Danilo Di Luca
Encyclopedia
Danilo Di Luca is an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 professional road racing cyclist who rode for numerous UCI Professional Continental teams throughout his career including Liquigas-Bianchi and . He holds victories in the Giro di Lombardia in 2001, the 2005 UCI ProTour
2005 UCI ProTour
The 2005 ProTour was the first year of the newly introduced UCI ProTour system, in which the ProTour teams are guaranteed, and obliged to, participate in the series of ProTour races. In certain ways the ProTour replaced the UCI Road World Cup series of one-day races, which in 2004 was won by...

 and won both the Giro d'Italia
2007 Giro d'Italia
The 2007 Giro d'Italia was the 90th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place from 12 May to 3 June 2007. The race began in Sardinia and finished in Milan, and featured five mountain top finishes, of which one was an individual time trial...

 and the spring classic Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2007. He was also suspended following a positive doping test during the 2009 Giro d'Italia. In 2011, he rides with UCI ProTeam , for no salary.

Early years

Born in Spoltore
Spoltore
Spoltore is a comune and town in the province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region of Italy, with a population of c. 17,000.thumb|left|220px|View of Spoltore....

, province of Pescara
Province of Pescara
The Province of Pescara is a province in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Pescara.It has an area of 1,225 km², and a total population of 295,463 . There are 46 comunes in the province. At May 31, 2005, the main communes by population are:For a complete list, see Comunes of...

, Di Luca began his professional career in 1998 in the Riso Scotti team. He showed talent by winning the under-23 version of the Giro D'Italia. His first pro win was in 1999, when, moving to Cantina Tollo-Alexia Alluminio, he won the first stage of the Giro d'Abruzzo. He remained in the team taking wins in 2001 such as the fourth stage of the Giro d'Italia
Giro d'Italia
The Giro d'Italia , also simply known as The Giro, is a long distance road bicycle racing stage race for professional cyclists held over three weeks in May/early June in and around Italy. The Giro is one of the three Grand Tours , and is part of the UCI World Ranking calendar...

 and the Giro di Lombardia. Then, he transferred to Saeco-Longoni Sport.

During his time at Saeco-Longoni he lost the Vuelta al País Vasco on the last stage, a mountain time trial in which Andreas Klöden
Andreas Klöden
Andreas Klöden is a German professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team . His major achievements include a bronze medal at the 2000 Olympic Games and second place in the 2004 Tour de France and 2006 Tour de France...

 took the lead and the win. Combined with injuries and lack of confidence of the team directors, his performance suffered. In 2004 Italian officials investigated Di Luca for doping. Cyclingnews.com said: "Di Luca was recorded in several phone conversations with Eddy Mazzoleni
Eddy Mazzoleni
Eddy Mazzoleni is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who most recently rode for UCI ProTour Astana Team....

 in which he allegedly talked about doping
Doping (sport)
The use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport is commonly referred to by the term "doping", particularly by those organizations that regulate competitions. The use of performance enhancing drugs is mostly done to improve athletic performance. This is why many sports ban the use of performance...

 products, the investigation led to Di Luca's non-participation in the 2004 Tour de France."

2005

In 2005, Di Luca switched to , with Mario Cipollini
Mario Cipollini
Mario Cipollini , often abbreviated to "Cipo", is a retired Italian professional road cyclist most noted for his sprinting ability, the longevity of his dominance and his colourful personality. His nicknames include Il Re Leone and Super Mario...

, Dario Cioni
Dario Cioni
Dario David Cioni is an English-born Italian professional road bicycle racer for UCI ProTour team .-Mountain bike career:...

, Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli
Stefano Garzelli is an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The high point of his career to date was his overall win in the 2000 Giro d'Italia, after a close three-way competition with Gilberto Simoni and Francesco Casagrande.-Career:He started out as being a domestique for Marco Pantani but...

 and Magnus Bäckstedt
Magnus Bäckstedt
Magnus Bäckstedt is a Swedish professional road bicycle racer.He began as a skier, selected for the national team when he was 14. His greatest achievement in cycling is winning Paris–Roubaix in 2004. Bäckstedt is 1m 93 tall and weighs 94 kg...

