As Remco Evenepoel picked himself off the ground after he had been 'doored' by a Belgian postal vehicle in December, he was probably not thinking about starring in a successful advertising campaign.
However, that is exactly what happened, with the Belgian postal service - bpost - creating an advertising campaign around the 'Remco Reflex', encouraging drivers to use the 'Dutch reach' in order to check for approaching cyclists. The Dutch reach is a technique where you open the door with the opposite arm, in order to force yourself to look behind you.
That campaign saw 100,000 Remco Reflex stickers distributed across Belgium for bpost workers but also members of the public to stick in their car window to remind them to check behind.
The Olympic champion was hospitalised after breaking a rib, his shoulder blade and hand, with the Belgian also suffering contusions on his lungs and a luxation of the clavicle which resulted in him needing surgery to repair the damage. His gold S-Works bike was also snapped clean in two due to the impact.
This week, bpost and Evenepoel won seven awards at the Creative Belgium Awards for the 'Remo Reflex' campaign, including gold in the PR category.
"It is a great initiative by bpost, which I was happy to link my name to," Evenepoel said. "I am very happy to have been able to contribute to more road safety in Belgium. Although I would have preferred to do that without an accident."
“With 10,000 postmen on the road every day, bpost has a direct impact on road safety across the country. It also serves as an example. That is why it joined forces with the Evenepoel family and creative agency Mortierbrigade to make traffic safer," a spokesperson for bpost said in a press release.
bpost CEO Chris Peeters added: "We did not sit back and did everything we could to learn from this incident. Incidentally, the contact with Remco's entourage has been very mutually understanding from day one.
"In those circumstances, that was far from self-evident, so we would like to thank them once again for that."
Evenepoel started his season at Brabantse Pijl in April, where he won, before going on to finish fifth overall at the Tour de Romandie at the beginning of May, winning the final stage time trial in Geneva. He is set to race again at the Critérium du Dauphiné and then the Tour de France.
