Andrey Amador Led Stage 11 of the Tour de France Today. You Will Not Believe the Odds He Overcame to Get Here.
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Early in stage 11 of the Tour de France, Andrey Amador (EF Education–EasyPost) was in the breakaway group and then leading the race with Daniel Oss (TotalEnergies) and Matis Louvel (Arkéa–Samsic). And while he didn’t make it to a podium today, just seeing him at the front is impressive.
In early 2011, the Costa Rican rider was involved in a brutal robbery and assault while on a training ride in his home country, which resulted in significant injuries. He was left for dead, unconscious in a river bed, after the drivers of two automobiles drove up next to him and brutally beat him.
They took his Pinarello Dogma 60.1 team bike before leaving him in bad shape. According to CyclingNews, Amador has described the attack as “the most frightening moment of my life.”
According to road.cc, after being unconscious for 6 hours, he woke up and called his family, who picked him up and took him home. They thought he was just bruised, but the following morning Amador began vomiting, so they took him to the hospital.
The incident happened on Amador’s final training ride of the year—he was 24 at the time. After being taken to the hospital in San José, doctors discovered that one of his kidneys was paralyzed, and that he had a pulmonary contusion and severe bruising on his lungs.
What could have meant the end of his career as a professional cyclist instead became a testament to Amador’s strength. After significant downtime, Amador made a full recovery from his injuries and was chosen to carry the flag for Costa Rica at the 2011 Pan American Games opening ceremony.
He also became the first Costa Rican to ever ride the Tour de France. And in 2012, Amador won a mountainous stage 14 in the Giro d'Italia. His success continued when he wore the pink jersey in the 2016 Giro d'Italia, becoming the first Costa Rican to lead a Grand Tour.
We’re happy to see the 36-year-old still out front crushing it at the biggest bike race in the world, an inspiring example of the power of not giving up.
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