Portuguese Ruben Guerreiro (29) fears the end of his career

Ruben Guerreiro is seriously considering the end of his cycling career. The 29-year-old Portuguese suffers from two hernias. “My cycling year and even career are currently in danger,” he told the news agency Lusa.

The Movistar rider was actually scheduled for the Giro d’Italia this year, but his body has been failing him for some time. “The plan was to participate in the Giro, but I suffered a dislocated elbow from a crash in the GP Miguel Induraín. I couldn’t train or even function normally for a while. However, after a while I left for the Sierra Nevada to prepare for the Giro.”

“But I really had a lot of problems with my back, loins and neck,” Guerreiro explains. “It was really severe pain. Examination revealed two hernias. Experts say that the hernias were caused by my falls in recent years.”

Guerreiro – who rode to top ten finishes in the Figueira Champions Classic and O Gran Camiño earlier this year – still sees no improvement. “I first followed normal physiotherapy, but that didn’t work. I’m really going through a very difficult period. My previous injuries were always fairly easy to treat, but now I can’t do anything at all. Not on the bike, but also not in everyday life. I just have to rest a lot now,” he concludes.

Guerreiro started his professional career in 2017 at Trek-Segafredo and subsequently played for Katusha-Alpecin (2019), EF Education (2020-2022) and now Movistar. He has five professional victories on his list of achievements. His biggest victory came in 2020, when he won a stage in the Giro d’Italia. He also crowned himself King of the Mountains in that Giro. Guerreiro also managed to triumph in the Mont Ventoux Dénivelé Challenge.