Philip Deignan ( ga, Pilib Ó Duígeannáin; born 7 September 1983) is an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

former professional

road racing cyclist Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most common ...

, who rode professionally between 2005 and 2018 for the , , , and squads. A former Olympian, Deignan won a stage in the 2009 Vuelta a España, and finished in the top ten in the general classification.

Career

Early career

Born in

Letterkenny Letterkenny ( ga, Leitir Ceanainn , meaning 'hillside of the O'Cannons'), nicknamed 'the Cathedral Town', is the largest and most populous town in County Donegal, a county in Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. Letterkenny lies on the R ...

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

, Deignan first competed on a bike in 1997 during the annual Sligo to Letterkenny charity cycle. He attended

St Eunan's College St Eunan's College ( ; ga, Coláiste Adhamhnáin), known locally as The College to distinguish it from the cathedral and GAA club, is a voluntary Roman Catholic all-male secondary day school (and former boarding school) in County Donegal, Ire ...

for his secondary education. Before turning professional in 2005, he rode for amateur club where he performed well. In the Baby Giro of 2004 after recovering from an earlier crash, he performed well on the mountainous stages. He won the final stage and the general classification of the 2004 Ronde de l'Isard as an amateur. His first professional road race win was in the

Tour du Doubs The Tour du Doubs is a single-day road bicycle race, currently held annually in September in the region of Doubs, France. Since 2005, the race is organized as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour and since 2010 it is part of the French Road Cycli ...

when he attacked a breakaway group that contained his fellow Irishman and teammate at the time Mark Scanlon. Other notable performances were ninth place in the UCI World Championships Under 23 road race, fifth place in European championship under 23 road race, and second place on a mountainous stage of the 2006

Tour de l'Avenir Tour de l'Avenir ( en, Tour of the Future) is a French road bicycle racing stage race, which started in 1961 as a race similar to the Tour de France and over much of the same course but for amateurs and for semi-professionals known as independents ...

stage race. After an injury-plagued early season, Deignan entered and finished his first grand tour with the 2007 Vuelta a España, where he finished prominently with 10th, 12th and 16th in several mountain stages. He qualified to represent Ireland at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

. He finished in 81st place (15 minutes and 53 seconds behind winner

Samuel Sánchez Samuel "Samu" Sánchez González (born 5 February 1978) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally in the sport between 2000 and 2017 for the and squads. He was the gold medal winner in the road race at the 2 ...

and five minutes behind team mate

Nicolas Roche Nicolas Roche (; born 3 July 1984) is an Ireland, Irish former professional Road bicycle racing, road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI WorldTeam . He has twice been national champion and has twice finished in the top ten of the Vuelta a Espa� ...

) in the road race on 9 August. Deignan along with Roche and Roger Aiken made up the Irish team for the 2008 World Championships in Varese on 28 September. None of the three finished the demanding race.

Cervélo TestTeam (2009–2010)

For the 2009 season Deignan rode with the . He raced the Giro d'Italia, achieving a top ten finish in one stage and featuring prominently in others, with his team winning 4 stages in total. On 17 September 2009 he achieved his first grand tour stage victory, in stage 18 of the

Vuelta a España The Vuelta a España (; en, Tour of Spain) is an annual multi-stage bicycle race primarily held in Spain, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. Inspired by the success of the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia, the r ...

into Avila, after a 2-man battle with the Czech

Roman Kreuziger Roman Kreuziger (; born 6 May 1986) is a Czech former professional road bicycle racer, who last rode for UCI ProTeam . His father, Roman Kreuziger Sr., was also a bicycle racer who won the Tour of Austria in 1991 and the Cyclocross Junior World ...

of . By finishing 10 minutes clear of the peloton he climbed to 9th in the general classification. He became the first Irishman to win a stage on a Grand Tour since

Stephen Roche Stephen Roche (; born 28 November 1959) is an Irish former professional road racing cyclist. In a 13-year professional career, he peaked in 1987, becoming the second of only two cyclists to win the Triple Crown of victories in the Tour de Fr ...

's last-stage success at the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. Deignan was selected to ride for Ireland in the 2009 World Elite Road Race Championship in Mendrisio, Switzerland (23–27 September) alongside Nicolas Roche and

Dan Martin Daniel Martin may refer to: People * Dan Martin (actor) (born 1951), American actor *Dan Martin (drama educator) (born 1953), American academic *Dan Martin (cyclist) (born 1986), Irish road bicycle racer *Dan Martin (footballer) (born 1986), Britis ...

. After his Vuelta performance, Deignan reached a personal high 2009 world ranking of 71st. Deignan was the best Irish finisher when placing 40th at the 2009 UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race in Mendrisio. He ended the 2009 season UCI ranked 75th, with 61 points, which helped Ireland to 16th in the team rankings.

RadioShack (2011)

It was announced after illness ruined his 2010 season, Deignan signed for for 2011.

United Healthcare (2012–2013)

After one season with RadioShack, he signed on with for the 2012 season. Deignan was able to rebuild his career with the US-based squad, winning the

Tour of the Gila The Tour of the Gila is a cycling stage race for both men and women located in New Mexico, United States. It is sponsored by the component maker SRAM. The "Gila" began in 1987. Beginning in 2012, the men's Gila has been added to the UCI America ...

in 2013, and recording top ten overall finishes in the three biggest US stage races, the

Tour of Utah Tour or Tours may refer to: Travel * Tourism, travel for pleasure * Tour of duty, a period of time spent in military service * Campus tour, a journey through a college or university's campus * Guided tour, a journey through a location, directed b ...

