OLYMPIC gold medalist Remco Evenepoel is widely regarded as one of the best time trialists of his generation.
And his wife Ouimaima Rayane has been supporting him through the highs and the lows.
The couple together after Evenepoel’s stage five win[/caption]
Remco Evenpoel and wife Oumi shared a kiss[/caption]
Who is Remco Evenepoel’s wife Ouimaima Rayane?
Ouimaima Rayane, also known as “Oumi”, and Remco Evenepoel’s relationship is like no other.
Oumi prefers to keep herself out of the limelight but SunSport understands that she is of a Morrocan descent and is in her early 20s.
They grew up on the same street in Schepdaal, but became friends at the age of 17, before getting engaged and then married last year.
Oumi once told the Dutch language magazine: “A cyclist was not at all my type, but a click happened. A deep connection developed between us.”
“The moments when we can go away together are very rare. Many friends of my age take trips with their partners. It’s quite normal but, with Remco and me, it’s not at all obvious. Believe me: our life is more boring than that of the average Belgian.
“We spend more time in bed or in the armchair than many people our age. Everything is planned. We can compare this life to that of a family man.
“There is nothing glamorous. We are simple people. His schedule is very strict, even if we try to find time for ourselves. We have to make a lot of sacrifices to achieve the goals.
“Otherwise, we don’t reach the top,”
What are the cheating rumours?
News roamed around social media last year that Remco Evenepoel and his wife Ouimaima Rayane had split after allegedly cheating and the fact that ‘Oumi’ deleted all the posts from her Instagram.
This turned out not to be the case and the Olympic Champion addressed this topic in an interview.
Evenepoel told Het Laatste Nieuws: “Gossip and rumours are not news to us, even though it was extreme this time. That’s how it has always been. We just try to remain there as a team.
“Oumi and I discuss everything openly and without any hesitation, we don’t keep anything from each other.
“We don’t stoop to that level and even though it sometimes scares us, we mainly laugh about it.”
“When I fell in April (Evenepoel fractured a shoulder blade and collarbone at Itzulia Basque Country, ed.), there was doubt.
“Would I make it to the Tour? I only had two months, and I can count myself lucky to have a mature, strong woman like Oumi standing next to me at such a moment.
“Oumi supports me, she helps me, she puts me first. Her own schoolwork comes second.”
