Daniel Felipe Martínez, nostalgic and excited about his podium in the Giro d’Italia: ‘It is a very special day’

“I feel immense joy, I have worked hard for this for many years. It was a dream since when I started riding the bike, it is without a doubt a very special day,” said the Colombian rider.

The 28-year-old rider thanked his team for the support shown and analyzed what was done in the Italy spin, where he was only defeated by a Tadej Pogacar inspired to be champion.

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​”The effort and dedication of the team made this result possible. I knew I was strong, I did tests with my coach to be strong at the end of the Giro. I did the Tirreno-Adriatico, then I rested and came to the Giro. In the first week I was good, but in this last week even better“Daniel stated.

FinallyDaniel Felipe Martínez He pointed out that rest days are coming and explained that his participation in the Tour de France is not assured, after winning his sixth podium in the World Tour, the highest category of world cycling.

“Now it’s time to rest, I still don’t know if I will go to the Tour or the Vuelta, we have to decide calmly,” he said.

Enrico Gasparotto, sports director of bora He spoke about the performance of one of the stars of the squad and highlighted the qualities of a very complete rider: “We are very happy to have achieved second place overall ahead of a strong group. Dani was only surpassed by Pogacar, who dominated the race. “Dani was more than solid in the mountains and we are very happy with the great performance he had in this Giro,”

And he added: “We can say that not every
thing went well between the start of our Giro project in November and crossing the finish line in Rome. However, thanks to the commitment of all the pilots, Dani’s good form and the hard work of everyone here in Italy, we were able to achieve this result”.

In addition, he celebrated the team’s work during these three weeks: “Together with Bernie Eisel, I am very happy with the mentality that was present in the team during the last three weeks and the commitment shown by our runners. We are very happy that Dani has had the opportunity to do his own race and get his first podium in a Grand Tour, chapeau.”

For his part, the Bora manager Ralph Denk did not hide the joy of seeing Daniel Felipe on the podium, on Romeand he praised the Colombian runner and highlighted his qualities and the determination he puts into the competition.

“This second place is exceptional for us. Apart from our victory in the Giro two years ago, this is the first time we have achieved a podium in a Grand Tour. It’s also a highlight in Dani’s own career – it’s fantastic that he managed to achieve it immediately after joining us. A success like this can only be achieved as a team,” said the manager.

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