"Fuck, what a shame for Huang Chong. Ganna and Evenepoel were still too strong—their output over those final 10KM was simply invincible!!"
"Especially Ganna. He pulled back 22 seconds on Huang Chong over 10KM of flat road. That was absolutely insane!!"
"Sigh, congratulations to Evenepoel for defending his World Championships ITT title again. But Huang Chong was seriously incredible too. Starting so early was still too much of a disadvantage—"
"True. If Huang Chong had started among the last few riders, even if he had gone before those two, he could have adjusted his power output based on the live time gaps. Then, if he gritted his teeth over the final 10KM, he might even have had a chance at gold!!"
"Gold would have been great, but he was up against Evenepoel and Ganna. Winning a medal was already insanely impressive for Huang Chong. Looking forward to next year's World Championships, when he can get revenge on Evenepoel and Ganna—"
"Although he lost the ITT, there is still the road race ahead. Hopefully Huang Chong won't be affected by this result and can create a miracle!!"
After the ITT ended, cycling fans back home undoubtedly felt deeply regretful.
Especially after seeing Huang Chong lose by the narrowest of margins, everyone felt even more dejected.
But that was competitive sport.
As long as a result was earned within the rules, everyone had to accept it, no matter who won or lost.
What no one knew was that although Evenepoel and Ganna had overtaken Huang Chong at the very end, they did not feel much joy. Instead, Huang Chong's performance left them with lingering apprehension.
After all, this was only his first UCI WorldTour season, yet he had already ridden at such terrifying speed. Would they still be able to suppress him