Cycling Star Remco Evenepoel Faces Online Hate After Moroccan Wedding Photo

On October 6, 2022, 22-year-old Remco Evenepoel married the Moroccan Oumaima Rayane (21 years old). A relationship they had been maintaining for several years. A few days after the ceremony at the town hall, the cyclist’s wife revealed, on her Instagram account, a photo of her and her husband in traditional Moroccan clothes taken on the occasion of the henna ceremony. This is what unleashed the wave of hateful messages on social media.

According to Patrick Evenepoel, the road cycling world champion did not expect this kind of reaction. He admits to having had his own prejudices about his in-laws. "But in the end, what’s most important is that they’re happy. [...] If Remco wore these clothes, it only lasted ten minutes. It’s a tradition in Moroccan families, so why not? They’re just clothes," explained Patrick Evenepoel. "Really, people are mean."