. He led the team for the spring classics. His first victory came in the first stage of the UCI ProTour
UCI ProTour
The UCI ProTour was a series of road bicycle races in Europe, Australia and Canada organised by the UCI . Created by Hein Verbruggen, former president of the UCI, it comprises a number of 'ProTour' cycling teams, each of whom are required to compete in every round of the series...

 race Vuelta al País Vasco, which he won overall after defeating Aitor Osa
Aitor Osa
Aitor Osa Eizaguirre is a Spanish former road bicycle racer. He is an older brother of Unai Osa. He was involved in the Operación Puerto doping case.-Palmarès:200020012002*...

 in the final time trial. He won the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne, taking the ProTour leader's white jersey.

Di Luca was seen as suited to races lasting only a few days. His success in the 2005 Giro d'Italia
2005 Giro d'Italia
The 2005 Giro d'Italia, the 88th running of the race, was held from 7 May to 29 May 2005, consisting of 21 stages for a total of 3,417 km, ridden at an average speed of 37,375 km/h...

 came as a surprise. Here he won two stages and finished fourth. He finished fifth in the Tour de Pologne
Tour de Pologne
The Tour de Pologne is a road bicycle racing stage race. It consists of seven or eight stages and is usually around 1,200 km in length. The race was first held in 1928. Until 1952 the race was held sporadically, but since then it has been an annual race...

. With a fourth in the 2005 Züri-Metzgete, he became 2005 UCI ProTour
2005 UCI ProTour
The 2005 ProTour was the first year of the newly introduced UCI ProTour system, in which the ProTour teams are guaranteed, and obliged to, participate in the series of ProTour races. In certain ways the ProTour replaced the UCI Road World Cup series of one-day races, which in 2004 was won by...

 champion.

2006

Di Luca was forced to retire from the 2006 Tour de France
2006 Tour de France
The 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd Tour de France, taking place from July 1 to July 23, 2006. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of apparent winner Floyd Landis....

, due to a urinary infection. He recovered to compete in the 2006 Vuelta a España, winning the fifth stage and holding the lead (ceding it to Janez Brajkovič
Janez Brajkovic
Janez Brajkovič is a racing cyclist from Slovenia. He was the world under-23 Time Trial champion in Verona and rides for on the UCI ProTour.-Career:...

). Di Luca's performances in the classics, the Giro, and other races, were a letdown from the triumphs of 2005.

2007

Di Luca won Milano–Torino in March and Liège–Bastogne–Liège in April. He took stages 4 and 12 en route to the victory in the 2007 Giro d'Italia
2007 Giro d'Italia
The 2007 Giro d'Italia was the 90th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place from 12 May to 3 June 2007. The race began in Sardinia and finished in Milan, and featured five mountain top finishes, of which one was an individual time trial...

. After the Giro, it was revealed that Di Luca had unspecified low hormone levels. Italian authorities are determining if they are a consequence of racing at a high level for three weeks or some kind of masking agent. On September 28, Di Luca withdrew from the UCI road championship
2007 UCI Road World Championships - Men's Road Race
The 2007 UCI Road World Championships - Men's Road Race took place on September 30, 2007. The Championship was won for a second year in succession by the Italian Paolo Bettini, who outsprinted the rest of a five-man group in the final 500 metres...

 calling his treatment "a scandal" after doping allegations.

Di Luca was leading the 2007 UCI ProTour
2007 UCI ProTour
The 2007 UCI ProTour is the third year of the UCI ProTour system. Following a dispute and power struggle between the UCI and the organisers of the Grand Tours, ASO, RCS and Unipublic, a number of events were run as ProTour events, although without ProTour licences...

 when he was suspended before the final race, the Giro di Lombardia
2007 Giro di Lombardia
The 2007 Giro di Lombardia is the 101st edition of this single day road bicycle racing monument race. The 242 km event took place on October 14, 2007 and was won by Damiano Cunego, the Italian rider for Lampre-Fondital in 5 hours, 52 minutes 48 seconds at an average speed of 41.16 km/h.-...

