What was said in Van Gucht’s voice message to Evenepoel? ‘Surprised by the tone in his message’

Accusations flying, angry reactions all around the feud between Ruben Van Gucht and Remco Evenepoel is far from over. After comments made by the Belgian sports journalist, the Olympic champion fired back with fury and chose not to respond to an audio message from his compatriot. On Saturday, Van Gucht addressed the situation during his appearance on Radio 2’s Weekwatchers, offering more insight into the incident.

“I hear he’s trying to support that family. Whether that’s necessary or not is for him to decide. I don’t think many of his colleagues would do the same. That’s the word going around in the heart of the cycling world. People can call it baseless gossip tomorrow if they want.” Those were the words from Van Gucht that triggered an angry response from Remco Evenepoel. “Let me be very clear: that’s complete nonsense. My wife comes from a well-off family, with parents who built a beautiful life through hard work and entrepreneurship.”

Speaking on the radio program, Van Gucht admitted he was a bit taken aback by the backlash. “I was surprised by the tone of his message and the language he used,” he said, referring to the voice message he sent Evenepoel. “I also wanted to make it clear that the interpretation he — and later the media gave it, wasn’t the one I intended. I never mentioned money or used words that hinted at finances. That interpretation came from others. It was never my intention to talk about that.”

Belgian analyst Ruben Van Gucht insists he never meant his comments in a negative light. “The phrase ‘taking care of’ is often seen as something positive, but in this case it was suddenly viewed as a flaw or even an accusation. I actually saw it as a quality,” he explained. In his eyes, it was pure innocence but despite his good intentions, the issue turned into a journalistic matter within the Belgian broadcaster. “The VRT’s deontological committee also took a look at it.”

“I received a three-page report on it yesterday. Ten people listened to what I said. For the record, none of them were sports journalists. Some people might not like to hear it, but they concluded that no journalistic error was made, aside from a few words that may have been poorly chosen.” For Van Gucht, it’s all a storm in a teacup. He says he’s open to making peace with Evenepoel. “Go grab a beer together? I’ve got no problem with that. I’d love to. After the Tour de Romandie, we can go for a coffee. Doesn’t have to be a beer, of course.”