Remco Evenepoel's bike: A golden Tarmac SL8 for the double Olympic champ

Life must feel pretty good for Belgian star Remco Evenepoel right now. The young phenom recently took Gold in both the road race and the time trial at this summer's Paris Olympics, a feat never achieved before by a male rider. Evenepoel joins Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel, who achieved the feat in 2000 in a very exclusive double winners club.

After covering the custom-painted bikes that Evenepoel and other Specialized athletes used for the road events, we now have a new machine to cover. It seems Specialized has created a custom, and very bling, S-Works Tarmac SL8 race bike for Evenepoel to celebrate his double Olympic victory. We aren't sure about details at the moment, but one thing is for sure, this is a seriously bling paint job. 

Evenepoel used Specialized bikes at the Olympics, the sponsors of his Soudal Quick-Step team. He used the S-Works Tarmac SL8 for the road race and S-Works Shiv time trial bike to take his victories, and like lots of other Specialized athletes, used the custom-painted pink, purple and gold 'Forward 50' frames which really stood out in the bunch. These bikes aren't special editions for the Olympics per se, but a well-timed 50th anniversary scheme to celebrate the company's half-centenary. You can check these out below too. 

Keep reading to also see several of Evenepoel's custom-painted bikes from years gone by in this hub or check out our five favourite custom Olympic bikes feature, as well as winning Olympic road race bikes from years gone by.

What is Remco Evenepoel's bike?

Soudal-Quickstep is one of several teams sponsored by Specialized, and it now only produces the new Tarmac SL8 'all-rounder', rather than having separate aero and lightweight race bikes. The brand produces the lightweight all-rounder Aethos model, but it isn't raced at the top level.

Evenepoel is a smaller rider at 171cm, and uses a 52cm frameset. He technically is between two sizes, but, as nearly all pros would, he's sized down and opted for a longer stem. Very light builds are achievable with the lightweight S-Works SL8 Tarmac, though we expect these lustrous custom-painted frames added a couple of hundred grams compared to the all-black lightweight frame Evenepoel used in the high mountains of the Tour de France just a few weeks ago - though it certainly didn't hold him back. 

Evenepoel has now won each Olympic and World title available on the road in the elite men's category. He has been World and Olympic Champion in both the road race and time trial and has worn various stage race leaders' jerseys. As such he's been riding plenty of custom-painted bikes, from the Olympic-winning bikes below to his red Tour of Spain-winning bike back in 2022.

Remco Evenepoel's Olympic champion gold bike

Evenepoel races aboard a S-Works Tarmac SL8 machine and this build aside from the special paint job, appears to use exactly the same equipment that Evenepoel usually races on. The only difference we can spot is the absence of the Roval Rapide CLX II Team wheels, he raced on in Paris. These can be easily spotted thanks to their silver hubshells. 

Evenepoel's Soudal-Quickstep team shared these pictures of the bike recently on Twitter / X - you can see the post down below. Details on the paint job are scarce at the moment, we will update this page when we know more. 

Technically, Evenepoel could race on a gold bike for the next four years as reigning Olympic champion. We will have to wait and see whether he races on this bike or a similar one, or whether this is more of a commemorative model that will end up in a museum, doing the media rounds, or back in Specialized HQ to commemorate the victory. Either way, we think you can expect to see at least some gold featuring on the Belgian's bikes for the long haul. 

The bike(s) that Remco Evenepoel rode to glory at the Paris Olympics road race

Evenepoel rode the majority of the Olympic road race on his custom Tarmac S-Works SL8 which featured black, silver, pink, purple and gold highlights. Equipment aside from the special paint appears to be the same as Evenepoel has been using all year. This year is Specialized's 50th anniversary, so we'd guess the folks back at Specialized HQ have even more cause to celebrate now. 

The Belgian opted for 56/40T chainring sizes for the relatively flat road race and used them to devastating effect. We also spotted a waxed chain in the pictures down below. 

A Dura-Ace Di2 electronic groupset takes care of shifting and braking. The majority of the rest of the bike equipment comes from the Specialized subsidiary brand Roval which provide the Rapide handlebars, saddle, and wheels. The tyres are also from Specialized and we believe were set up with latex inner tubes. 

Remco Evenepoel's Paris Olympics winning TT bike

Next up is Evenepoel's Shiv time trial bike which he used to win the Olympic time trial event on. The course was wet and the city streets were treacherous, but the Belgian's effort was issue-free. 

The Shiv has also received the same Specialized custom paint treatment but features, like most TT bikes, a few more eye-catching features. 

