Damiano Caruso (born 12 October 1987) is an Italian professional road bicycle racer, who rides for UCI WorldTeam Team Bahrain Victorious.[4] A stage winner at both the 2021 Giro d'Italia and the 2021 Vuelta a España, Caruso was also the 2008 under-23 Italian national champion for the road race.[5] He competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in the road race.[6]
 Caruso in 2018 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Damiano Caruso |
| Born | 12 October 1987 Ragusa, Italy |
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10+1⁄2 in)[1] |
| Weight | 68 kg (150 lb; 10 st 10 lb)[1] |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Team Bahrain Victorious |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role | Rider |
| Rider type | Climber |
| Professional teams | |
| 2009 | LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini |
| 2010 | De Rosa–Stac Plastic |
| 2011–2014 | Liquigas–Cannondale |
| 2015–2018 | BMC Racing Team |
| 2019– | Bahrain–Merida[2][3] |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
| |
Career
editItalian-based teams (2009–2014)
editBorn in Ragusa, Sicily, Caruso has competed as a professional since the second half of the 2009 season, competing for the LPR Brakes–Farnese Vini,[7] and De Rosa–Stac Plastic teams,[8] before joining Liquigas–Cannondale for the 2011 season.[9]
In October 2011, the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) requested for Caruso to be suspended from competition for two years, although backdated from December 2010, in relation to a doping offence in 2007.[10] He was given a backdated one-year ban in February 2012, allowing for him to return to competition without being banned, but all his 2011 results were voided.[11]
Caruso held the lead of the young rider classification at the 2012 Giro d'Italia, after Garmin–Barracuda's Peter Stetina lost time on the eighth stage.[12]
BMC Racing Team (2015–2018)
editIn August 2014, Caruso signed a multi-year deal with the BMC Racing Team.[13] At the end of 2014, Caruso scored a top-10 placing in the Vuelta a España, finishing ninth in the general classification. In 2015, Caruso finished eighth in the Giro d'Italia,[14] before he was named in the start list for the Tour de France for the first time.[15] Caruso rode each of the following five editions of the race.
Bahrain–Merida (2019–present)
editIn August 2018, Bahrain–Merida announced that Caruso would join them from 2019 on an initial two-year contract, with a continued focus on riding as a domestique in Grand Tours and to take opportunities as a team leader in some shorter stage races.[16]
2019–2020
editDuring the 2019 Giro d'Italia, both he and teammate Domenico Pozzovivo rode as mountain domestiques for team leader and general classification favourite Vincenzo Nibali; Nibali finished the race in second place overall.[17][18]
During the 2020 Tour de France he rode well with Mikel Landa, who finished in fourth place, as Caruso finished in tenth place overall,[19] his first such placing at the Tour de France.
2021
editCaruso remained with Team Bahrain Victorious for the 2021 season; going into the Giro d'Italia he would once again ride for Landa,[20] who was considered one of the favourites for overall victory. However, on stage five, Landa was involved in a crash that left him with multiple fractures and had to withdraw from the race.[21] As a result, Caruso became Team Bahrain Victorious' highest-placed rider on the general classification, and moved onto the overall podium at the halfway point of the race. In the final five road stages, Caruso took four top-five stage placings, culminating in a stage victory on the penultimate day.[22] In second place overall, and trailing race leader Egan Bernal by two-and-a-half minutes, Caruso attacked with 50 kilometres (31 miles) remaining and caught up to the remnants of the breakaway, along with teammate Pello Bilbao. Caruso outlasted Romain Bardet on the final climb, the Alpe Motta,[22] and soloed to his first Grand Tour stage win. Bernal finished second on the stage, limiting his losses to half a minute, and held an almost two-minute lead going into the final stage individual time trial.[22] Caruso took another 30 seconds on that stage, confirming his second-place overall finish.[23] During the Vuelta a España, Caruso went on a 70-kilometre (43-mile) solo attack and won the mountainous stage nine in Andalusia.[24] He finished in 17th overall, and in conjunction with the performances of teammates Gino Mäder and Jack Haig, who both placed in the top-five overall, Team Bahrain Victorious won the teams classification.[25] He signed a two-year contract extension with the team in October, with an additional year's extension confirmed the following month.[26][27]