(6th), the

Tour of California The Tour of California (officially sponsored as the Amgen Tour of California) was an annual professional road bicycle racing, road cycling stage race on the UCI World Tour and USA Cycling Professional Tour that ran from 2006 to 2019. It was the ...

(9th) and the

USA Pro Cycling Challenge The USA Pro Cycling Challenge, also known as USA Pro Challenge, was an annual multi-day professional road bicycle racing stage race that first took place in Colorado in 2011. Originally announced on August 4, 2010 by Colorado Governor Bill Ritt ...

(10th).

Team Sky (2014–2018)

Subsequently, Deignan announced he was returning to the

UCI World Tour The UCI WorldTour (2009–2010: ''UCI World Ranking'') is the premier men's elite road cycling tour, sitting above the UCI ProSeries and various regional UCI Continental Circuits. It refers to both the tour of 38 events and, until 2019, an annual ...

in 2014 by joining . He rode the Giro d'Italia which began in Belfast and travelled to Dublin in the opening stages. Deignan led Sky at the

Tour de Pologne The Tour de Pologne (Polish: ''Wyścig Dookoła Polski'', English: ''Tour of Poland'', official abbreviation TdP,) is an annual, professional men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in Poland. It consists of seven or eight stages ...

, finishing seventh overall. He also rode the

, where he helped

Chris Froome Christopher Clive Froome ɹɪs fɹuːm (born 20 May 1985) is a Kenyan/British Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won seven Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours: four editions of the Tour de ...

to second overall. In November 2018, Deignan announced his retirement from professional cycling.

Personal life

Deignan married fellow professional road racing cyclist

Lizzie Armitstead Elizabeth Mary Deignan (née Armitstead; born 18 December 1988) is an English professional world champion track and road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Women's WorldTeam . She was the 2015 World road race champion. Deignan is ...

in Otley on 17 September 2016. Deignan resides in

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

Major results

;2004 : 1st Overall

Ronde de l'Isard The Ronde de l'Isard is a road bicycle race held annually in France. It is organized as a 2.2U event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union C ...

::1st Stages 2 & 5 : National Road Championships ::2nd Under-23 road race ::4th Road race : 6th

Boucle de l'Artois The Boucle de l'Artois is a road bicycle race held annually in France. It was organized as a 2.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour from 2005 to 2009 and again in 2013. Winners References

UCI Europe Tour races Cycle races in France 1990 establi ...

: 8th

Liège–Bastogne–Liège U23 The U23 Liège–Bastogne–Liège or Liège–Bastogne–Liège Espoirs is a cycling race in Belgium, held eight days before the cycling classic, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège Liège–Bastogne–Liège, also known as ''La Doyenne'' ("The Ol ...

: 10th

Paris–Mantes-en-Yvelines Paris–Mantes-en-Yvelines is a road bicycle race held annually in France. It is organized as a 1.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline ...

;2005 : 1st

: 5th Road race, UEC European Under-23 Road Championships : 7th Overall Tour de la Région Wallonne : 8th Overall

Paris–Corrèze Paris–Corrèze was a road bicycle race held annually in France, usually between a department near Paris and the department of Corrèze. It was created by Laurent Fignon and Max Mamers. It was first held in 2001 and since 2005 it has been organi ...

: 9th Road race, UCI Under-23 Road World Championships ;2009 : 7th Overall

Vuelta a Castilla y León The Vuelta Ciclista a Castilla y León is a professional road bicycle stage race held in Castile and León, Spain. Since 2005, Vuelta a Castilla y León has been a part of the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bi ...

: 8th

Giro del Mendrisiotto Giro del Mendrisiotto is a road bicycle race held annually around Mendrisio, in the canton of Ticino of Switzerland. The race was an amateur competition until 1996. Since 2005, it is organized as a 1.2 event on the UCI Europe Tour The UCI Conti ...

: 9th Overall

::1st Stage 18 : 10th Overall

Vuelta a Burgos Vuelta Ciclista a Burgos is an elite professional road bicycle racing event held annually in the Burgos province of Spain. The men's Vuelta a Burgos has been a multi-day stage race as part of the UCI Europe Tour since 2005. In 2019, a multi-day wo ...

;2013 : 1st Jersey red

Overall

::1st

Mountains classification : 2nd Overall

Tour de Beauce Tour de Beauce is a men's elite professional road bicycle racing multi-day event held each June in the Beauce region of Quebec, Canada since 1986. It is the oldest stage-race in North America, and is a Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)-rated 2.2 ...

: 6th Overall

: 9th Overall

: 10th Overall

;2014 : 7th Overall

;2015 : 5th Overall

Tour de Yorkshire The Tour de Yorkshire is a road cycling race in the historic county of Yorkshire, England which first took place in May 2015. It is promoted by the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) and is rated as a 2.HC event as part of the UCI Europe Tour. ...

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

References

External links

*
Philip Deignan profile
at Team Sky {{DEFAULTSORT:Deignan, Philip 1983 births Living people Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Irish male cyclists Irish Vuelta a España stage winners Olympic cyclists of Ireland People educated at St Eunan's College People from Letterkenny Sportspeople from County Donegal