Viviani (36) ends cycling career: Italian becomes third top sprinter after Kristoff and Démare to retire

Viviani began his professional career with Liquigas in 2010. With the Italian team, he immediately claimed his first professional victory in the Tour of Turkey in April, followed by victories in the Memorial Marco Pantani and the Memorial Frank Vandenbroucke later that same year. He remained with Liquigas and its successor, Cannondale, for five years.

Those five years had already produced no fewer than 30 victories, with a win in the Critérium du Dauphiné as his most significant victory. However, the top victories had so far eluded him. That icing on the cake came quickly with his new team, Team Sky: Viviani won the second stage of the Giro d'Italia in his first year with the British team.

In three years, however, he only rode two Grand Tours with the strong Sky team, where the focus was on stage racers such as Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas, and Richie Porte. That is why, in the summer of his professional career, the Italian chose the sprinters' paradise of Quick-Step. There he thrived: in 2018, Viviani won four stages in the Giro and three in the Vuelta a España.

In 2019, the sprinter got to prove himself for the second time in the Tour de France, and this time with success: he triumphed in the fourth stage to Nancy. Viviani was perhaps the man to beat, and he showed that at the European Cycling Championships in Alkmaar. There, he took the European title. He followed that up with victory in the Cyclassics in Hamburg.

A surprising transfer to Cofidis marked the beginning of a downward trend. Viviani ended 2020 without a victory, managing only five wins in total for the French team. A return to INEOS Grenadiers also failed to deliver the desired results, and after a dry 2024, the now 35-year-old Viviani was offered another chance at Lotto.

With the Belgian team, he rediscovered the feeling of winning (in the Tour of Turkey), but elsewhere, he did not get further than places of honor. That is why he now feels it is enough. “It's been 16 fantastic years,” Viviani said on X. “They flew by, but I had a great time and achieved everything I wanted! Today, I am announcing the end of my career as a professional cyclist! Many thanks to everyone who has been involved over the years!”