Two cyclists have taken the 2023 Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year in Belgium awards. This year’s Sportsman of the Year Remco Evenepoel overcame stiff competition from other sportsman, including the Snooker World Champion Luca Brecel to take this year’s award.
The choice of Lotte Kopecky as Sportswoman of the Year is a logical one given her sensational cycling performances this year. The Belgian women’s basketball team the Belgian Cats received the Team of the Year award.
Never before did a cyclist win the Sportwoman of the Year in Belgium award. However, given the excellent year that Lotte Kopecky has had it was all but inevitable that she would take this year’s award.
Lotte Kopecky (photo above, right) came in first ahead of the basketball player Emma Meesseman who excelled both with her club Fenerbahçe and with the national team, the Belgian Cats.
It was the national women’s basketball team that took the prize for team of the year, while the national team coach Rachid Meziane received the Coach of the year award.
Third Sportsman of the Year Award
For the third time in his career so far 23-year-old Remco Evenpoel has received the Sportsman of the Year in Belgium award.
Once again the cyclist from Schepdaal, near Dilbeek (Flemish Brabant) became World Time Trial Champion and won Liège-Bastogne-Liège and a series of stage victories in the Tour of Italy and the Tour of Spain. However, a coronavirus infection put paid to any hopes that he might have had of winning of Giro.