Vincenzo Nibali

Nibali wears the leader's jersey at the 2010 Vuelta a Espana

Vincenzo Nibali (born November 14, 1984 in Messina) is an Italian professional road bicycle racer who rides UCI ProTeam Liquigas-Cannondale. Born near the Strait of Messina, Nibali's nickname is the "shark of the strait" or simply "the shark." His first major win came at the 2006 GP Ouest-France, where he beat an impressive field on a tough course. However, experts such as Michele Bartoli have said Nibali is most suited to competing in multi-stage races. Nibali's biggest win to date is the overall in the 2010 Vuelta a España.

Vincenzo Nibali was born in 1984 on November 14, the son of Salvatore and Giovanna. In order to become a cyclist, he left his hometown Messina and moved to Tuscany at the age of sixteen. For ten months of the year, he lived in the house of his ex-directeur sportif, Carlo Franceschi, in Mastromarco, near Lamporecchio, where he still lives.

Nibali finished third at the Junior World Time Trial Championship in 2002 and also third at the U-23 World Time Trial Championship in 2004. He turned professional in 2005 with Fassa Bortolo. In 2007, Nibali rode the Giro d'Italia for the first time and finished 19th overall. 2008 saw Nibali finish 10th in Liege-Bastogne-Liege, and record top-20 finishes in both the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France.