Richard Carapaz the EF Education-EasyPost leader for Il Lombardia: "I’m close to my best"
CyclingWednesday, 04 October 2023 at 12:00
Richard Carapaz, the outstanding Ecuadorian cyclist, is ready to take on the prestigious Il Lombardia with a renewed sense of determination and confidence. After a challenging start to the season with the EF Education-EasyPost team, Carapaz has proven to be at the top of his game again.
The 30-year-old cyclist makes no secret of his ambitions regarding "Il Lombardia" and is ready to bet high. "It has been a difficult season for me. It has not been my year. It was a very strange one. Since the beginning of the season, there was always something off, but now I’m finally ‘seeing sunlight again.’ Recently, I’ve been feeling very good. I’m close to my best," Carapaz revealed in a press release issued by his team.
"These days in Italy, I’ve been in great shape and that is something that strengthens me and my head. I want to be in the game at Lombardia. We have a team that knows what I want, and I’ve shared my confidence with them that I feel fresh, with good legs, and it’s something they have seen in the last weeks. Lombardia is Lombardia, and we’re here to go all or nothing," said the reigning Olympic champion. "Only one rider will lift his hands in the air, but I know that I can be the one. That’s my personal objective."
With this, Carapaz stands as the undisputed leader of the EF Education-EasyPost team, although the American formation has several aces up its sleeve, including Ben Healy, Esteban Chaves and Rigoberto Urán. Chaves has already been crowned champion of the Tour of Lombardy in 2016, while Urán has been on the podium three times (in 2008, 2012 and 2016). Mikkel Honoré, Andrea Piccolo and Jonathan Caicedo complete the outstanding selection.
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- Starting all 3 vs finishing all 3, which makes what Sepp Kuss did in 2023 very impressive.
Front24209-01-2026 - It'd be good to see these back on the Classics 👍
leedorney09-01-2026 - it will be interesting to see his results when he steps into the bigger races. 19 wins, but so many in the fall in mid level races. still the mid races need to be won to step up to the biggies.mij09-01-2026
- Looks like his poor health just stomped on the rear mech of his cycling career.Onepiece09-01-2026
- she is so good. even her results from 2025, which were “bad”, would be a career year for most riders. and consider at MSR, for example, her teammate won - perhaps Lotte could have won it. wishing her the best for 2026!mij09-01-2026
- bummer - he was fun to watch and was young. had a lot left in him.mij09-01-2026
- What a fairytale day! Everything fell into place.mhfrvz09-01-2026
- Not sure you can say that someone as talented and successful as him has had bad luck, but between coming along right after the two titans and now this, his is a career cut short. Perhaps he can transition to a different role in the sport, but in any case I wish him well.MidnightRider08-01-2026
- I doubt it. This blows a hole in their ranks.mobk08-01-2026
- For a while there, Eli was the best of the rest in cyclocross behind Mathieu and Wout. It must be tough to be forced to retire early due to medical issues, but good health trumps everything else. I wish him the best in his future endeavors.
santiagobenites08-01-2026
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It’s all in for the last monument of the year. This Saturday, Richard Carapaz will lead us at the Giro di Lombardia. 💥 “It has been a difficult season for me. Since the beginning of the season, there was always something off, but now I’m finally ‘seeing sunlight again.’
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