a seven-hour race and it's very long," Evenpoel said. It's a very long race," Evenpoel said. The World Championships are always a special day. It doesn't always go according to plan. Let's hope we can do something special this year. The most important thing is to bring the rainbow jersey home. There is a big chance that the jersey will come to Belgium this year."

Evenpoel revealed that his aggressive style stems from a relative lack of finishing speed.

"I don't think you can wait to sprint. I think [Dutchman] Mathieu Van Der Pol isn't going to wait either, so I know who to follow," Evenpoel joked.

"We can't control the race because there is no sole leader like the Dutch with Van der Poel. The same goes for France with Julien Alaphilippe, they will control the race or Spain and Slovakia will control the race.

"It's not up to us to control the race, it's up to us to make it difficult for the other teams. You can put a team in a tough spot and at the end of the day you can accomplish something special."

Evenpoel's last race before the World Championships will be in Canada this weekend. He will ride with teammate Alaphilippe in the Quebec Grand Prix on Friday and the Montreal Grand Prix on Sunday in the Deschuninck-Quickstep.

"I'm a little tired after the Deutschland tour, having done some big training rides. I think I have the form and the legs."