Up front, there is a custom carbon fibre time trial handlebar for Evenepoel which routes his brake hoses internally and also features a neat integrated computer mount to keep the bike computer out of the wind, as well as hand rests that are angled inward, we assume to bring the riders hands together in a more aero position. 

Equipment is Dura-Ace again, except for the very large Digirit front carbon fibre chainring, a brand we also see used indoors for track events. Digirit components are made in Taiwan. 

Tyres are Specialized Turbo Cottons, which also look to be fitted with inner tubes judging by the valve stems. Evenepoel must have thrown caution to the wind on the soaked and slick Parisian streets in order to secure victory. 

Remco Evenepoel's 2024 Specialized Tarmac SL8 

Below is the bike Evenepoel started the 2024 race season on, which we snapped and got up close and personal with at a pre-season training camp. 

Evenepoel has ridden so many custom bikes this year though that it's hard to remember this model already. 

At the time, this chequerboard bike marked a departure from Evenepoel's old two-piece bar and stem to the integrated Roval Rapide handlebar, which is a common sight now as we head toward the tail end of the year.

Elsewhere, it's a fairy familiar spec and build, with Dura-Ace di2 equipment and Roval components. The chrome and black bike Evenepoel used at this year's Tour de France seems to perhaps be a development of this paint scheme idea. 

2023: Remco Evenepoel's World Champion's Specialized Tarmac SL7

Having won the 2022 World Championship road race in Wollongong, Australia, Evenepoel was, as is customary, treated by his bike sponsor to a mostly white bike to ride for his season in the rainbow bands. Given the release of the new Specialized Tarmac SL8 at the Glasgow super-worlds, it was the final time we saw the Belgian superstar on the outgoing model. 

Given rule changes and new equipment from Specialized, it was also the last time we saw him with the aggressively turned in hoods we got used to seeing so many riders opt for before they were banned by the UCI, and the last time we saw him opt for a separate bar and step combo.

2022: Evenepoel's World Championship winning bike 

In order to earn oneself a rainbow bike one must first win the world championship road race. Remco Evenepoel won the hilly course in Wollongong, Australia, with a solo attack 25km from the line. He was riding a bike very much the same as his current white steed, but in the case of the world championship race, he was running the older model of the tyres.

While the bike and componentry were essentially the same, the all-black paint job will have been lighter as it is essentially raw carbon rather than heavy white paint. Interestingly on his worlds-winning bike, we did spot that the Di2 cable had been secured to the derailleur hanger by what looks like heat shrink or black tape, to avoid any potential mishaps in such an important race. While we didn't spot this on his bike at the training camp it may be something we see during races. 

Remco Evenepoel's 2022 Vuelta a España winning bike 

Some riders can win one-day races regularly. Some riders can win grand tours and stage races. The crossover at the centre of the Venn Diagram that encompasses both races contains an alarmingly small number of riders. One of them though is Remco Evenepoel, who, before winning the world championships in Australia, brought the red jersey of the Vuelta a España back to Belgium for the first time in many many years. 

His bike, as per his worlds-winning, and world champions bikes above, was mostly stock, save for a commemorative red paint job and a colour-matched saddle and bar tape. The Roval Rapide, rather than Alpinist, wheelset features red decals applied over the white. 

Remco Evenepoel's time trial bike

While Remco spends the majority of his time on his S-Works Tarmac SL7 through the season, he occasionally has to take part in time trials. As part of his 2022 Vuelta win, he also took stage 10 aboard his Specialized Shiv TT bike by a margin of 48 seconds. 

Below you can see the setup he usually opts for, though for the Vuelta he used an Aerocoach front wheel rather than the Roval model you can see here. It's a bike designed to battle against the clock, so everything is optimised for maximum efficiency, including custom-made bars moulded to his forearms

Remco Evenepoel's gravel bike

Gravel is the hottest genre in cycling at the moment, and more and more pro racers from the road scene are popping up at gravel races. While Remco Evenepoel doesn't routinely take part in the gravel scene at the moment, his presence at the 2021 Belgian Waffle Ride, a gravel race in California, aboard an S-Works Crux was noteworthy enough to warrant a gallery, despite the fact he only rode the short 'Wafer' route rather than the full 'Waffle'. 

Given he's a Specialized and Shimano-sponsored athlete it's no surprise to see him aboard an S-Works Crux, equipped with Shimano GRX Di2 and Roval wheels. The tyres, Pathfinder 42mm models, were also Specialized. Given the lack of neutral service in gravel racing, it's much more common to see riders carrying repair equipment, like spare inner tubes, along with them for the race in case of any bad luck.