Update, 7 October: Ion Izagirre fractured his left wrist in a training crash near his home in the Basque Country and was initially ruled out for the rest of the season. Cofidis has since confirmed that Izagirre will nevertheless take the start of Il Lombardia so the Monument can remain the final race of his professional career.
The 37-year-old had already announced that he would retire at the end of the 2026 season, with Il Lombardia on 10 October intended to be his final race. The crash forced him to miss his other remaining Italian races, but the latest Cofidis decision means he will still be able to take the start of his planned farewell in Como.
Cofidis initially confirmed that Izagirre received treatment after the crash and would miss the rest of the season. That assessment has now changed for Il Lombardia: he is set to start with the fractured wrist, although there is no suggestion that he will be able to race the 239km Monument normally.
Memorial Marco Pantani looked set to become Izagirre’s final race
After the crash, it appeared that Izagirre’s final race would be the Memorial Marco Pantani on 12 September, where he took the 20th victory of his professional career. His decision to start Il Lombardia means that win will instead remain his final completed race.
Izagirre beat Giulio Pellizzari, Mikkel Honoré and Michael Storer from a four-rider group in Cesenatico, adding one more Italian win before what was supposed to be a final block of racing towards Lombardia.
The victory followed another memorable result earlier in the year at the GP Miguel Indurain, where Izagirre won for the third time. He also finished seventh overall at Paris-Nice and fourth at Itzulia Basque Country during a strong final season.
Il Lombardia had been chosen as the final stop. The 2026 Il Lombardia route runs from Bergamo to Como and features the double San Fermo finale, a course that would have suited Izagirre’s climbing and descending strengths.
A career with wins in all three Grand Tours
Izagirre leaves the professional peloton after a career spent with Euskaltel-Euskadi, Movistar, Bahrain-Merida, Astana and Cofidis. He joined Cofidis in 2022 and remained one of the team’s most reliable riders in hilly stage races and breakaway-heavy one-day racing through his final season.
His 20 professional victories include stage wins in all three Grand Tours. He won at the Giro d’Italia in 2012, at the Vuelta a España in 2020 and twice at the Tour de France, first in Morzine in 2016 and then at Belleville-en-Beaujolais in 2023.
That 2023 Tour victory came from a late solo attack after a day in the breakaway, ending Cofidis’ long wait for another stage win at the race. ProCyclingUK’s report from Izagirre’s Belleville-en-Beaujolais victory remains one of the clearest examples of the way he raced at his best.
He also won the overall classification at Itzulia Basque Country in 2019 and built a long record of strong results in week-long stage races, often combining GC ambitions with opportunities to attack for stages.
Il Lombardia farewell restored despite broken wrist
Izagirre had made his retirement decision well before Wednesday’s crash. He confirmed in December 2025 that 2026 would be his final professional season, giving him the chance to approach the year as a planned farewell rather than waiting for a contract decision.
That made Il Lombardia particularly important. Cofidis had been working towards keeping him competitive through his final Italian campaign, and the Monument was due to provide the last race number of his career.
The wrist fracture has changed the nature of the ending rather than the race chosen for it. Izagirre will now sign on at Il Lombardia with no realistic expectation of completing the Monument, but the start in Bergamo means his professional career can still formally end at the race he selected months ago.
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Photo Credit: Cor Vos -
Photo Credit: A.S.O./Billy Ceusters -
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