Olympic, World, European and Belgian champion - Remco Evenepoel becomes FIRST rider in cycling history to win every major title
Cycling
Remco Evenepoel might've been remembered as the best cyclist of our generation, if only Tadej Pogacar wasn't his peer. Still, the Belgian achieved something this Sunday that not even his Slovenian rival might manage to put into his CV.
At 26 years of age, Evenepoel has done it; he has become Belgian champion, World champion, Olympic champion, and most recently also European champion in both road race and individual time trial (at least) once.
That is worth throwing a special party, Evenepoel himself agreed in a post-European Championships interview: "I’ve already won every championship in professional cycling, so I think we can celebrate in style."
Remco's come a long way from football career
Evenepoel was not always destined for a career of road cyclist. Although he came from a cycling family (father Patrick raced Vuelta a Espana in 1993), his future seemed to be as left-back who represented Belgium in U17 category. But a long injury allowed Evenepoel to discover his passion for cycling and, in 2017, he first landed his feet in the peloton - already winning.
Then one year later, Evenepoel rode perhaps the most dominant junior season ever raced, winning 17 out of 29 (UCI) stages he participated in (and taking five general classifications). Already back, Remco made clear his talent to win the biggest races as took all four special jerseys, highlighting a 114-kilometer solo win to claim the European title with a 10-minute lead.
The birth of "aero-bullet"
His achievements were not missed by big teams, and Patrick Lefevere did not hesitate to bring the young Belgian directly into WorldTour for 2019 season - amovve that was very uncommon at the time. But in this case, it was hardly a risk.
Evenepoel did not waste much time learning the ropes and immediately won Baloise Belgium Tour and Clasica San Sebastian in his debut season. And, one week later, Evenepoel also opened his Championships account in elite category by becoming the European time trial champion, beating Filippo Ganna, Stefan Küng and many other big names. One month later, Evenepoel tried also for the rainbow jersey in discipline, but came short against then defending champion Rohan Dennis.
Remco Evenepoel wins 2019 Clasica San Sebastian - first of his many WorldTour victories
Return to winning ways in 2022
The next two seasons were marked by covid and injuries for Evenepoel but in 2022, the Belgian picked up where he left off. First, Evenepoel became Belgian time trial champion in June.
Two months later, he won the Vuelta a Espana 2022, his only Grand Tour victory to the day. But Evenepoel did not stop there and proceeded to win the World Championships road race after he had been among many favourites who were upset by Tobias Foss in a time trial one week earlier.
Remco Evenepoel wins Liege-Bastogne-Liege 2023 in rainbow jersey
Next year, Evenepoel kept the same jerseys, but only switched disciplines. After he lost national time trial crown due to a crash, Evenepoel bounced back with a Belgian road title. His only one to the day. And at the "Cycling Super-World Championships" in Glasgow, he surged past Filippo Ganna to claim first time trial world title.
Fast forward, the following season was heavily disrupted by a number of mass crashes in the spring. Not even Evenepoel was spared at Itzulia Basque Country. And yet, it might've been Evenepoel's best season yet. In July, he reached the Tour de France podium for the first time in his career. But that was only the start.
One week later, Evenepoel conquered Paris 2024 Olympics, winning both individual time trial and road race gold medals. At the Zurich World Championships, Evenepoel narrowly reflected Ganna's attempt to reclaim ITT throne to successfully defend the time trial rainbow jersey.
The 2025 season was quite straightforward for Evenepoel. He went undefeated in time trials (except the mountain time trial at Tour de France, just before his abandon), but stayed in Tadej Pogacar's shadow in road events. Still, Evenepoel could take pride in his season winning Belgian, European and World titles against the clock.
Stepped out of a Slovenian's shadow... in his absence
The 2026 campaign seemed to be a copy of a blueprint we have witnessed year prior. In new colours of Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe, Evenepoel was once again riding at a high level; but not enough to take on Pogacar. However this season came with a twist - when Pogacar crashed hard at Vuelta a Espana and had to call off the autumn campaign. Suddenly an opportunity arose for Evenepoel to step in his place.
However the Montréal World Championships went far from planned. Yes, Evenepoel secured his fourth time trial title without much of opposition, but his road race appearance was a disappointment. This did not give a positive signal for European Championships. But in absence of many big names, Evenepoel managed to edge out Giulio Ciccone in a head-to-head sprint to complete his collection of special jerseys with a European road race title.
Pogacar has a long way to go to catch up to the Belgian
Of course, Evenepoel's palmares pale in comparison to Pogacar's when it comes to Monuments and Grand Tours, but this achievement is his very own. And it might well turn out impossible to match this record for anyone in the future, even Pogacar himself.
Especially as Pogacar is, despite his undeniable qualities, unlikely to ever beat the generational time trial talent Evenepoel in a regular race against the clock anytime soon.
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At the moment, Pogacar lacks all three biggest time trial titles besides the National Championships one. And also the Olympic road race title after he skipped the 2024 Paris event.
While there is a non-zero chance that on an (ideally) hilly time trial course Pogacar can beat Evenepoel head-to-head, the biggest challenge will be winning the Olympic gold against the clock. At the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Pogacar (aged 29) will have his best chance to compete for gold at his, hopefully, best level.
Of course, he still has a contract with UAE Team Emirates - XRG through 2032, meaning that the Brisbane Olympics might not be outside of Pogacar's reach... but will he retain his close-to-godhood level for an entire decade? Or will another strong rider emerge to end both Evenepoel's and Pogacar's ambitions?
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- Fair play, doing every level in RR and ITT is quite a feat.wrsty05-10-2026
- You must have missed yesterdays and todays Italian races where UAE 'subs' didn't win!frieders305-10-2026
- Well i have no idea why he cooperated at 2.5 k from finish, that was possibly the worst decision ever. That decision could have given him an inch to win.abstractengineer05-10-2026
- For someone as good as you say, his top results as per pcs pale into comparison with Evenepoel’s, as for jerseys, he might run out of anything to wear soon. Perhaps tell your boy’s boy to get some flesh on his resumé before ridiculing yourself. PS (not the rider) this is criticism of YOU, not him.Jumpyjohn04-10-2026
- Yes Mouguel, thank you, we understand it’s important to you.Jumpyjohn04-10-2026
- Why are you reading post race comments if you want to keep the suspense? Do you do this with election results too? Next time, maybe think of warning us not to post until you’re ready.Jumpyjohn04-10-2026
- If you’d have created alias26 that might have worked or have you noticed anyone taking you seriously here?Jumpyjohn04-10-2026
- Del Toro is not even close to Remco, not in a single metric. But he may be within the next couple of years.awp04-10-2026
- Who knows, he may never reach his top level after this accident. Nothing else to prove and retirement may be the best option at this point
Front24204-10-2026 - With the injuries he has, it's probably best not to rush back, so it's ok if is form is poor for a while.Hills3304-10-2026
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