, due to alleged involvement in the Oil for Drugs
Oil for Drugs
The Oil for Drugs case is an Italian doping case against doctor Carlo Santuccione and a number of accomplices, started in 2003. He is accused of administering prohibited doping products to professional and amateur athletes, to enhance their performance as well as being involved in doping network...

 case, for which he was suspended for three months through the close season.

2008–2009

In 2008, Di Luca had a quiet year as his new team, , were not invited to many races. In 2009, they received a wildcard entry to the Giro d'Italia
2009 Giro d'Italia
The 2009 Giro d'Italia was the 92nd running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It was held from 9 to 31 May 2009, and marked the 100th year since the first edition of the race...

 and Di Luca won the fourth stage. He then came second on the fifth stage, gaining the pink jersey as race leader, and extended his lead by winning the tenth stage. He lost time on the two time trial stages and finished second overall, winning the points classification
Points classification
The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning intermediate sprints. The points classification is the top prize for many cycling sprinters and therefore is often known as the Sprint Classification;...

.

On 22 July 2009, it was announced that Di Luca had tested positive for CERA on 20 and 28 May 2009, during the Giro d'Italia. He was provisionally suspended with immediate effect by the UCI. He had been targeted for testing using information from his biological passport
Biological passport
An athlete biological passport is an individual, electronic record for professional athletes, in which profiles of biological markers of doping and results of doping tests are collated over a period of time...

's blood profile, previous test results and his race schedule. On 8 August, his positive tests were confirmed. On February 1, 2010, the Italian Olympic committee (CONI) suspended him for two years (effective as of July 22, 2009) for the Giro doping incident. Di Luca must also pay a fine, as well as the costs incurred in both the analysis and counter-analysis of his Giro samples: Di Luca indicated his intention to contest the decision.

2010-2011

On October 15, 2010, CONI announced that Di Luca's ban had been reduced to nine months and seven days, allowing Di Luca to return as of that very day (though the season was nearly over). This was due to his reported cooperation with investigators, detailing doping methods. CONI also announced the reduction of Di Luca's fine, from €280,000 to €106,400, but the UCI contends that he will still have to pay the full amount based on when his doping incident occurred. His results from the 2009 Giro were stricken from the record.

In the 2011 season, he competed for Team Katusha
Team Katusha
Team Katusha is a Russian road bicycle racing team which participates in the UCI World Tour, using Focus bikes.- History :At the beginning of the 2009 season, the Tinkoff Credit Systems squad was renamed to Team Katusha. It is organised by the Russian Global Cycling Project foundation, which...

, and his performances were somewhat mitigated, since he held no victories. His notable results were fourth of the Giro d'Italia's 6th stage and fourth in the Tour de Suisse's first stage.

Major achievements

1999 – Cantina Tollo-Alexia Alluminio
1st, 1 stage, Giro d’Abruzzo
2nd, Giro di Lombardia

2000 – Cantina Tollo
1st, GP Industria & Artigianato di Larciano
GP Industria & Artigianato di Larciano
The GP Industria & Artigianato di Larciano is a road bicycle race held annually in Larciano, Italy. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour.Between 1967 and 1976 it was held as the Circuito di Larciano.-Past winners:...

1st, Trofeo Pantalica
Trofeo Pantalica
The Trofeo Pantalica was a professional road bicycle race held annually in Province of Syracuse, Italy. The last edition took place in 2003.-Winners:-External links:*...

1st, 1 stage, Giro d'Italia
2000 Giro d'Italia
The 2000 Giro d'Italia of cycling, the 83rd running of the race, was held from 13 May to 4 June 2000. It consisted of a prologue plus 21 stages, for a total of 3,676 km, ridden at an average speed of 37.684 km/h...

