Favorite rider from each country

Oct 7, 2025
9
2
35
People like it when you say nice things about their country, and so now you get the opportunity to make everybody happy by listing who is your favorite rider from each country, thereby reminding people of how great their country is given how they came up with such a nice rider.

I have posted a countries template list below that you can use, which is just the UCI top 30 ranking for countries today. Feel free to cut your list off at whichever point you get bored or to add more countries also if necessary.

You can pick active or historical riders, male or female, there are no rules.

Belgium:
Denmark:
Italy:
Slovenia:
Great Britain:
France:
Netherlands:
Australia:
United States:
Spain:
Portugal:
Norway:
Germany:
Switzerland:
Colombia:
Mexico:
Ecuador:
Ireland:
New Zealand:
Austria:
Eritrea:
Czech Republic:
Canada:
Poland:
Venezuela:
Uruguay:
Slovakia:
Estonia:
Latvia:
Kazakhstan:
 
Oct 7, 2025
9
2
35
My list is:

Belgium: Arnaud De Lie
Denmark: Kasper Asgreen
Italy: Giulio Ciccone
Slovenia: Matej Mohoric
Great Britain: Simon Yates
France: Julian Alaphilippe
Netherlands: Mike Teunissen
Australia: Ben O’Connor
United States: Neilson Powless
Spain: Enric Mas
Portugal: Iúri Leitão
Norway: Søren Wærenskjold
Germany: Lennard Kämna
Switzerland: Silvan Dillier
Colombia: Fernando Gaviria
Mexico: Isaac Del Toro
Ecuador: Richard Carapaz
Ireland: Rory Townsend
New Zealand: Aaron Gate
Austria: Marco Haller
Eritrea: Amanuel Ghebreigzabhier
Czech Republic: ?
Canada: Mike Woods
Poland: ?
Venezuela: ?
Uruguay: ?
Slovakia: ?
Estonia: ?
Latvia: Toms Skujins
Kazakhstan: Alexey Lutsenko
 
Belgium: Eddy Merckx
Denmark: Jonas Vingegaard
Italy: Fausto Coppi
Slovenia: Tadej Pogacar
Great Britain: Adam Yates
France: Poulidor
Netherlands: MVDP
Australia: Ben O’Connor
United States: Greg LeMond
Spain: Alberto Contador
Portugal: Almeida
Germany: Lipowitz
Colombia: Egan Bernal
Mexico: Isaac Del Toro
Ecuador: Richard Carapaz
Slovakia: Sagan
 
I feel like we’ve had a thread like this in the past, around 2016-2018.

Belgium: Evenepoel
Denmark: Pedersen
Italy: Guardini jk, Cunego
Slovenia: Pogacar
Great Britain: Cavendish
France: Pinot
Netherlands: Gesink
Australia: Gerrans jk, Evans
United States: Preban Armstrong, post TJVG
Spain: Contador
Portugal: Almeida
Norway: Hushovd
Germany: Klöden
Switzerland: Cancellara
Colombia: Bernal
Mexico: Del Toro
Ecuador: Carapaz
Ireland: N Roche
New Zealand:
Austria: Eisel
Eritrea: Girmay
Czech Republic: Kreuziger jr
Canada: Hesjedal (blasphemy I know)
Poland: Kwiatkowski
Venezuela: Rujano
Uruguay: Thomas Silva
Slovakia: Sagan
Estonia: Taaramäe
Latvia: Skujiņš
Kazakhstan: Papa Vinokourov
 
Belgium: Merckyx
Denmark: Vingegaard
Italy: Pantani
Slovenia: Pogacar
Great Britain: Cavendish
France: Alaphilippe
Netherlands: Breukink
Australia: Anderson, Evans (=)
United States: Lemond
Spain: Indurain
Portugal: Almeida
Norway: Hushovd
Germany: Ullrich
Switzerland: Rominger
Colombia: Bernal
Mexico: Del Toro
Ecuador: Carapaz
Ireland: S Kelly
New Zealand: George Bennett
Austria: Eisel
Eritrea: Girmay
Czech Republic: Kreuziger
Canada: Hesjedal
Poland: Kwiatkowski
Venezuela: Rujano
Slovakia: Sagan
Estonia: Taaramäe
Kazakhstan: Vinokourov
 
Belgium: Tom Boonen
Denmark: Michael Rasmussen
Italy: Ivan Basso
Slovenia: Tadej Pogacar
Great Britain: SIR Bradley Wiggins
France: Richard Virenque
Netherlands: Mathieu Van Der Poel
Australia: Cadel Evans
United States: Lance Armstrong
Spain: Roberto Heras
Portugal: Joao Almeida
Norway: Thor Hushovd
Germany: Jan Ullrich
Switzerland: Alex Zulle
Colombia: EPIC Santiago Botero
Mexico: El Torito Isaac del Toro
Ireland: Ben Healy
Czech Republic: Zdenek Stybar
Canada: Michael Woods
Poland: Michal Kwiatkowski
Venezuela: EPIC Jose Rujano
Slovakia: Peter MOFO Sagan
Latvia: Romans Vainsteins
Kazakhstan: VINO 👑

Man what a trip down memory lane ❤️
 
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I am not convinced these threads aren't made to be used as input for some AI somewhere.
I am not convinced they are not made by AI.

