Luis Ángel Maté: The cyclist who brought Christmas spirit to the peloton

As the year truly winds down, many cyclists are officially ending their professional careers within the next two weeks. At IDLProCycling.com, we’re paying tribute to many of these riders with a final overview of their careers. This time, the spotlight is on one special man: Luis Ángel Maté, a man who perhaps best embodies the Christmas spirit in the peloton—and not just because of the "Ángel" in his name. :)

Born on March 23, 1984, Maté spent his youth in Marbella, a place now known in the Netherlands mainly as an upscale holiday destination. Being a cyclist in this southern part of Spain wasn’t easy. As a young rider, Maté competed mainly in races held 170 kilometers away in Cádiz. Back then, he juggled road racing with track cycling, though he eventually focused entirely on the road.

While pursuing his amateur cycling career, Maté also studied at the University of Granada. But cycling began to take up more and more of his time, and the effort paid off. He won stages in the prestigious Circuito Montañés stage race in 2005 and in the 2007 edition, which was won by Bauke Mollema. These results proved to be a springboard to the professional ranks: in 2008, he joined Andalucia-Caja Sur, one of Spain’s ProContinental teams at the time.

In 2008, Maté mainly raced in Spanish events with the team, but he decided to explore other opportunities. Gianni Savio, the legendary manager at Androni Giocattoli, picked up the young Spaniard, placing him on a team with legends like Davide Rebellin, Michele Scarponi, and Gilberto Simoni. The deaths of Rebellin and Scarponi, both far too early, deeply affected Maté. “Davide was my mentor, and Michele was my friend. Their memories will live in my heart forever,” Maté said upon retiring. “As I close this chapter of my life, I must thank three people: Rebellin, Scarponi, and my father.”

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Maté makes a name for himself as a pure attacker

Maté played a significant role in supporting major Italian riders. He was part of Michele Scarponi’s winning team at the 2009 Tirreno-Adriatico and helped Davide Rebellin secure victory at the 2009 Flèche Wallonne. He also achieved personal success, notably in the Vuelta a San Juan, where he outclimbed riders like Vincenzo Nibali and Michael Rasmussen on a mountain stage, drawing interest from other teams.

The man from southern Spain chose to join the French team Cofidis, where he won a stage in the Route du Sud and earned a spot in the Vuelta a España. The Spanish Grand Tour became a recurring theme in his career—Maté participated an impressive 12 times. He also competed in the Tour de France six times, where, as in the Vuelta, he was best known for his aggressive and attacking riding style.

This attacking mindset became a defining trait of his career. While it didn’t bring many victories, it generated significant publicity for his sponsors and himself, especially through pursuits like competing for the mountain classification jersey, which he targeted in his final Vuelta. “That’s always been a special jersey for me. I waited six years for this, and the years go by quickly. Since the start of the race, it’s been a goal for me, and it’s already taken a lot of energy,” Maté said.

“For me, it feels like a moral obligation to go on the attack as long as I have the energy,” the Spaniard explained of his relentless attacking spirit. “If I have the strength, I’ll always go for it, every single day.” However, he never came close to a stage victory in the Vuelta, with his best result being a fourth-place finish in 2018.

As Maté’s career progressed, he may not have made headlines for big results, but he still stood out in other ways. Not least because of his signature hairstyle—a single long ponytail that always draped over his back. More significantly, he became increasingly aware of the impact he could make as a professional cyclist in other areas, particularly for the climate.

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Maté is the first to be awarded the Prix Gino Mäder and deservedly so

After the 2021 Vuelta, Luis Ángel Maté—then riding for Euskaltel-Euskadi—cycled the 1,200 kilometers from the finish in Santiago de Compostela to his home in Marbella. He repeated the feat during his final Vuelta in 2022, cycling home from Madrid. "Partly to get used to life without cycling, but at the same time, I wanted to make a statement about something far more important. The way we travel needs to change, considering the fight against climate change and for the well-being of our planet," said the Spaniard, who, during the 2022 edition, planted a tree for every kilometer he rode in his wildfire-stricken home region.

These efforts earned him the inaugural Prix Gino Mäder at the end of 2024. The award, named after the late Swiss cyclist known for his environmental advocacy, was presented at the Velo d’Or gala, where Maté also gave a heartfelt speech dedicated to Mäder. "It was the 2021 Vuelta, where Mäder won the white jersey as the best young rider, while I was already one of the oldest riders in the peloton," Maté recalled.

"He had already launched a beautiful environmental initiative there, which moved me so deeply that I decided to cycle home after the race. I even thanked him for it at the time because he was my inspiration," said the Spaniard, who ended his career with a well-deserved award. In doing so, he also honored the passion for cycling and the world shared by his friends Scarponi, Rebellin, and Mäder.