Remco Evenepoel, the first cyclist in history to pass the ‘gold game’

If many gazes tend to focus on Remco Evenepoel When there are Olympic Games, a World Championship or a European Championship, the scope has been expanded in 2026 because The Belgian had a great opportunity in Montreal first and then in Ljubljana in the absence of Tadej Pogacar. With the label of favorite, it can be said that Evenepoel gets a very, very high grade after the selection marathon of the last few days.

Perhaps the most desired victory escaped him, that of the online event of the World Championship, but The Belgian star has had two dream weeks with world time trial gold and European gold in the online event conquered this Sunday. On Wednesday, Evenepoel will no longer compete in the European time trial because he is already looking at the Giro de Lombardia.

In the events in which he has represented his team at an absolute level, Evenepoel has managed to amass one Olympic time trial gold (2024), one Olympic gold in online (2024), four world gold in time trials (2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026), one world gold in online (2022), two European gold in time trial (2019 and 2025) and one European gold in online (2026). No one before had managed to become champion of these six major competitions: the collection is complete for a Remco which, to go further, has also been Belgian national champion in time trial (2022 and 2025) and in the online event (2023).

This should serve to measure his place in the history of cycling, at a time when Tadej Pogacar, for obvious reasons, is the one who usually monopolizes all the spotlights. But, in addition, there is data to justify it case by case in national team tests. Since his double in Paris 2024, Evenepoel is one of eight cyclists in history with two Olympic road golds, something that also puts you on the verge of searching for something never seen before in Los Angeles.

The man with the most individual world golds

Evenepoel’s legend grows bigger when he sees his World Cup achievements. Remco, although it could not achieve the rainbow in the online test, it did achieve it a few days ago his fifth absolute world gold after winning the time trial for the fourth time (2023, 2024, 2025 and 2026). Since he already won in that one online test in 2022, He already has those five absolute world gold medals.

He is the king of the queen events, pardon the redundancy, although not the cyclist with the most world golds. If all the absolute evidence is counted, Tony Martin is eight because he won four in the individual time trial (2011, 2012, 2013 and 2016), three in the team time trial (2012, 2013 and 2016 with Quick-Step) and one in the mixed team time trial (2021).

Of course, no one has more individual world golds than Evenepoel. That is, adding the online and time trial tests. These data from Martin can serve to maintain the motivation in the future of a man who is breaking all the German’s records in the fight against the clock.

The only one to close the puzzle in his continental championship and leader in European gold medals

The European Championship closes the circle for Evenepoel and sets him apart from the rest. It is true that in a perhaps somewhat tricky way, since the European Championship has only been held at an absolute level since 2016 and this prevented other runners from being eligible for that honor of winning the six golds.

Perhaps among them, taking into account that many approximations can be made to the data, the most notable is the Dutch one. Leontien Zijland (Van Moorsel is married), who holds one Olympic gold in line (2000), two Olympic golds in time trial (2000 and 2004), two world golds in line (1991 and 1993) and two world golds in time trial (1998 and 1999). However, in his time the European Championship was not contested, so he had no option to fight for this particular treble.

So this Sunday Evenepoel completed a unique puzzle in cycling. His title allows him to add three European golds, the time trial ones in 2019 and 2025 and the online event in 2026. He also becomes the first man to win three continental titles on the ‘Old Continent’since it breaks ties with the two that Stefan Küng, Edoardo Affini, Victor Campenaerts, Rémi Cavagna and Bruno Armirail had achieved in the different time trial formats.

These are data that reflect Remco Evenepoel’s historical place in cycling. Whatever happens in the future, the Belgian will always be the first in history to combine those online and time trial triumphs at the Olympic, world and European level. He will always be the first cyclist in history to pass the ‘Game of Golds’.