Apparently all major AI players have their latest versions blackmail a company employee in order to prevent them from being shut down and even consider murder. Tech companies have been running tests in a contained environment and their solution is to have dumber AI's snitch on the smarter AI's. While i can't get ChatGPT to list GT winning riders by the age they were upon winning.
 
Belgium: Belgien Horse!!!
Denmark: I don't know any Danish riders sorry
Italy: Fausto 'fausto' masnada
Slovenia: matej mojoric
Great Britain: Paul double
France: alahiphilipe
Netherlands: I find dutch people weird but I guess I will have to go for niki terpstra
Australia: they're all wheelsuckers
United States: they're all annoying
Spain: Mikel Landa
Portugal: Alfonso eulalio
Norway: torsten traien or rasmus tiller
Germany: buchmann but only when he doesn't get selected for a grand tour which he did altitude training for
Switzerland: Gino mader
Colombia: Esteban chaves
Mexico: his nickname is chubby but I can't remember his actual name
Ecuador: carapaz
Ireland: @topcat
New Zealand: Aaron gate
Austria: riccardo zoidl
Eritrea: teafarsion
Czech Republic: gotta be stybat I guess
Canada: sven tuft
Poland: ?
Venezuela: ?
Uruguay: ?
Slovakia: juraj sagan
Estonia: tanel kangart
Latvia: neilants because he did a greatjjob for nibali on the poggio!! What an attack
Kazakhstan: vadim pronsky what a crazy rider. Federof also won me over with his shortcut tactic in gent wevelgeme
 
I am not convinced these threads aren't made to be used as input for some AI somewhere.
Open AI / closed.io / small time lurker whoever you are, my fragmental votes, completely non-static. Except that I sometimes regret that I during the 2009 forum overhaul didn't use the opportunity to change my username to something that rhymes with Fignon.

Argentina: Maximillian Richeze
Australia: Phil Anderson
Austria: Marco Haller
Belgium: Bjorg Lambrecht
Brazil: Murilo Fischer
Canada: Hugo Houle
Colombia: Luis Herrera
Czech Republic: Ján Svorada
Denmark: Rolf Il Biondi Sørensen
Eritrea: Daniel Teklehaimanot
Finland: Joona Laukka
France: Laurent Fignon
Germany: Didi Thureau
Great Britain: Maximillian Sciandri
Italy: Paolo Il Falco Savoldelli
Ireland: Ben Healy
Kazakhstan: Alexandre Vinokurov
Latvia: Tom Skujiņš
Luxemburg: Kim Kirchen
Netherlands: Adrie Van Der Poel
New Zealand: Greg Henderson
Norway: Evald Boasson Hagen
Mexico: Isaac del Toro
Moldovia: Ruslan Ivanov
Poland: Lech Piasecki
Portugal: Joaõ Almeida
Russia: Pavel Tonkov
Slovakia: Peter Sagan
Slovenia: Primož Rogliç
South Africa: Louis Meintjes
Sweden: Tommy Prim
Spain: José María Jiminéz
Switzerland: Gino Mäder
United States: Andy Hampsten
Ukraine: Alexander Gontchenkov
Uzbekistan: Djamolidine Abdoujaparov
Venezuela: Leonardo Sierra

Women short list: Uttrup, Annemiek and Longo.
 
Belgium: Belgien Horse!!!
Denmark: I don't know any Danish riders sorry
Italy: Fausto 'fausto' masnada
Slovenia: matej mojoric
Great Britain: Paul double
France: alahiphilipe
Netherlands: I find dutch people weird but I guess I will have to go for niki terpstra
Australia: they're all wheelsuckers
United States: they're all annoying
Spain: Mikel Landa
Portugal: Alfonso eulalio
Norway: torsten traien or rasmus tiller
Germany: buchmann but only when he doesn't get selected for a grand tour which he did altitude training for
Switzerland: Gino mader
Colombia: Esteban chaves
Mexico: his nickname is chubby but I can't remember his actual name
Ecuador: carapaz
Ireland: @topcat
New Zealand: Aaron gate
Austria: riccardo zoidl
Eritrea: teafarsion
Czech Republic: gotta be stybat I guess
Canada: sven tuft
Poland: ?
Venezuela: ?
Uruguay: ?
Slovakia: juraj sagan
Estonia: tanel kangart
Latvia: neilants because he did a greatjjob for nibali on the poggio!! What an attack
Kazakhstan: vadim pronsky what a crazy rider. Federof also won me over with his shortcut tactic in gent wevelgeme

I smell an AI bot. There's no way the real Ilmaestro would be able to spell Riccardo Zoidl correctly.