Denis Nikolayevich Menchov (russian: Денис Николаевич Меньшов; born 25 January 1978) is a former professional

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

road bicycle racer 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 as a professional between 2000 and 2013. He was best known as a

general classification The general classification (or the GC) in road bicycle racing is the category that tracks overall times for riders in multi-stage races. Each stage will have a stage winner, but the overall winner in the GC is the rider who has the fastest cumulati ...

rider, a climber and an accomplished

time trialist A time trialist is a road bicycle racer who can maintain high speeds for long periods of time, to maximize performance during individual or team time trials. The term ''cronoman'', or ''chronoman'', is also used to refer to a time trialist. Detail ...

. In 2005 he finished second in 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 ...

and in 2007 he finished as the champion. He also won the centenary Giro d'Italia in 2009 and finished second in 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 ...

in 2010 becoming the first Russian to do so. He was later disqualified from that Tour de France, as well as long the 2009 and 2012 editions, owing to adverse biological passport findings.

Professional career

Banesto (2000–2004)

Born in

Oryol Oryol ( rus, Орёл, p=ɐˈrʲɵl, lit. ''eagle''), also transliterated as Orel or Oriol, is a city and the administrative center of Oryol Oblast situated on the Oka River, approximately south-southwest of Moscow. It is part of the Central Fed ...

, Menchov started his professional career in 2000 with the team of José Miguel Echevarri. His first success came in 2001, when he won the

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 ...

, a

stage race A race stage, leg, or heat is a unit of a race that has been divided in several parts for the reason such as length of the distance to be covered, as in a multi-day event. Usually, such a race consists of "ordinary" stages, but sometimes stages ...

for young professionals. A year later he won a stage in the

Dauphiné Liberé The Dauphiné (, ) is a former province in Southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné was originally the Dauphiné of Viennois. In the 12th centu ...

. In 2003, Menchov had his breakthrough when he finished 11th in the

, and won the

young rider classification Young rider classification (french: classement général des jeunes) is a cycling jersey competition in multi-day stage race events, such as the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and many others, which awards the current leader by overall time for ride ...

. 2004 was his last year at Banesto and his most successful. He won Tour of the Basque Country, a stage in Vuelta a Aragón, a stage in

Paris–Nice Paris–Nice is a professional cycling stage race in France, held annually since 1933. Raced over eight days, the race usually starts with a prologue in the Paris region and ends with a final stage either in Nice or on the Col d'Èze overlookin ...

and stage five in the 2004

, from

Zaragoza Zaragoza, also known in English as Saragossa,''Encyclopædia Britannica'"Zaragoza (conventional Saragossa)" is the capital city of the Zaragoza Province and of the autonomous community of Aragon, Spain. It lies by the Ebro river and its tributari ...

to Morella.

Rabobank (2005–2010)

Menchov's contract ran out in September 2004 and he moved to the Dutch Rabobank team for two years. He became team captain following Levi Leipheimer's departure to

Gerolsteiner Gerolsteiner Brunnen GmbH & Co. KG (Gerolsteiner) is a leading German mineral water firm with its seat in Gerolstein in the Eifel mountains. The firm is well known for its Gerolsteiner Sprudel brand, a bottled, naturally carbonated mineral wate ...

. Menchov was Rabobank's main contender for the

2005 Tour de France The 2005 Tour de France was the 92nd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place between 2–24 July, with 21 stages covering a distance . It has no overall winner—although American cyclist Lance Armstrong origin ...

, but due to a cold, he finished 85th, 2h 35m behind Lance Armstrong. His 2005 Vuelta was more successful. He won the opening time trial to

Granada Granada (,, DIN 31635, DIN: ; grc, Ἐλιβύργη, Elibýrgē; la, Illiberis or . ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the fo ...

and the stage nine time trial to

Lloret de Mar Lloret de Mar (; ) is a Mediterranean coastal town in Catalonia, Spain. It is south of Girona and northeast of Barcelona. With a population of 38,402 in 2021, it is the second largest town in the Selva comarca of Catalonia. Lloret de Mar attra ...

