The debacle of Colombian cycling: economic challenges and the competition of Belgians and Slovenes

Colombia has in it cycling, the sport that has given the most recognition to the country thanks to the triumphs of the ‘beetles’ that have won stages and titles in the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España, the most important races in the world, but are currently experiencing low hours due to lack of results and budget .

The path that men like Patrocinio Jiménez, Lucho Herrera and Fabio Parra blazed on European roads in the 1980s was continued decades later by a new and successful generation in which Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadier), Nairo Quintana (Movistar) and Rigoberto Urán (EF Education), who, however, are already beginning to see the exit door for various reasons.

The biggest achievements have been in the legs of Bernal, who won the Tour de France in 2019 and the Giro d’Italia in 2021but a terrible accident suffered in January 2022, during training, almost cost him his life and it is almost a miracle that he has returned to a competitive level.

Quintana climbed to the top of the podium in the Giro in 2014, was runner-up in 2017, champion of the 2016 Vuelta a España and missed the Tour on two occasions, once in 2013 and another in 2015.

AND Uran, who this year left highly competitive cycling, was about to embrace the glory of champion in the 2013 and 2014 Giro d’Italia, when he was runner-up, the same position he held in the 2017 Tour and in London 2012, where he He took silver, the best result of a Colombian cyclist in an Olympic road event.

However, since the triumph of Bernal In the 2021 Giro, the Colombians have once again failed to shine in the grand tours, a phase that coincides with the emergence of powerful Slovenian, Belgian and Dutch cyclists capable of beating everyone in the mountains, including the Colombians, who have been kings in that field.

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The results do not meet the expectations of either the runners themselves or the fans, capable of getting up in the Colombian early mornings to watch their team in the race on television.

The most outstanding this year was Daniel Felipe Martínez (Red Bull–Bora Hansgrohe), runner-up in the Giro d’Italia behind the unbeatable Tadej Pogacar, who beat him by 9 minutes and 56 seconds.

The money problem

In a time when results go hand in hand with large investments, the foundations of Colombian cycling have been shaken again.

First was the whiplash from the Colombian Cycling Federation, which a few weeks ago announced that the 2025 Tour Colombia could not be held due to lack of money.

And in a country like Colombia, where there is a chronic lack of state support, the Minister of Sports, Luz Cristina López, did not mince words when ensuring that this race, the most successful in the country in recent years, with the participation of big names of the international squad, “in sports matters he leaves nothing to the country.”

“We must be clear that the resources for sport and performance sports will never be enough. The demands in terms of performance sports are many and resources are limited. Resources must be prioritized where strategically they should be best placed,” the minister added.

These statements have raised eyebrows not only in cycling but in other sports, whose exponents rejected what was said by the head of the Sports portfolio, created in 2019.

It is estimated that Tour Colombia, which was not held in 2022 and 2023 due to lack of financing, may cost between 8,000 and 10,000 million pesos (between 1.8 and 2.3 million dollars).

Ernesto Lucenawhich was the First Minister of Sports of the country, between 2019 and 2021, he assures that studies carried out by the departments through which the Tour Colombia passes indicate that the competition leaves benefits four and up to five times that amount, which contributes to boosting the economy of those regions.

The Tour Colombia was run for the first time in 2018, with the victory of Egan Bernal; A year later the title went to Miguel Ángel ‘Supermán’ López, while Sergio Higuita won in 2020 and Rodrigo Contreras won it this year.

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Nairo Quintana’s criticism against the sports budget cut

Another voice that was raised was that of Nairo Quintana, who demanded more budget for sports from the Government. He did so a few days ago when he was awarded the Simón Bolívar Order of Democracy, the highest distinction awarded by the House of Representatives.

“We are always proud to represent our country but we don’t have an easy life after we leave our sport either,” said Quintana, who added that many cyclists “they turn out badly financially” of his sporting life.

Quintana criticized that the country is making “a large budget cut towards athletes, towards the Ministry of Sports (…) and Nobody talks about it.”

“If something is not done we are going to have a big crisis in the coming years in all sports, not only in cycling but in all sports at the national level,” he added.

Other high-performance athletes have also criticized the current Government, which also lost the venue of the 2027 Pan American Games, of which Barranquilla was stripped, for not complying with the payments agreed with the organization.