2022
editAfter a seventh-place overall finish at the 2022 Tirreno–Adriatico,[28] Caruso took his first senior general classification victory at the Giro di Sicilia – riding for the Italy national cycling team – where he also won two stages and the points classification.[29] He then placed highly at the Tour de Romandie (sixth) and the Critérium du Dauphiné (fourth),[30] ahead of the Tour de France, where he was co-leader of Team Bahrain Victorious, alongside Jack Haig.[31] Haig withdrew from the race in the first week due to injury, and Caruso also had to withdraw in the final week, due to a positive test for COVID-19 – the first time he had failed to complete a Grand Tour.[32][33]
2023
editCaruso started his 2023 season racing in Spain; he finished in seventh overall at February's Vuelta a Andalucía,[34] having finished four of the five stages in the top-ten placings. Another top-ten overall finish followed at April's Giro di Sicilia (tenth), before finishing on the podium at the Tour de Romandie at the end of the month; he finished third on the queen stage – a summit finish at Thyon – to move up to the same position in the general classification.[35][36] Caruso took this performance into the Giro d'Italia, where he was due to ride in support of team leader Jack Haig.[37] Caruso ultimately became the best-placed rider for Team Bahrain Victorious, and recorded his second top-five overall finish in three years, with fourth place in the final standings.[38] He also competed at the Vuelta a España, where he made it into the breakaway on four stages and recorded a best stage finish of second place on stage eighteen – however, he was nearly five minutes down on stage winner Remco Evenepoel, describing Evenepoel's performance as "trying to follow a scooter".[39]
Major results
editSource:[40]
- 2005
- 1st
Overall Tre Ciclistica Bresciana Junior
- 1st Stage 2
- 5th Overall Giro della Lunigiana
- 2007
- 4th Overall Giro della Toscana
- 1st
Young rider classification
- 1st
- 8th Trofeo Gianfranco Bianchin
- 9th Trofeo Banca Popolare di Vicenza
- 2008
- 1st
Road race, National Under-23 Road Championships
- 3rd Gran Premio Industria e Commercio Artigianato Carnaghese
- 3rd Gran Premio Città di Camaiore
- 6th Giro Del Canavese
- 9th Overall Tour de l'Avenir
- 9th Trofeo Banca Popolare di Vicenza
- 10th Road race, UCI Under-23 Road World Championships
- 2009
- 1st
- 1st Stage 5
- 1st Trofeo Comune di Cafasse
- 1st Stage 2 Giro Ciclistico d'Italia
- 4th Trofeo Banca Popolare di Vicenza
- 10th Road race, UCI Under-23 Road World Championships
- 2010
- 5th Overall Giro di Sardegna
- 5th Giro dell'Appennino
- 7th Overall Brixia Tour
- 7th Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
- 10th Overall Giro del Trentino
- 2011
4th Overall Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria6th Gran Premio Città di Camaiore
- 7th Japan Cup
- 2012
- 2nd Overall Tour of Britain
- 8th GP Miguel Induráin
- 8th Gran Premio Nobili Rubinetterie
- 9th Giro di Toscana
- 2013 (1 pro win)
- 1st
Mountains classification, Tour of Beijing
- 1st Stage 5 Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
- 3rd Overall Tour of Alberta
- 2014
- 3rd Overall Tour of Austria[13]
- 5th Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
- 5th Tre Valli Varesine
- 6th Overall Tour of Slovenia
- 9th Overall Vuelta a España
- 2015
- 1st Stage 9 (TTT) Tour de France
- 8th Overall Giro d'Italia
- 9th Classic Sud-Ardèche
- 2016
- 1st
Mountains classification, Vuelta a Andalucía
- 1st Stage 1 (TTT) Tirreno–Adriatico
- 4th Road race, National Road Championships
- 5th Overall Tour des Fjords
- 2017
- 1st Stage 1 (TTT) Vuelta a España
- 1st Stage 1 (TTT) Tirreno–Adriatico
- 2nd Overall Tour de Suisse
- 4th Road race, National Road Championships
- 4th Overall Tour du Haut Var
- 9th Overall Tour La Provence
- 2018
- 1st Stage 3 (TTT) Tour de France
- 2nd Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
- 1st Stage 1 (TTT)
