Official: Sonny Colbrelli has announced his retirement from cycling

The Italian Sonny Colbrelliwho suffered a cardiorespiratory arrest during the Volta a Catalunya in March, has decided end his career at the age of 32, as officially announced this Sunday in a press release by his team Bahrain Victorious. Rumors about Colbrelli’s decision to withdraw have been swirling in recent times.

“I said goodbye to cycling. I try to do it with a smile remembering everything he gave me, even though it hurts me to say goodbye after the season I achieved.the best of my career,” said Colbrelli, who in 2021 won Paris-Roubaix, as well as the Italian and European titles.

Colbrelli, victim of cardiorespiratory arrest, collapsed on March 21 in Sant Feliu de Guíxols just after the first stage of the Volta a Catalunya, in which he finished second. The medical services performed a cardiac massage before transferring him to the University Hospital of Girona, where it was found that he had a cardiac arrhythmia.

must be placed a subcutaneous defibrillator (SCD). In Italy, this type of device is considered incompatible with sports that put a lot of pressure on the cardiovascular system. “After what happened in Catalonia, the hope of continuing my professional career is not lost on me, but I know that hope is diminishing”explained the Italian cyclist, who continued cycling “under medical supervision”.

“Cycling is not football, it is another sport, where the competition takes place on the roads, not in the stadiums where the emergency services can intervene quickly if necessary”, added Colbrelli. “The intensity of efforts is also there. Removing the defibrillator is not medically possible, because it is necessary to protect me and the risk will be too high. It is a risk that I cannot take”, he closed.