The in-depth story of Remco Evenepoel the footballer, as told by teammates and coaches
From CyclingWeekly.com
BY
Remco Evenepoel has won the 2022 Vuelta a España. In this coming Thursday’s Cycling Weekly magazine (Sept 15), we are publishing an in-depth feature exploring untold stories of his final years as a footballer and his first two years as a cyclist. Before he turned pro as a cyclist, he played football in his youth, playing for Belgium’s U15 and U16 teams.
Here is an extended version of an extract from the article, focusing solely on Evenepoel’s years as a footballer.
You can read the Making of Remco in Cycling Weekly, on sale September 15.
There’s one thing you ought to know about Remco Evenepoel the footballer: he was not a world-beater. “I don’t really have a recollection of Remco being a man of the match because he was not the most decisive player,” his longtime coach Stéphane Stassin reveals. “He was technically gifted but not one of the most technically gifted.”
That’s not to say, however, that Evenepoel – a defensive midfielder who could also operate at left-back – was a expendable figure. In fact, it was quite the opposite – he was the first name on the team sheet, whether turning out for the youth teams of RSC Anderlecht, PSV Eindhoven or the Belgian national team from the ages of 5 to 16.
Zorhan Bassong, who was part of the same youth team set-up at Anderlecht as Evenepoel, recalls how, aged 15 or 16, Evenepoel was sidelined with a knee injury. “When he was out, you could see directly that the team weren’t playing as well on the field,” the Canadian, now playing for CF Montréal in the MLS, tells Cycling Weekly.
“That wasn’t because of his talent – he was talented, but there were better guys – but because of the energy he brought to the field, his voice, his leadership. The team was more confident when he was around.
“He wouldn’t shout ‘do this, do that’ to his teammates, but he brought this positive energy. He had this natural confidence of just standing on the pitch and making everyone around him feel secure, more safe. From his body language people would see a naturally confident guy. The whole team knew that when he was there, it would be different.”
Photo by Thomas Serer on Unsplash
