F it. Why not? We like to get the hype started early, and this kid is all hype. Bernal gone off to Sky? No problem for Savio! Kevin Manuel Rivera Serrano is here.
Kevin Rivera is only 19 years old, but already has a year of professional cycling under his belt. He has a story that is similar to the great Egan Bernal: the mountain bike. Growing up in Cartago, Costa Rica, it's about the only thing he did. Rivera rode his races for a team led by Piero Ravaglia, obviously an Italian. On one day, Ravaglia gave Paolo Alberati a call, informing him about Rivera, who took him on a plane to Italy. In Italy, he rode three junior races: Rivera immediately won and the rest didn't stand much of a chance.
What Rivera didn't know, was that a certain someone was hiding in the bushes, watching him throw his arms in the air of joy. That person was no other than Gianni Savio. Savio didn't waste any time and took Rivera to the Centro Studi, a lab on the name of Michele Bartoli, where he would follow some tests. A few years earlier, Egan Bernal followed the same path in the same lab, where he would post a VO2 max of 88,8. One hour later, Bartoli's mind was blown. ''After Egan Bernal, Gianni Savio brought me another rider. I have never seen anyone with a VO2 max that high. His name? Kevin Rivera.'' He had found himself another gem.
After that test, Savio didn't waste a second and penned Rivera down to a 4-year deal, which would start in 2017. It took a while for Rivera to get his motor starting, but slowly but surely he grew in quality and in confidence. By June, he was ready to play his part. Not only did he play his fair share in Rodolfo Torres' Tour of Bihor win, he also got himself a nice 13th place as well. The cherry on the cake was yet to come. That cherry didn't take long, as Rivera won the Tour of China II, yelling victory in one stage in the process. It was only the beginning.
Kevin Rivera is in for some big things.
2016
3º in Cartago, Mountainbike, Juniors, Cartago (Cartago), Costa Rica
3º in National Championship, Road, ITT, Juniors, Costa Rica, General Viejo (San Jose), Costa Rica
1º in Prologue Stage 1 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, General Viejo (San Jose), Costa Rica
1º in Stage 3 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Santa Teresa (San Jose), Costa Rica
2º in Stage 4 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Costa Rica
3º in General Classification Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Costa Rica
2017
14º in Stage 2A Tour of Bihor - Bellotto, Stana de Vale, Romania
13º in General Classification Tour of Bihor - Bellotto, Romania
1º in Stage 1 Tour of China II, Xima (Jiangxi), China
1º in General Classification Tour of China II, China
2018
3º in Vuelta al Tachira en Bicicleta, San Simón, Venezuela

Kevin Rivera is only 19 years old, but already has a year of professional cycling under his belt. He has a story that is similar to the great Egan Bernal: the mountain bike. Growing up in Cartago, Costa Rica, it's about the only thing he did. Rivera rode his races for a team led by Piero Ravaglia, obviously an Italian. On one day, Ravaglia gave Paolo Alberati a call, informing him about Rivera, who took him on a plane to Italy. In Italy, he rode three junior races: Rivera immediately won and the rest didn't stand much of a chance.
What Rivera didn't know, was that a certain someone was hiding in the bushes, watching him throw his arms in the air of joy. That person was no other than Gianni Savio. Savio didn't waste any time and took Rivera to the Centro Studi, a lab on the name of Michele Bartoli, where he would follow some tests. A few years earlier, Egan Bernal followed the same path in the same lab, where he would post a VO2 max of 88,8. One hour later, Bartoli's mind was blown. ''After Egan Bernal, Gianni Savio brought me another rider. I have never seen anyone with a VO2 max that high. His name? Kevin Rivera.'' He had found himself another gem.

After that test, Savio didn't waste a second and penned Rivera down to a 4-year deal, which would start in 2017. It took a while for Rivera to get his motor starting, but slowly but surely he grew in quality and in confidence. By June, he was ready to play his part. Not only did he play his fair share in Rodolfo Torres' Tour of Bihor win, he also got himself a nice 13th place as well. The cherry on the cake was yet to come. That cherry didn't take long, as Rivera won the Tour of China II, yelling victory in one stage in the process. It was only the beginning.
Kevin Rivera is in for some big things.
2016
3º in Cartago, Mountainbike, Juniors, Cartago (Cartago), Costa Rica
3º in National Championship, Road, ITT, Juniors, Costa Rica, General Viejo (San Jose), Costa Rica
1º in Prologue Stage 1 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, General Viejo (San Jose), Costa Rica
1º in Stage 3 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Santa Teresa (San Jose), Costa Rica
2º in Stage 4 Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Costa Rica
3º in General Classification Vuelta de la Juventud Costa Rica, Costa Rica
2017
14º in Stage 2A Tour of Bihor - Bellotto, Stana de Vale, Romania
13º in General Classification Tour of Bihor - Bellotto, Romania
1º in Stage 1 Tour of China II, Xima (Jiangxi), China
1º in General Classification Tour of China II, China
2018
3º in Vuelta al Tachira en Bicicleta, San Simón, Venezuela
