“I won the 2019 Giro thanks to good tactics and teammates. With all these new methods, whose results I can already see, it gives me peace of mind. When I do everything right, I know my limits. But I have never explored what is beyond them.”
The Tour of Italy 2022 It’s a new time for Richard Carapaz.
From Carchi, Ecuador, a setting of mountains and volcanoes, in the mountains, in the Andes, the cyclist who will shine throughout 21 kilometer stages from Hungary to Italy is the sensation of the first of the three great cycling tours. At the age of 28, he has just won Olympic gold in Tokyo 2020 and in the 105th edition of the competition, it seeks to revalidate the glory of Giro 2019 when he arrived in pink in Verona.
For the fourteenth time in the history of the race, the Giro will not start on Italian soil. The last time this race did not start in Italy was four years ago in Jerusalem, and this time it will be in Budapest.
Carapaz He is a great champion for a country that until now has had the Cuenca walker Jefferson Pérez as world champions and in Mexico, players like Enner Valencia or Chucho Benítez have been known. The presence of the batch of Ecuadorian cyclists will be the largest in Italy since an Ecuadorian debuted in 2018.
All the sports attention of Ecuador will be in the Italian mountains. Its Carchi region with the cultural burden of surnames. “Cuasquer, Cuasapud, Cuasapas, Carapaz. I have friends with all those names. Cuasquer means ‘Great Chief’. Carapaz means ‘the force of the wind’ or ‘strong as the wind,’” Richard explained in an interview this year.
Richard will be accompanied by other Ecuadorian flags immersed in the peloton of 176 cyclists: Jhonatan Narváez, Jonathan Caicedo and Alexander Cepeda, all former national champions. When pedaling, the Ecuadorian star can be recognized by his tattoo on his right calf in which his brand image shows the ‘Locomotora del Carchi’. The day he had it done, he shared the process on his twitter account.
“It is always nice to give back a little of the love that is received,” Carapaz posted, with an image in which he signs a pink jersey, the most coveted garment in the Giro, and the one he wore in 2019 when he was crowned champion.
The Ecuadorian considered the best climber of the race will be accompanied by a very powerful group of domestiques (Porte, Sivakov, Castroviejo). Carapaz always behind a good team that has made him triumph in the Italian round, second place in the 2020 Vuelta a España and third place in the Tour de France last year.
“This Giro is my ultimate goal and a very personal challenge. Riding the Giro with such a strong team is very important and I want to do it in the best possible way and try to win”.
Yes Carapaz successful in his ambition, he would secure Ineos Grenadiers their fourth Giro win in five years; the only time Ineos did not win was in 2019, when Carapaz himself took the pink jersey while he was riding for Movistar. The Ecuadorian benefited from the aggressive tactics employed by the Spanish team, helping him become the first rider from his country to win a Grand Tour.
Although this year is different. Carapaz He affirms that he has matured a lot as a cyclist and that this time he is at the helm of the team, instead of sharing responsibilities as he did in 2019.
“Winning the Giro was a great moment for me. It was only my second Grand Tour and I was able to win by attacking. I remember it was raining and I was wearing the best young rider jersey. All of this was very special. I have learned a lot, I have run many different races, against great rivals. Now more than ever I come to this Giro with a very clear objective. However, the 28-year-old’s ambitions don’t stop there.
Carapaz he also confirmed during the press conference that he will compete in the Vuelta a España later this year, aiming to win two Grand Tours this year. For now, though, the Ecuadorian seems totally focused on achieving the first half of that goal and securing the pink jersey on May 29.
A story that continues to be woven for the good of Ecuador and as an example of Latin America in Europe. The Giro d’Italia 2022 under the colors of the Team Ineosa team with which he signed a three-year contract in 2020.
Italy spin
- Dates: May 6 to 29, 2022.
- Distance: 3,445.6 kilometers.
- 21 stages.
- 176 cyclists (eight in each of the 22 teams).
- Hungary will host the first three stages.
- 6 of the 21 stages will finish on top: Etna (4), Blockhaus (9), Cogne (15), Aprica (16), Lavarone (17) and Marmolada (20).
Former champions present in 2022:
pink jersey:
- Vincenzo Nibali (2013 and 2016).
- Tom Dumoulin (2017).
- Richard Carapaz (2019).
- Tao Geoghegan Hart (2020).
To follow:
- Richard Antonio Carapaz Montenegro.
- The Locomotive, The Jaguar of Tulcan, Billy.
- 28 years.
Trajectory:
- 2016, Strongman–Campagnolo–Wilier.
- 2016, Movistar Team (stagiaire).
- 2017–2019, Movistar Team.
- 2020–, Team Ineos.
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