Thomas Siniecki, Media365: published on Thursday January 16, 2025 at 5:47 p.m.
It is never too late to try to retrain as an athlete, even if it will be mainly for the symbol.
In October, when Rigoberto Uran retired from the squad at 37 (he will turn 38 in ten days, on January 26), he immediately announced his crazy dream of becoming a professional footballer. Three months later, the project is taking shape since the Colombian team of Fortaleza, which plays among the elite of its country, will test the one who took second place in the Tour de France in 2017. “He wants to play as a creative midfielder “, said Carlos Barato, founder and president of the club. Basically, it was a presence in the shareholding that was mentioned, but Rigoberto Uran quickly corrected it to clearly state that he wanted to play and nothing else. To begin with…
-“Coming on in the 85th minute suits me”
Next week, the club will host Enviga to open the opening tournament (in the first half of the calendar year) and Rigoberto Uran should therefore be on the field. This fall, when he announced his project to the local media El Colombiano, he described himself as “crazy”: “I have nothing to lose, you know, I do a lot of things. I want to dedicate myself to this and we'll see what happens.”
In total, the 2012 Olympic vice-champion and double runner-up in the Giro (in 2013 and 2014) has devoted 23 years of his life to cycling but therefore remains “always connected to sport”: “In Colombia and in the four corners of the planet, Every child's dream is to play football. At the time, I had no talent, but now that I'm older, I say to myself that I have to try.” While being lucid, which at least will perhaps allow him to carry out his business successfully: “Among all the teams in Colombia, there is certainly one that wants a little visibility and would allow me to come into play at the 85th minute would suit me.” And since then, Rigoberto Uran has indeed found the right fit.