1st, 2 stages, Giro d’Abruzzo
2nd, Vuelta al País Vasco
1st, 1 stage

2001 – Cantina Tollo-Acqua & Sapone
1st, Giro di Lombardia
1st, 1 stage, Giro d'Italia
2001 Giro d'Italia
The 2001 Giro d'Italia of cycling, the 84th running of the race, was held from 19 May to 10 June 2001. It consisted of a prologue plus 21 stages with one rest days, for a total of 3,356 km, ridden at an average speed of 40.170 km/h. It was won by Gilberto Simoni.- Stages :-Jersey Progress:- General...

2nd, 1 stage, Setmana Catalana
1st, Giro d'Abruzzo
1st, 1 stage

2002 – Saeco
Saeco (cycling team)
Saeco was the name of an Italian road bicycle racing team, sponsored by the company with the same name.The company didn't prolong the sponsorship for 2005, and the team was merged with the Lampre team, forming Lampre-Caffita, sponsored by Caffita....

1st, Giro del Veneto
Giro del Veneto
The Giro del Veneto is a semi classic European bicycle race held in the region of Veneto, Italy. The race is a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour, meaning a one-day race that is not the hardest in difficulty, but harder than most.-Winners:...

1st, GP Fred Mengoni
1st, Trofeo Laigueglia
Trofeo Laigueglia
The Trofeo Laigueglia is an early season road bicycle race held annually in Liguria, Italy. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is held about ten days after the opening to the Italian season, the Gran Premio della Costa Etruschi.-Palmarès:...

2nd, Tirreno - Adriatico
1st, 2 stages
1st, 1 stage, Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana
The Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana is a road cycling stage race held in the Valencian Community , Spain. Its position in the cycling calendar means it is often used as preparation for the spring classics or the grand tours which take place later in the season.No editions of the race have been...

1st, 1 stage, Vuelta a España
2002 Vuelta a España
The 57th Vuelta a España , a long-distance bicycle stage race and one of the 3 grand tours, was held from September 7 to September 29, 2002...


2003 – Saeco
1st, Coppa Placci
Coppa Placci
The Coppa Placci is a semi classic European bicycle race held between Imola, Italy and San Marino. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour....

3rd, Amstel Gold Race
2003 Amstel Gold Race
The Amstel Gold Race 2003 was the 38th edition of the road bicycle race "Amstel Gold Race", held on Sunday April 20, 2003 in the Limburg province, The Netherlands. The race stretched 250.7 kilometres, with the start in Maastricht and the finish in Valkenburg...

1st, Tre Valli Varesine
Tre Valli Varesine
The Tre Valli Varesine is a semi classic European bicycle race held in Varese, Italy. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour....

1st, 1 stage, Tirreno - Adriatico
1st, Tour de Ligure
1st, 1 stage

2004 – Saeco
1st, Trofeo Matteoti
1st, Brixia Tour
Brixia Tour
The Brixia Tour is an Italian cycle road race. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour.-List of winners:...

1st, Stage 4, Vuelta a Murcia
Vuelta a Murcia
The Vuelta Ciclista a Murcia is a road bicycle race held in and around Murcia, Spain. The race consists of a men's competition over five stages and is part of the UCI Europe Tour as a 2.1 event. The first four editions were reserved to amateurs....

2nd, La Flèche Wallonne
La Flèche Wallonne
La Flèche Wallonne is a major men's professional cycle road race held in April each year in Belgium.The first of two Belgian Ardennes classics, La Flèche Wallonne is today normally held mid-week between the Amstel Gold Race and Liège–Bastogne–Liège...

4th, Amstel Gold Race
2004 Amstel Gold Race
The Amstel Gold Race 2004 was the 39th edition of the annual road bicycle race "Amstel Gold Race", held on Sunday April 18, 2004 in the Limburg province, The Netherlands. The race stretched 251.1 kilometres, with the start in Maastricht and the finish in Valkenburg...


