Is Afonso Eulalio’s pink adventure coming to an end? Don’t underestimate him because of his dad jokes

Was the thirteenth stage of the Giro d'Italia the swan song of Afonso Eulalio? The 23-year-old Portuguese rider got to wear the pink leader's jersey for as many as nine days, marking his breakthrough at the highest level. Two years ago, Bahrain Victorious signed Eulalio, and no matter how this story ends, they will surely be rewarded for it in this Giro.

If it were up to Eulalio, he would never have become a road cyclist. The Portugueseman's first passion was motocross, the sport of his father. Later, he discovered a love for mountain biking, a discipline he still calls his favorite. But, as Eulalio frankly admits, there was no money to be made in mountain biking, while on the road, there was.

"Best scouting project ever"
Although Eulalio was not a top talent in terms of results, he got his chance at just 18 with the continental team Feirense. After spending four years on that circuit, a strong Tour of Portugal was his ticket to the highest level. Bahrain Victorious had noticed him during his home tour. "Afonso is the best scouting project we have ever done," laughs Loïc Segaert, performance coach at the team.

"After that Tour of Portugal, we flew him to Tuscany to test him, but mainly to get to know what kind of person we were dealing with," Segaert explains. "Because you can have good results, but you don’t yet know what you really have in him. The only problem was his bike didn’t arrive with him. Suddenly, he was stuck in Tuscany for two days without a bike. But he made a really positive impression, after which we said: we have enough information on him, we’ll take the risk and give him a contract."

This initially did not immediately lead to top results. "He is still quite young and inexperienced. We had to guide him a bit. That might explain why he still lacks some consistency. But last year, after Remco Evenepoel, he was the best rider in the race at the Tour of Britain. And finishing ninth at the World Championships in Rwanda shows you are physically very strong. His biggest strength is unpredictable terrain, where he can repeatedly accelerate."

Dad jokes
That sudden step to the top could overwhelm many riders. The pressure involved has broken many cyclists. But Eulalio? You see him at the Giro smiling in his pink jersey both before the start and after the finish. Typical, says Segaert: "He’s the man of the ‘dad jokes’. Someone who always has a comment for everything. Sometimes funny, sometimes less so (laughs). He’s a likeable person. Someone you actually can’t be mad at."

"On the other hand, you feel he is in a position he hasn’t been in very often. Alec sometimes had to ‘babysit’ Afonso for entire stages. He still has a lot to learn, and he is aware of that. When we prepared the time trial together, he repeatedly told me he wanted to know every detail. You might not expect that from such a joker, but don’t underestimate him."

With the mountain stage to Pila ahead, Eulalio basically has nothing to lose. It’s logical that Vingegaard is coming and will soon surpass him. "Saturday is the day to put all cards on the table. Afonso won’t give it away, but realistically, I think some riders will still pass him there. Then on the rest day, it will be time to assess the damage ahead of next week," Segaert concludes.