The UCI Road World Championships are the pinnacle of the road cycling season. Held in September of each year, the World Championships are a gathering of the best riders in the world and there are many professional cyclists that are preparing for this event.
While many riders pursue the title of world champion, few ever realize their dream, especially at such a young age. It’s understandable to be overwhelmed by such a dramatic shift, but Elisa’s perspective demonstrates maturity and insight.
“When you win a World Title it is totally normal that your life changes. Since last September, not only has the cycling community paid closer attention to me, but the general public as well. At every event out of my team’s bus, there are a lot of people who want a photo or autograph from me, which doesn’t surprise me because when I was a kid, my parents took me to a cycling race and I always wanted the world champion to sign an autograph for me.” – Elisa Balsamo
Elisa Balsamo- Personal Life
Clearly, Elisa is a remarkably balanced and collected individual, qualities that have helped her become not only an exceptional athlete but also a student of literature, history, linguistics, philology, and a talented pianist.
Both of Elisa’s parents were very supportive over the course of her contemplation in choosing her career. But her mother and father are both affiliated to cycling way back before she was born. Elisa’s mother works as a cycling guide, while her father Sergio has been a professional racing cyclist, sports director, and cycling guide.
At a tender age of 2, Her parents bought her first bike, and she was racing by the time she was six. However, a bad collision caused her enough trauma that she had to skip a year of racing. That’s reasonable for a toddler’s level of understanding. Not that she sat around doing nothing, Elisa gave cross-country skiing a shot before giving in to her passion for cycling.
How Elisa Balsamo Got Started in Cycling?
Balsamo fell off her bike in her first ever race when she was just six years old. Her parents thought it was best if she tried out some other sports, so she did things like snowboarding, biathlon, and swimming. Elisa Balsamo spent his formative years in the Lombard city of Cuneo, where she grew up as an only child.
The Italian cyclist has a lot of natural ability. She explored skiing and the piano, but she kept coming back to cycling, where she was able to keep her balance and begin winning races as a teenager. Her early sprinting success was on display in 2016 when she won the junior Road Race World Championships in Qatar. This victory prompted the realization that cycling may be her life’s work.
Elisa Balsamo Training and Racing in Italy
September of 2021, The road racing community has been treated to a historic moment as reigning UCI Road World Championship champion Elisa Balsamo defended her title.
She has been preparing diligently for that moment, and while it may be a long time away, she believes that she is ready.
“To win the next championship I have to start now,” said Balsamo. “It won’t be easy but I know how to deal with challenges.”
There is no doubt that the Italian rider had faced some fierce competition. In addition to her main rival, German cyclist Annika Langvad, she also faced American Taylor Phinney (BMC Racing) and Australian Anna van der Breggen (Rabo Liv).
But Balsamo says that all of these competitors are not on par with her.
“They are better riders than me, but they don’t have my experience,” explained Balsamo.
There is no doubt that this year’s UCI road cycling race champion was Elisa Balsamo from Italy. Her dedication and love for the sports had brought her to this success over the course of her career in cycling.
This is a great achievement, especially since it came at the end of the season. Elisa Balsamo has been training hard for months, so it shows how much dedication and effort it takes to win a big competition like this.
Elisa Balsamo – Achievements
Balsamo has a strong background in track cycling, with a record as a junior cyclist on the track, where she won the European Junior Time Trial Championship in 2005. She took home the gold medal for the women’s individual time trial in Florence, Italy on Sunday. Her winning margin was just under five seconds. That means she beat her closest rival by almost 20 percent.
She became a professional cyclist in 2007, when she joined the Italian women’s road cycling team, and in 2008 she won the team pursuit world title, her first individual world championship as a track cyclist. In 2009, she won the time trial at the Giro della Toscana, and in 2010 she won the time trial at the Giro della Valle d’Aosta, and the overall title at the Giro della Provincia di Trento.
Elisa Balsamo is currently a member of the Lotto Soudal Ladies Team. She is also the 2018 European Champion for the Women’s Road Race and the 2018 World Champion for the Women’s Time Trial.
Elisa Balsamo had never been on the podium at a UCI Road World Championships before. In fact, she had never even been on the starting line at a UCI Road World Championships before. And yet, on the day of the women’s road race, the fourth of the five events in the UCI Road World Championships, Balsamo finally broke through and claimed the gold medal by one second. It was a performance that she will never forget.
Elisa Balsamo: the UCI Road World Champion
Elisa is a strong woman, an incredibly talented athlete, and an inspiration to all of the future athletes that will be a part of UCI and the UCI Road World Championship for years to come. Every year, the UCI organizes the Road World Championships and this year, Elisa Balsamo won! We’re super proud of her for her success and we know her accomplishment will be a source of pride for many people. We hope you enjoyed this article about Elisa and we hope to hear from you!