2005 –
Champion, UCI ProTour
2005 UCI ProTour
The 2005 ProTour was the first year of the newly introduced UCI ProTour system, in which the ProTour teams are guaranteed, and obliged to, participate in the series of ProTour races. In certain ways the ProTour replaced the UCI Road World Cup series of one-day races, which in 2004 was won by...

1st, Amstel Gold Race
1st, La Flèche Wallonne
1st, Overall, Vuelta al País Vasco
1st, Stage 1
4th, Overall, Giro d'Italia
2005 Giro d'Italia
The 2005 Giro d'Italia, the 88th running of the race, was held from 7 May to 29 May 2005, consisting of 21 stages for a total of 3,417 km, ridden at an average speed of 37,375 km/h...

Winner stages 3 and 5
4th, Züri-Metzgete
5th, Overall, Tour de Pologne

2006 –
1st, Stage 5, Vuelta a España
6th, La Flèche Wallonne
9th, Liège–Bastogne–Liège
9th, Züri-Metzgete

2007 –
1st, Milano–Torino
3rd, Amstel Gold Race
2007 Amstel Gold Race
The 2007 Amstel Gold Race cycling race took place on Sunday April 22. It was the 42nd edition of the annual road race in the Dutch province of Limburg....

3rd, La Flèche Wallonne
2007 La Flèche Wallonne
The 71st edition of the La Flèche Wallonne cycling classic took place on April 25, 2007 and was won by the 2004 winner Davide Rebellin ahead of 2006 winner Alejandro Valverde and 2005 winner Danilo Di Luca.- 2007-04-25: Charleroi-Huy, 202 km :...

1st, Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1st, Stage 3, Settimana Internazionale Coppi e Bartali
Giro d'Italia
2007 Giro d'Italia
The 2007 Giro d'Italia was the 90th running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place from 12 May to 3 June 2007. The race began in Sardinia and finished in Milan, and featured five mountain top finishes, of which one was an individual time trial...

Winner overall classification
1st, Stage 4
1st, Stage 12

2008 –
1st, Stage 4 & Overall, Settimana Ciclistica Lombarda
Settimana Ciclistica Lombarda
The Settimana Ciclistica Lombarda is an Italian cycle road race. In 2007, the race was organised as a 2.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour, previously being a 2.2 race....

1st, King of the Mountains
King of the Mountains
The King of the Mountains is the title given to the best climber in a cycling road race; usually and officially known as the Mountains classification...

, Tour of Britain
2008 Tour of Britain
The 2008 Tour of Britain was a UCI 2.1 category race of eight stages from 7 September till 14 September 2008. The race was the fifth edition of the latest version of the Tour of Britain. It formed part of the 2007–2008 UCI Europe Tour...

1st, Giro dell'Emilia
Giro dell'Emilia
The Giro dell'Emilia is a late season road bicycle race held annually in Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Since 2005, the race has been organised as a 1.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour. It is considered one of the most important classic bicycle races in Italy....

8th Overall, Giro'd Italia
2008 Giro d'Italia
The 2008 Giro d'Italia was the 91st running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It began in Palermo on 10 May and ended in Milan on 1 June. Twenty-two teams entered the race, which was won by Spaniard Alberto Contador of the cycling team...


2009 –
Settimana Ciclista Lombarda:
1st, Stage 1 Team Time Trial
Giro del Trentino
Giro del Trentino
The Giro del Trentino is an Italian cycle road race. It is run typically mid-to-late April over four stages in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of Italy....

1st, Stage 4
2nd, Overall Giro d'Italia
2009 Giro d'Italia
The 2009 Giro d'Italia was the 92nd running of the Giro d'Italia, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It was held from 9 to 31 May 2009, and marked the 100th year since the first edition of the race...

(results revoked due to doping)
Winner, Points classification
Points classification
The points classification is a secondary award category in road bicycle racing. Points are given for high finishes and, in some cases, for winning intermediate sprints. The points classification is the top prize for many cycling sprinters and therefore is often known as the Sprint Classification;...

1st, Stage 4
1st, Stage 10


External links

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