- 3rd
Team time trial, UCI Road World Championships
- 5th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné
- 5th Overall Deutschland Tour
- 2019
- 9th Tre Valli Varesine
- 2020 (1)
- 1st Circuito de Getxo
- 10th Road race, UCI Road World Championships
- 10th Overall Tour de France
- 2021 (2)
- Vuelta a España
- 1st Stage 9
- Held
after Stages 9–13
- 2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
- 1st Stage 20
- 7th Overall UAE Tour
- 9th Overall Tour de Romandie
- 2022 (3)
- 1st
Overall Giro di Sicilia
- 1st
Points classification
- 1st Stages 2 & 4
- 1st
- 4th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné
- 6th Overall Tour de Romandie
- 7th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
- 2023
- 3rd Overall Tour de Romandie
- 4th Overall Giro d'Italia
- 7th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
- 10th Overall Giro di Sicilia
Combativity award Stage 3 Vuelta a España
General classification results timeline
edit| Grand Tour general classification results | ||||||||||||||
| Grand Tour | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 24 | 19 | — | 8 | — | — | — | 23 | — | 2 | — | 4 | 17 | |
| — | — | — | — | 53 | 22 | 11 | 20 | 58 | 10 | — | DNF | — | — | |
| 74 | — | — | 9 | — | — | 109 | — | — | — | 17 | — | 19 | DNF | |
| Major stage race general classification results | ||||||||||||||
| Race | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
| — | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | DNF | — | — | — | — | |
| 21 | — | 19 | — | 14 | 11 | 12 | 2 | DNF | — | 37 | 7 | 14 | 41 | |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 19 | NH | — | — | — | 19 | |
| 36 | 56 | — | 35 | — | 56 | 73 | 67 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| — | — | — | 84 | 27 | 13 | — | — | — | 9 | 6 | 3 | DNF | ||
| — | — | — | DNF | — | 21 | — | 5 | — | 29 | — | 4 | — | ||
| 51 | — | 67 | — | — | — | 2 | — | — | NH | — | — | — | ||
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
| NH | Not held |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team - Damiano Caruso". Retrieved 18 July 2019.
- ^ "Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team". Merida Bikes. Merida Industry Co., Ltd. Archived from the original on 1 January 2019. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
- ^ Ostanek, Daniel (26 December 2019). "2020 Team Preview: Bahrain McLaren". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
- ^ "Bahrain Victorious". UCI.org. Union Cycliste Internationale. Archived from the original on 1 January 2021. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
- ^ "Il Siciliano Damiano Caruso è il nuovo campione Italiano della categoria under 23" [The Sicilian Damiano Caruso is the new Italian champion of the Under 23 category]. Settimana Tricolore (in Italian). GS Domus. 27 June 2008. Archived from the original on 15 September 2012. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ "Cycling Road CARUSO Damiano - Tokyo 2020 Olympics". olympics.com. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
- ^ Brown, Gregor (1 July 2009). "LPR Brakes welcomes Caruso". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ Brown, Gregor (28 October 2009). "De Rosa-Stac Plastic names team roster". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ "Basso and Nibali to remain with Liquigas". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. 19 August 2010. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
Joining the team for 2011 will be Paolo Borghini Longho (ISD – Neri), Eros Capecchi (Footon-Servetto), Cristiano Salerno (De Rosa – Stac Plastic) and Damiano Caruso (De Rosa – Stac Plastic).
- ^ "CONI requests ban for Damiano Caruso". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. 28 October 2011. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ "Caruso given back-dated suspension by CONI". Cycling News. Future Publishing Limited. 20 February 2012. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ Moore, Kyle (13 May 2012). "Liquigas-Cannondale team flexes muscles on stage 8". VeloNation. VeloNation LLC. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ a b "Transfers: BMC sign Damiano Caruso". cyclingnews.com. 5 August 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2014.
- ^ "Results-Giro d'Italia". Eurosport. Discovery Communications. Retrieved 30 June 2015.
