Damiano Cunego (born 19 September 1981) is an Italian former professional road racing cyclist,[2] who rode professionally between 2002 and 2018 for the Saeco, Lampre–Merida and Nippo–Vini Fantini–Europa Ovini teams.
Cunego at the 2006 Giro d'Italia
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Damiano Cunego | ||||||||||||||
| Nickname | Il Piccolo Principe (The Little Prince), L'Astore del Montello (The Goshawk of the Montello) | ||||||||||||||
| Born | (1981-09-19) 19 September 1981 (age 42) Cerro Veronese, Italy | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.69 m (5 ft 7 in) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight | 58 kg (128 lb; 9.1 st) | ||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||
| Current team | Retired | ||||||||||||||
| Discipline | Road | ||||||||||||||
| Role | Rider | ||||||||||||||
| Rider type |
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| Amateur teams | |||||||||||||||
| 1997–1999 | Gaiga–Gore Tex | ||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Zalf–Euromobil–Fior | ||||||||||||||
| Professional teams | |||||||||||||||
| 2002–2004 | Saeco–Longoni Sport | ||||||||||||||
| 2005–2014 | Lampre–Caffita | ||||||||||||||
| 2015–2018 | Nippo–Vini Fantini[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Major wins | |||||||||||||||
Grand Tours
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Medal record
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Cunego's biggest wins were the 2004 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Amstel Gold Race, and the Giro di Lombardia in 2004, 2007 and 2008. He finished second in the UCI Road World Championships in 2008 and in the 2008 UCI ProTour. Primarily a climber, he improved his time-trialing and was characterized by great sprinting ability, unusual for a climber.
Born in Cerro Veronese, Veneto, Cunego began cycling as a teenager after being a successful cross-country runner.[3] He was discovered by Giuseppe Martinelli who also worked closely with Marco Pantani.[4] Cunego turned professional in 2002 at the age of 20 with Saeco–Longoni Sport, winning the Giro d'Oro and the Giro Medio Brenta in his first season. In 2003 he won the seventh stage and the overall classification of the Tour of Qinghai Lake.[5]
He came to prominence in May 2004, winning the Giro d'Italia at the age of 22 with Saeco. Cunego's strength came as a blow to his captain Gilberto Simoni; relations between the two during the race were strained when Cunego sprinted away from Simoni to win the 18th stage after Simoni's solo breakaway. La Gazzetta dello Sport reported that as Simoni passed by Cunego, who was surrounded by journalists, Simoni pointed his finger at Cunego and angrily said "You're a bastard...you are really stupid."[6] During 2004 he won the Giro di Lombardia in October, his 13th victory of the season. He finished the season number one in the UCI Road World Cup, the youngest rider to achieve it, aged 23. He was also the last rider ranked first on the world ranking, because from 2005 the ranking was replaced by the UCI ProTour.
In the 2005 Giro d'Italia, Simoni and Cunego were co-captains of Lampre–Caffita, but Cunego posed no threat to Simoni, as he faltered during the first climb in the Dolomites, losing six minutes in the day and any prospect of winning. At the time his team attributed his loss to a "psychological crisis" and Cunego said "a great weight has been lifted from me by this defeat." After the race, he was found to have Epstein–Barr virus, and he did not enter the 2005 Tour de France.
In 2006, Cunego finished third in Liège–Bastogne–Liège losing to Alejandro Valverde and Paolo Bettini in a sprint finish. In the Tour de France Cunego was the winner of the young rider classification; he finished 2nd on stage 15 to Alpe d'Huez, after losing to Fränk Schleck, who broke away in the final 2 kilometres (1.2 miles). He also finished 3rd on stage 17, on the road to Morzine. In 2007 Cunego again won the Giro del Trentino and his second Giro di Lombardia.
