There is a time to come and a time to go. The same applies in the pro peloton. In 2025, it was no different: at the end of the season, several riders ended their professional careers. WielerFlits lists the biggest names.
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
The biggest name to say goodbye is undoubtedly Geraint Thomas. After all, we are talking about a Tour de France winner. The now 39-year-old Thomas has achieved much more during his 19-year career across different disciplines.
Long before making his mark in the Grand Tours, Thomas achieved major successes on the track. He won Olympic gold and multiple world titles as part of the British pursuit team. On the classics front, he also made a strong impression in those years, including a win at the 2015 E3 Harelbeke.
He then began focusing more on stage races—and not without success. Besides his overall win in the 2018 Tour de France, he stood on the Tour podium twice more (2nd in 2019, 3rd in 2022) and the Giro podium twice (2nd in 2023, 3rd in 2024). He also won races like Paris-Nice, the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Tour of Romandie, and the Tour of Switzerland.
As a GC contender, Thomas was quite pragmatic, riding conservatively without taking unnecessary risks. Yet with his sideburns, distinctive race glasses, and British humor, he was a colorful figure. Above all, he will be missed for his personality.
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
Another rider we will definitely miss is Alexander Kristoff (38). The powerful Norwegian was pure willpower when he hauled himself up a climb to contest a sprint. But don’t be mistaken – he was also full of talent. Otherwise, you don’t win Milan-San Remo (2014), the Tour of Flanders (2015), and four Tour de France stages. By the way, he also wore the yellow jersey in the 2020 Tour.
We can’t list all of Kristoff’s victories here, as he managed to win no less than 98 times. He just missed the 100 mark, but came very close in his final year by winning twice more. That underlines his extraordinary class.
Arnaud Démare (34) was also close to 100 wins. His tally ultimately stopped at 97. In recent years it became tougher for the sprinter to win, but what a palmarès he had already built! Milan-San Remo, two Tour stages, eight (!) Giro stages, two points jerseys in the Giro, twice Paris-Tours… You can take your leave with your head held high.
Elia Viviani (36) can also look back on his career with pride. The Italian won a bit fewer races than Kristoff and Démare, but what does it matter? We count 90 professional victories. And that’s not even counting his numerous gold medals at European Championships, World Championships, and the Olympic Games as a track cyclist.
In addition, Viviani also crowned himself European road champion in 2019. He scored wins in all three Grand Tours: once in the Tour, three times in the Vuelta, and five times in the Giro. His victory in the fairly tough Bretagne Classic (2017) and his hat-trick in the Cyclassics Hamburg (2017, 2018, and 2019) add even more prestige to his palmarès.
Back from the sprinters to the climbers. Rafal Majka (36) was seen in recent years mostly as a helper to Tadej Pogačar and in the past was an important force for Alberto Contador, but his own palmarès includes major wins. The Pole won the polka dot jersey twice in the Tour de France, three stages in that same race, and two stages in the Vuelta a España.
Majka was also successful at home, especially in the Tour of Poland, where he took three stage wins and the overall classification. In his farewell year, he also became Polish national champion. That was the sixteenth and final victory in his 15-year pro career.
We also have a world champion for you. In Florence, Rui Costa outsmarted Spanish rivals Joaquim Rodríguez and Alejandro Valverde to claim the rainbow jersey. That characterizes the Portuguese rider, who was not only very strong but also extremely cunning. By often being just a bit smarter than his competition, the now 39-year-old Costa built an impressive palmarès. Between his debut in 2007 and his retirement at the end of 2025, he won 33 times.
This includes the World Championship in Florence, three Tour de France stage wins, and three victories in the Tour of Switzerland. That last race was tailor-made for Costa, where he triumphed in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Those were his peak years, but he remained dangerous even in his 'later' days. For example, he won five times in 2023 racing for Intermarché-Wanty. Especially his stage win in that year's Vuelta, where he masterfully played the tactics, was classic Costa.
Romain Bardet ended his career after the Critérium du Dauphiné, but he deserves a place on this list. The now 35-year-old Frenchman boasts an impressive palmarès. His Tour de France results stand out: six times top ten, twice on the podium (2nd in 2016 and 3rd in 2017), the polka dot jersey, and four stage wins. Bardet also proved himself on the one-day front, finishing second at both the World Championships (2019) and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (2024).
The women’s peloton also loses some top riders, notably Marta Cavalli (27) and Ellen van Dijk (38). Cavalli struggled with physical discomfort and especially mental challenges. She raced barely at all last season, whereas in 2022 she was the next big thing in women’s cycling, with wins in the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne, as well as second place in the Giro Donne. Riding for Team Jumbo-Visma, Cavalli hoped to relaunch her career but hardly raced this season.
Van Dijk closed her career on a more positive note with a win at the Chrono des Nations—an individual time trial, of course. In that discipline, the Dutchwoman had always excelled throughout her 20-year career: three-time world champion and four-time European champion against the clock. She also shone in the classics. Her biggest victory there was the 2014 Tour of Flanders.
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
