Giorgia Bronzini (Wiggle-Honda) has decided to hang up her wheels following the 2016 World Championships in Qatar. The two-time world champion, who will be just 33 next October, says she wants to quit while she’s ahead. Bronzini has no concrete plans following her retirement but is keen to stay in cycling, with the idea of coaching or even perhaps acting as a directeur sportif in the future.
"Nobody has told me to stop, it is my decision," she told Cyclingnews at the team’s Buckinghamshire hotel ahead of the Women’s Tour. "For cycling, I’m stopping quite early but I really feel like now is the moment. I feel a little bit tired and I don’t want to force myself so that I hate it. That’s one of the worst things you can do. I want to leave cycling when I can still enjoy it."
Bronzini has an illustrious palmarès that includes two world titles on the road - Geelong 2010 and Copenhagen 2011 – a track world title in the points race at the 2009 championships in Pruszków, Poland, and six stage wins of the Giro d’Italia. The Qatar World Championships are tailor-made for Bronzini, who won her two road titles in sprints, but her big focus for her final season comes a little over a month earlier.
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"For me the important thing is the Olympic Games," said Bronzini. "I’m ready to sacrifice myself to work better on the climbs. I know it is a sacrifice but it is my last season and I want to do that and, for me, it is a dream to go to the Olympic Games.
"After that, it is up to the coach to pick me for the Worlds in Qatar. Qatar is the opposite but I’m never going to forget how to sprint. I think there is time to prepare for both."
Bronzini currently doesn’t have a team for her final year of racing, with her current contract with Wiggle-Honda up for renewal at the end of the season. She joined the team in its inaugural season in 2013 and had her best year to date with a total of 17 victories. Whether she is offered a new contract is out of her hands but the effervescent Italian would like to stay put.
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