In 2008 he won the Klasika Primavera and the Amstel Gold Race,[7] with two powerful sprints against Valverde and Schleck, with victory in the latter propelling him to the top of the UCI Pro Tour rankings,[7] as he also went on to finish second in the UCI Road World Championships.[8] He was widely tipped to be victorious in the Tour de France, but he struggled and eventually dropped out before the finish. By the end of the year Cunego conquered for the third time at the Giro di Lombardia and then he ended the season with victory in the Japan Cup, confirming himself as one of the best Classics specialists in the world. In 2009 he won the Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali with victories in two stages; later he won two mountain stages at Vuelta a España, which made him one of the favourites for the road race at the UCI Road World Championships. He ultimately finished that race in eighth position. In July 2013, he was one of 27 former riders and officials linked to the Lampre–Merida team indicted for doping in an Italian court, with a hearing set for 10 December 2013.[9] In early 2014 however, details emerged that indicated that Cunego might have been one of few Lampre riders to refuse treatment by Spanish doctor José Ibarguren Taus, who was linked to doping practices.[10]
In October 2014, it was announced that Cunego was to leave Lampre–Merida to ride with Nippo–Vini Fantini in 2015.[11]
In June 2020, Cunego was hospitalised due to ventriculitis, an infection of the cerebral ventricle.[12]
In early 2020, Cunego was profiled in British magazine Cyclist. He was quoted as saying that believes that the increased media attention and sponsor obligations interfered with his training and mental focus, ultimately preventing him from achieving his full potential after his 2004 Giro victory and other initial successes. He also expressed concern about the state of 2020s Italian cycling, highlighting the lack of emerging talent compared to other nations.[13]
Road race, UCI Junior Road World Championships
Overall Tour of Qinghai Lake
Overall Giro d'Italia
Overall Giro del Trentino
Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
Overall Giro del Trentino
Young rider classification, Tour de France Overall Giro del Trentino
Road race, UCI Road World Championships Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
Mountains classification, Tirreno–Adriatico Points classification
after Stages 4–6 & 10–19| Grand Tour general classification results | |||||||||||||||||
| Grand Tour | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giro d'Italia
|
— | 34 | 1 | 18 | 4 | 5 | — | 17 | 11 | — | 6 | — | 19 | DNF | 44 | — | — |
| Tour de France
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— | — | — | — | 11 | — | DNF | — | 29 | 6 | — | 55 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Vuelta a España
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— | — | 15 | — | — | DNF | DNF | DNF | — | — | 33 | — | 76 | — | — | — | — |
| Major stage race general classification results | |||||||||||||||||
| Race | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 |
 / Paris–Nice
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | 17 | — | 48 | — | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
 / Tirreno–Adriatico
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | — | 32 | 27 | — | — | — | 117 |
 Volta a Catalunya
|
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Tour of the Basque Country
|
— | 16 | 16 | 9 | — | 4 | 4 | 6 | DNF | DNF | 4 | 16 | 11 | — | — | — | — |
 / Tour de Romandie
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70 | — | — | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | 16 | — | 27 | — | — | — | — | — |
 Critérium du Dauphiné
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— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 21 | 72 | — | — | — | — |
| Tour de Suisse
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— | — | — | — | — | 5 | 4 | 6 | — | 2 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | 124 |
| Monument | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milan–San Remo | — | — | — | — | 62 | — | — | — | 34 | — | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Tour of Flanders | Did not contest during his career | |||||||||||||||||
| Paris–Roubaix | ||||||||||||||||||
| Liège–Bastogne–Liège | 124 | — | — | 9 | 3 | 7 | 30 | 7 | 20 | 16 | 35 | 30 | 13 | — | — | — | — | |
| Giro di Lombardia | — | — | 1 | 29 | — | 1 | 1 | 14 | — | 27 | 13 | DNF | — | 23 | 33 | 93 | — | |
| Classic | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
| Strade Bianche | Race did not exist | — | — | — | — | 3 | — | 16 | 4 | 16 | DNF | — | — | |||||
| Amstel Gold Race | — | — | — | — | — | — | 1 | 5 | 6 | 15 | 31 | 43 | 50 | 40 | DNF | — | DNF | |
| La Flèche Wallonne | 122 | — | — | 14 | — | — | 3 | 3 | 5 | 60 | — | 28 | 69 | — | — | — | — | |
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec | Race did not exist | 10 | — | — | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||||||
| Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal | 27 | — | — | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||
| Tre Valli Varesine | — | — | — | 3 | 27 | — | 3 | — | 5 | 52 | — | 23 | DNF | 8 | 64 | 88 | — | |
| Giro dell'Emilia | — | 28 | — | 9 | — | 5 | 13 | 14 | — | — | 15 | 18 | DNF | 4 | 53 | 33 | — | |
| Milano–Torino | — | 55 | 32 | — | — | — | Not held | 26 | 38 | — | 6 | 20 | 72 | — | ||||
| 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Olympic Games
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Not held | — | Not held | — | Not held | — | Not held | — | Not held | ||||||||
 World Championships
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— | — | 9 | — | — | 50 | 2 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
 National Championships
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— | — | — | — | — | 31 | 12 | 2 | 16 | DNF | DNF | 28 | — | — | DNF | DNF | DNF |
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
It's been a long career and my first year was in 2002.
