Davide Rebellin set to retire at 47 years old

Davide Rebellin has set the date of his retirement at 47 years old.

Rebellin turned professional in 1992 and will be leaving the sport after 27 seasons of racing.

The Italian, a former winner of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, will close out his career at the Italian national championships this summer.

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Rebellin told Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport: “I will stop at the Italian Championships on Sunday June 30.

“I want to win the tricolour [jersey].”

Rebellin has taken 60 victories over his long career, including the 2004 Liège, as well as Amstel Gold Race and Flèche Wallonne the same year.

He also won the overall at the 2008 Paris-Nice and the 2001 Tirreno-Adriatico.

In his home Grand Tour, the Giro d’Italia he won the opening stage in 1996 and wore the pink jersey for six days.

Rebellin’s last victory came in the 2017 Tour of Iran, where he won stage five.

After turning pro in 1992, Rebellin started his career with the GB-MG Maglificio team, going on to ride for Française des Jeux, Liquigas and Gerolsteiner squads.

He started the 2019 season with the Algerian Sovac team, but due to a “problem” there was a mutual agreement to terminate his contracted.

Rebellin has now switched to the Croatian tam Meridiana Kamen.

His career has been tarnished by a two-year doping ban after he tested positive for the third generation form of EPO, CERA, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Rebellin finished second in the Olympic road race that year, but the International Olympic Committee later revealed that six athletes from different disciplines had tested positive for CERA, including two cyclists.

The Italian media were later tipped off that Rebellin had tested positive, with the Italian Olympic Committee confirming the news.

He denied ever taking the substance, saying “my conscience is clear. I haven’t taken anything.”