"This will be his last season": Nairo Quintana's teammate reveals retirement plans of the Colombian legend!
Cycling
Everything points to Nairo Quintana ending his racing career at the close of the 2026 season. The Colombian climber, about to turn 36, would then enter the final year of his Movistar Team contract and, barring a late twist, his last as a professional rider.
The news surfaced via his teammate and compatriot Einer Rubio. Speaking to MARCA, the young rider was blunt about Nairoman: "This will be his last season." A direct message that confirms what has long been assumed around the Boyacá rider.
Quintana appears to have mapped out his path once he hangs up the bike. Last week he earned a master’s in Business Administration and Digital Transformation from Northern Illinois University. That academic commitment explained his absence from Movistar Team’s official presentation and the opening days of camp, which he joined later.
As for his race calendar in this likely farewell campaign, there is no final programme yet. However, according to Marca, it is very possible that 2026 will pass without Quintana riding any of the three Grand Tours. If confirmed, the 2025 Giro d’Italia would have been his last three-week race, the 20th of his professional career.
A palmarès for the ages
Across his career, Nairo Quintana has stood on the final podium of a Grand Tour six times. He won the Giro d’Italia in 2014 and was runner-up in 2017, finished second at the Tour de France in 2013 and 2015 and third in 2016, and claimed victory at the Vuelta a España in 2016. A record that cements him as one of the leading figures in Colombian and global cycling over the last decade.
Furthermore, he's also won 8 Grand Tour stages across his career, 3x at the Tour and Giro, and 2x at the Vuelta. At the 2024 Giro d'Italia, the Colombian came incredibly close to his 9th triumph on stage 15, only to be defeated by the flying Tadej Pogacar.
Nairo Quintana is one of the best riders of his generation
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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