Hardly anyone was as beloved as he was: cycling loses an absolute icon with Rigoberto Urán

Urán's cycling career does not fit well into chronology. The Colombian had a dazzling start, experienced many anonymous periods between high peaks, and became an icon in cycling. Occasionally, he looked dazed, sometimes perhaps to the extreme. He didn't seem to care. Urán was a dreamer, portrayed as a happy cyclist. He threw away an Olympic title on the finish line and won a Tour stage on a one-gear. Nothing about his career was truly ordinary.

Whatever you can say about Urán, cyclists were rarely more popular than him. Less than a week ago, more than ten thousand Colombians, for whom the 37-year-old rider symbolized cheerfulness and perseverance, said goodbye to their hero. Streets filled up for the last Giro de Rigo. Aside from cycling, Urán was an inspiring human being for many years, and his achievements on the bike will probably remain with him even more.

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What is the similarity between Laurens ten Dam and Rigoberto Urán? They both raced in a distant, dark past for the insignificant Unibet.com. In 2007, both men did so well serving the small team that Ten Dam earned a transfer to Rabobank, and Urán moved to Caisse d'Epargne, Alejandro Valverde's team, the following year. In the 2007 Tour of Switzerland, Colombians showed their talent for the first time.

On stage eight, Urán took off and seemed an easy prey for the depleted peloton. As it turns out, nothing could be further from the truth; the rookie in white-green boldly stays ahead of the pack. Just behind him, Fränk Schleck, Andreas Klöden, and Damiano Cunego, among others, finish two seconds behind. In a peloton loaded with doping sinners, Urán triumphed at a then-unseen young age. It shows how long Colombians have lasted at the top of cycling. He finished ninth overall in Switzerland.

Urán wrote results in his name in the following years, which he will keep doing throughout his career. They are not many, but they are unique. In 2008, he almost won the Tour of Catalonia and finished on the podium in the Tour of Lombardy. In that Monument, he again finds Cunego ahead of him. His transfer to Team Sky almost earned the time trialist with long, brown hair nearly the white jersey at the 2011 Tour. An off day on the Galibier puts a line through that ambition.

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Urán grows into a GC rider the following year. He wins the white jersey at the Giro and finishes seventh overall in the edition for which Ryder Hesjedal takes credit. Later that summer, Urán became a superstar when he broke away with Alexandre Vinokurov in the final of the Olympics. What happens next right in front of Buckingham Palace is beyond belief for anyone.

In the last three hundred meters, Urán looks back for seconds to see where the peloton is—so long that it is a breeze for his Kazakh breakaway companion to escape. The damage is done; the silver remains for the Colombian. It smells—no, it stinks of some type of impure coffee. Did Urán strike a bargain with Vinokurov in the finale?

Whatever the truth, we will probably never know. The fact remains that Urán, who grew up in criminal and poor conditions in his homeland and had to sell lottery tickets on the streets after his father's violent death to stay alive, understood all too well the importance of money. The fact that Vinokurov was also in the news with a suspicion of having bribed Alexander Kolobnev does not help dispel London's suspicions. That July 31, 2012, will forever remain a cloud over Urán's career.

With the Olympics behind him, from then on, Urán peaked mainly in the grand tours. In 2013, in the shadow of Bradley Wiggins, who was slowly kicked out of Sky, he started again in the Giro. It goes surprisingly well. Although Vincenzo Nibali proves untouchable that edition, Urán wins a mountain stage splendidly and may join the podium after three weeks of cold weather. A great sign, it seems. The following year, he wastes perhaps his most fantastic opportunity to take home an overall victory in a three-week stage.

He starts the 2014 Giro with full power. His biggest rival in that Tour, compatriot Nairo Quintana, is not yet in great shape, and the time trial he won puts Urán in a comfortable position. He takes the pink and enters the final week with a solid lead. Until, on the snow stage to Vall Martello on the descent of the Stelvio, he is afraid to jump with the departed Quintana. Urán becomes chilled by the conditions in Italy and loses his jersey to the eventual winner.

In 2017, Urán came even closer. That year's Tour is surprisingly exciting. Chris Froome is less dominant, and only on the final Saturday does he settle the Tour ahead of the good-humored South American, who until then was anonymously in second place about twenty seconds behind the Brit—Anonymous, except during stage nine. In the streets of Chambéry, Urán worriedly fiddled with his derailleur. His gear is ruined, so he positions himself at the back of the elite group. Indeed, the remaining six men will sprint for the day's victory after a monstrous climbing stage over Mont du Chat.

From the back, Urán comes up in his mega-acceleration, acting as one-gear. Warren Barguil thinks he can catch up to him, but that thought proves false. The Cannondale leader wins the turbulent stage. He was winning a sprint on one gear. That, too, was the quirky Urán. Then again, between the second places in the Giro and the Tour were two more anonymous seasons in which Urán hardly competed with the top. It made his peaks all the more striking. People wondered where his talent had gotten stuck on earth in his lesser periods.

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In addition to the highlights above, Urán accumulated many places of honor and great GCs. Three times podium in Lombardy. Another six times top ten in a major tour and a stage win every three-week race. A truckload of other top-ten finishes in smaller tours. Years of service for top teams like Omega-Pharma Quick-Step, Sky, Caisse d'Epargne, and Cannondale. Urán belonged to the cycling world, especially in recent years when performances declined slightly.

Beyond the superb performances on the bicycle of steel, there was always that other side of Urán. A member of a generation that included Quintana, Carlos Betancur, and Esteban Chaves, he was nevertheless always the most popular cyclist in Colombia. And that is not incomprehensible. He appeared at events dressed as Mick Jagger, whom he looked suspiciously like anyway. Made fun of others during stage ceremonies. And always walked or rode around with that endearing smile. Slowly, Urán became a rock star in the peloton, a remarkable figure everyone looked up to in some way.

Over the years, hopes for top results certainly didn't disappear. However, they became increasingly less so. A particular highlight followed in the 2022 Vuelta, where Urán beat Quinten Pacher and Jesus Herrada in the uphill sprint. Thus, he completed the trilogy of stage victories in grand tours in his later years. After this, Urán found it hard to admit that his time in cycling was pretty much over. Urán was cycling, partly Urán.

Rigoberto Urán's career unfolded nicely. Cycling fans were lucky that he remained active in the peloton for a long time. All the best for the future, Rigo! We enjoyed you.