Vincenzo Nibali · Biography

On 27 July 2014, Vincenzo Nibali crossed the finish line on the Champs-Élysées in Paris in the yellow jersey, 7 minutes and 37 seconds ahead of the runner-up. With that win at the 2014 Tour de France, the rider from Messina became the sixth cyclist to win all three Grand Tours, after Jacques Anquetil, Felice Gimondi, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Alberto Contador. Born on 14 November 1984 in Messina, Sicily, Nibali was a Grand Tour rider who also won one-day Classics. In the peloton he was known as “the Shark of the Strait”.

Early years between Sicily and Tuscany

Nibali grew up in Messina, beside the strait that separates Sicily from the mainland. At around 16 he left the island to race in Tuscany, near Mastromarco, where there were more races and a more competitive amateur scene. He spent his junior and under-23 years there. In 2004 he took bronze in the under-23 time trial at the World Championships in Verona, the result that opened the door to the professional ranks.

Professional debut and the Liquigas years

He turned professional in 2005 with Fassa Bortolo. In 2006 he joined Liquigas, where he spent seven seasons and developed into a stage-race rider. In 2010 he won the Vuelta a España, his first Grand Tour, and finished on the podium of the Giro d’Italia the same year. In 2012 he won Tirreno–Adriatico and finished third at the Tour de France, his first podium in the French race.

Astana: the 2013 Giro and the 2014 Tour

In 2013 he moved to Astana. That year he won Tirreno–Adriatico again and took the 2013 Giro d’Italia, a race he led from the first week and closed with a stage win at the Tre Cime di Lavaredo in the snow. The Tour followed in 2014: he took the yellow jersey on stage two, which finished in Sheffield, won four stages and held the lead all the way to Paris. In 2015 he won Il Lombardia for the first time.

In 2016 he won the Giro d’Italia again. He reached the final mountain stages almost five minutes behind the maglia rosa, but after Steven Kruijswijk crashed on the descent of the Colle dell’Agnello, Nibali won at Risoul and took the lead the next day at Sant’Anna di Vinadio. That summer, at the Rio Olympics, he crashed on the final descent of the road race while leading and broke his collarbone.

Bahrain-Merida and Milan–San Remo

From 2017 to 2019 he rode for Bahrain-Merida. In 2017 he won his second Il Lombardia. On 17 March 2018 he won Milan–San Remo with a solo attack on the Poggio, a few kilometres from the finish, holding off the sprinters’ group. At the 2018 Tour he had to abandon after crashing on the climb to Alpe d’Huez, where he fractured a vertebra. In 2019 he finished second at the Giro d’Italia and won a Tour de France stage at Val Thorens.

Racing style

Nibali was at ease on varied terrain. He climbed consistently, held his own in time trials and was among the most skilful descenders in the peloton, an ability he used to gain time in mountain stages, at San Remo and at Il Lombardia. At the 2014 Tour he gained time on the Arenberg cobblestone stage, terrain where Grand Tour contenders usually aim only to limit their losses.

Final seasons and retirement

He rode for Trek-Segafredo in 2020 and 2021 and returned to Astana in 2022. In May 2022, during the Giro d’Italia, he announced in Messina that he would retire at the end of the year. He finished fourth in that Giro and rode his last race as a professional at Il Lombardia in October 2022.

Major honours

His record includes the 2010 Vuelta a España, the Giro d’Italia in 2013 and 2016, the 2014 Tour de France, the 2018 Milan–San Remo, Il Lombardia in 2015 and 2017, and Tirreno–Adriatico in 2012 and 2013. His final race was the 2022 Il Lombardia.