"Cycling gave me everything" - Rigoberto Urán's emotional goodbye message on last day as a professional rider
Cycling
Rigoberto Urán is one of the best riders in the peloton who is hanging up his wheels this year. The 31st December is the final day where he is signed with EF Education-EasyPost, and he has shared a long and emotional message thanking everyone for the support he's had throughout his very successful career.
"Today, for me, is a day full of emotions that are difficult to put into words. After eight years on the EF team, it is time to say goodbye to this uniform that means so much to me," Urán wrote in an Instagram post. "This team was not only my sporting home; it was a family that welcomed me as a son, Urrao's son, from the first day and helped me grow in all aspects of my life. Here I finished forming not only as a cyclist, but as a human being, and for that I will always be grateful to my team.
"I take with me memories that I will keep in the depths of my heart: the thousand battles, the epic races, the tears, the blows, the joys, the endless trips, the victories and defeats that made us all stronger. But, above all, I take with me the people. My teammates, my friends, my family on the road. You were the ones who made every kilometer worth it. Today I leave this uniform and this chapter, but Rigo, everyone's friend, will always be here for you. You will always have a friend here".
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Urán turned pro all the way back in 2006 and jumped to the World Tour in 2010 as at the time Caisse d'Espagne (current Movistar) jumped to the top level of cycling. He has six ridden for the currently named INEOS Grenadiers and Soudal - Quick-Step before moving to EF Education-EasyPost in 2016. He proved to be a talented stage-racer since a young age, finishing 7th and winning the youth classification at the 2012 Giro d'Italia.
That year he also finished second at the Olympic Games Road Race. In 2013 he finished second at the Giro, and in 2014 he once again repeated the result behind compatriot Nairo Quintana. In 2017, he was second to Chris Froome at the Tour de France. He is one of the few riders who have won stages in all Grand Tours, and until 2022 he continued to be a quality Grand Tour specialist, having finished 8th that year. With a career that has spanned over three different decades, an enviable palmarès and almost hitting 38 years of age, his career has reached the ideal point to hang up the wheels professionally. His final race was the Vuelta a España, which he abandoned prematurely due to a crash.
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"Cycling gave me everything," he states. "It taught me to persevere, to fight, to dream and to fall to get up again. Now, I close this cycle with the satisfaction of having given everything and with the excitement of facing a new challenge: being the father my children deserve. I am ready for that race, next to Michelle (his partner, ed.), perhaps the most important of my life".
Although Urán has little to worry about regarding his permanence in the cycling world. His outgoing personality and popularity in Colombia sees him as an international landmark in promoting cycling races. His own event, Giro de Rigo, had a whole 12.000 people attending this year and he is one of the country's most emblematic sports figures.
"Thank you, EF, for these wonderful years. Thank you to everyone who was part of this path. My heart is full of gratitude, love and memories that will be with me forever [...] Thank you, with all my heart. A friend to all: Rigo".
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