- ^ "2015 Tour de France start list". Velo News. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
- ^ "Damiano Caruso joins Team Bahrain Merida". Bahrain–Merida. 8 August 2018. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
- ^ Bruno, Gianluca (26 May 2019). "Giro d'Italia 2019, Bahrain-Merida perfetta: Caruso e Pozzovivo super, poi la stoccata di Nibali. Ora bisogna ribaltare la corsa" [Giro d'Italia 2019, Bahrain-Merida perfect: Caruso and Pozzovivo super, then Nibali's jab. Now we have to overturn the race]. OA Sport (in Italian). CLESS Soc. Coop. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Ostlere, Lawrence (2 June 2019). "Giro d'Italia 2019: Richard Carapaz clinches surprise grand tour triumph on streets of Verona". The Independent. Independent Digital News & Media Ltd. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Fletcher, Patrick (20 September 2020). "Tadej Pogacar wins the 2020 Tour de France". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Fletcher, Patrick (3 May 2021). "Bahrain Victorious 'all-in' for Mikel Landa at Giro d'Italia". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Farrand, Stephen (12 May 2021). "Mikel Landa out of Giro d'Italia after crash on stage 5". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ a b c Owen, Tom (29 May 2021). "Egan Bernal on cusp of Giro d'Italia triumph after Ineos Grenadiers masterclass, Damiano Caruso wins Stage 20". Eurosport. Discovery, Inc. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ "Egan Bernal wins the Giro. The final stage goes to Filippo Ganna". Giro d'Italia. RCS MediaGroup. 30 May 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ "Damiano Caruso shines in mountains as Primoz Roglic extends Vuelta lead". The Guardian. Reuters; PA Media. 22 August 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Bonville-Ginn, Tim (5 September 2021). "Vuelta a España 2021 standings: The final results from the Spanish Grand Tour". Cycling Weekly. Future plc. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ Delstanches, Christophe (17 October 2021). "Cyclisme : Bahrain-Victorious prolonge Damiano Caruso, vice-lauréat du Giro, et Gino Mäder" [Cycling: Bahrain-Victorious extends Damiano Caruso, vice-winner of the Giro, and Gino Mäder]. RTBF (in French). Radio Télévision Belge de la Communauté Française. Belga. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ "'Bahrain Victorious breekt contract Damiano Caruso open'" ['Bahrain Victorious breaks Damiano Caruso contract open']. WielerFlits (in Dutch). WielerFlits BV. 16 November 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
- ^ "Tadej Pogacar wins the Tirreno-Adriatico as Bahrain Victorious rider Phil Bauhaus claims sprint finish on Stage 7". Eurosport. Discovery, Inc. 13 March 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ Farrand, Stephen (15 April 2022). "Giro di Sicilia: Caruso seals overall victory on Mount Etna". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ Ryan, Barry (12 December 2022). "Damiano Caruso: It means a lot to return to Giro d'Italia in 2023". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
Caruso had warmed up for the Tour with victory at the Giro di Sicilia and fourth overall at the Critérium du Dauphiné [...]
- ^ Ostanek, Daniel (28 June 2022). "Haig, Caruso reprise Tour de France co-leadership for Bahrain Victorious". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Tour de France: Imanol Erviti, Damiano Caruso latest riders to leave with COVID-19". VeloNews. Outside Media. 21 July 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
- ^ Farrand, Stephen (21 July 2022). "COVID-19 hits Grand Tour veterans Erviti and Caruso". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
It is the first time he has abandoned a Grand Tour after completing 15 three-week races.
- ^ Ostanek, Daniel (19 February 2023). "Tadej Pogacar wins the Vuelta a Andalucia". Cyclingnews.com. Future plc. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Caruso is 3rd in the queen stage of Tour de Romandie and jumps onto the GC podium". Team Bahrain Victorious. Bahrain World Tour Cycling Team. 29 April 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Arndt sprints to 2nd place in the finale stage of Tour de Romandie as Caruso seals 3rd place in GC". Team Bahrain Victorious. Bahrain World Tour Cycling Team. 30 April 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Bahrain Victorious announces Giro d'Italia lineup". Team Bahrain Victorious. Bahrain World Tour Cycling Team. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
Jack is our GC leader, and we also have Damiano, Gino & Santiago.
- ^ "Bahrain Victorious Super Team of the Giro d'Italia as Milan seals the Ciclamino jersey". Team Bahrain Victorious. Bahrain World Tour Cycling Team. 28 May 2023. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
I'm satisfied with my Giro and this 4th place.
- ^ Lowe, Felix (14 September 2023). "Vuelta a Espana 2023: Remco Evenepoel completes hat-trick as Primoz Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard ride for Sepp Kuss". Eurosport. Warner Bros. Discovery. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
- ^ "Damiano Caruso". FirstCycling.com. FirstCycling AS. Retrieved 25 September 2023.
External links
edit- Damiano Caruso at UCI
- Damiano Caruso at Cycling Archives
- Damiano Caruso at ProCyclingStats
- Damiano Caruso at Cycling Quotient
- Damiano Caruso at CycleBase