After racing four consecutive Giri d'Italia, João Almeida is ready to race the Tour de France. 2024 will likely be the year however, and the Portuguese will now recover and then begin preparation towards the Vuelta a Espana.
"It was a very special Giro. We had very tough weather conditions, with rain and cold. I was sick and crashed, but so did half the peloton," Almeida said as he was received by the media in Portugal this Monday. "Overall, I wouldn't change anything, I did all I could and I think the result shows it. Only when I crossed the finish line in Rome did I realize I reached the podium."
The 24-year old had a very similar preparation to that of Primoz Roglic into the Giro d'Italia, with no race days in the weeks leading up to it. After performing consistently and showing evolution in his climbing abilities, Almeida began the Giro as a clear podium contender. As the race went on his ambitions grew further and further however.
"The day I won the stage (stage 16, ed.) I thought of the possibility of bringing pink. But the following stages were very hard and the opponents were very strong," he explains. "I took it to the last centimeters and I was very happy with the result. The differences are even shorter, that shows the level of cycling and that all the details make the difference."
Whilst the Portuguese's level did not lower in the final days of racing, both Geraint Thomas and Primoz Roglic - who equally arrived 'undercooked' to the Giro - showed impressive form, and at Val di Zoldo and Tre Cime di Lavaredo created differences on Almeida that were hard to recover. In the final time-trial he raced to third on the day, the same position which he ended the overall classification. He was rewarded with a victory in the youth classification for the first time in a Grand Tour despite his many strong results.
"Regularity is one of my advantages in comparison with my opponents. That comes from genetics, but also hard work. We have to be at a good level, be professional... All training camps count, sometimes people don't have an idea of how hard it is to be professional at 100%. I think that is one of my strong points."
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He had extensive support on the roads of Italy throughout the three weeks, and has thanked the presence of many fans out in the climbing stages. On stage 16 Almeida won his first Grand Tour stage, and his podium finish also makes for another set of achievements he was yet to conquer.
"Luckily in the last few years, in the big races there are always Portuguese people supporting me," Almeida continued. "I can say that when I see a Portuguese flag at the side of the road my legs even hurt less, and when I stop seeing it they hurt again," he jokes. "Clearly that makes a difference and I'm very thankful.
Now he rests and is likely to race the national championships in June, before racing the Vuelta a Espana. He has mentioned before that he will likely race the Tour de Pologne as preparation, and at the Vuelta he will present himself - likely alongside Juan Ayuso - as a strong contender for a top result, perhaps even victory. However he shows ambition for bigger goals in the future.
"I want to focus on the rest of the season. In normal conditions I will be in the Vuelta a Espana and I would like to fight for the race. I still haven't discussed the calendar for next year, but I'd like to ride the Tour de France, it was already talked with the team. I think it's the next step to grow as a rider, because it's a different race," he concluded.
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
- Thibau Nys does exactly what Iserbyt is calling forRafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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