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Two-times winner of Giro d’Italia, Ivan Basso retired from professional racing on Monday, bringing an end to his illustrious career. He made the announcement during the Giro d’Italia 2016 route unveiling at the Milan World Expo.
The 37-year old began professional cycling in the 1999 and won the white jersey for Tour de France in 2002. He won the 2006 edition of the Giro d’Italia for Team CSC and for Liquigas in 2010, but served a two-year doping suspension in between his two Grand Tour victories.
In 2015, Basso joined Tinkoff-Saxo and helped Alberto Contador secure his second Giro d'Italia win. Basso finished 15th overall in the race. He returned to training last month but held talks with his team before making today's announcement.
This year in July, he underwent successful surgery after being diagnosed with testicular cancer during the Tour de France.Basso said, “Every athlete knows that his light will not shine bright throughout his career. Inevitably, at some stage it will start dimming and it’s the sign of a wise athlete to know when the moment has come to turn it off.”
According to the press release by Tinkoff-Saxo, Basso will remain in the team and a new position will be created for him, combining technical and managerial aspects.
The cyclist from Italy said, “I don’t regret putting an end to my racing career. Cycling is a passion that runs in my family and I feel extremely lucky I have a team that believes in me and gives me this opportunity to start this new endeavour without practically stopping.”
Basso had been contemplating retirement for a year now but his illness could have been the deciding factor. Basso came back from a doping ban to win his second title at the Giro, but did not wish to continue after his cancer treatment.
Nicknamed Ivan the Terrible for his exploits, he said, "I have no reason to betray my fans and all the people that believed in me all these years. I could have continued racing but I wouldn't be competitive. I could take part in a race but then struggle to finish. There is no point in letting my fans down and when adrenaline is replaced by fear then it's time to change.”
The ‘Smiling Assassin’ is excited to begin a new innings, where he will continue to help his former teammates of Tinko-Saxo and spend more time with his family.