, and wore the leader's jersey. On the fifteen stage, he lost sight of

Roberto Heras Roberto Heras Hernández (born 1 February 1974) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer who won the Vuelta a España a record four times. Between 1997 and 2005 he finished in the top 5 of the Vuelta every year except 1998 when he f ...

on a climb and ended the race second behind Heras. Heras was later disqualified for doping, and Menchov received the official win of the 2005 Vuelta, but the title was given back to Heras in 2012. He also captured the event's Combined Classification. In the

2006 Tour de France The 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It took place between the 1st and the 23rd of July. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of Floyd Landis. Due to the Unite ...

Menchov won the 11th stage – the second mountain stage – from

Tarbes Tarbes (; Gascon: ''Tarba'') is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region of southwestern France. It is the capital of Bigorre and of the Hautes-Pyrénées. It has been a commune since 1790. It was known as ''Turba'' ...

to Aran Valley-

Pla-de-Beret Aran (; ; ) (previously officially called in Occitan Val d'Aran, Catalan: ''Vall d'Aran'', Spanish: ''Valle de Arán'') is an administrative entity (formerly considered a comarca) in Lleida, Catalonia, Spain, consisting of the Aran Valley, in ar ...

after a sprint with Leipheimer and

Floyd Landis Floyd Landis (born October 14, 1975) is an American former professional road racing cyclist. He finished first at the 2006 Tour de France, and would have been the third non-European winner in the event's history, but was disqualified after test ...

. The final week took its toll and he dropped from 3rd to 6th in the Alps. He later moved up to 5th overall after the disqualification of race winner Floyd Landis. Menchov abandoned the

2007 Tour de France The 2007 Tour de France the 94th running of the race, took place from 7 to 29 July. The Tour began with a prologue in London, and ended with the traditional finish in Paris. Along the way, the route also passed through Belgium and Spain. It was ...

on stage 17, the day after his teammate Michael Rasmussen was fired from Rabobank. Later that year, he won the

after leading during the second half of the race. In the Vuelta he also won a stage, the mountains classification and the combination classification. In 2008 Menchov concentrated on

and did not defend his Vuelta title. He ended third in the Tour because

Bernhard Kohl Bernhard Kohl (born 4 January 1982, in Vienna) is an Austrian former professional road bicycle racer and recognized climbing specialist. After the Gerolsteiner team announced they would not be in existence for the 2009 season, Kohl signed with UC ...

was disqualified for doping. Also Menchov finished fifth in

Giro Giro or GIRO may refer to: Banking and Investments * Giro (banking), a direct payment from one bank account to another instigated by the payer * Girobank, a state owned and later privatised financial institution in the UK * GiroBank, a Danish ba ...

prior.

In 2009 Menchov won the Giro d'Italia, with wins in stages 5 and 12. Despite crashing in the final kilometer of the last-stage time-trial through

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, Menchov held the

pink jersey Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...

and extended his lead by 21 seconds, winning by 41 seconds over Italy's

Danilo Di Luca Danilo Di Luca (born 2 January 1976) is a former Italian professional road racing cyclist, best known for winning the 2007 Giro d'Italia, but also for several positive doping tests, the last of which resulting in a lifetime ban from the sport. ...

. Menchov also won the points jersey that year. In the

2010 Tour de France The 2010 Tour de France was the 97th edition of the Tour de France cycle race, one of cycling's Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours. It started on with an 8.9 km prologue time trial in Rotterdam, the first start in the Netherlands since 1996 ...

, Menchov came in second place after passing

Samuel Sanchez Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

in the final Time Trial. He was third originally, but moved to the second spot as a consequence of Contador's victory being revoked due to a doping affair, as was decided on 6 February 2012.

Geox-TMC (2011)

Later in 2010 Menchov transferred to Geox-TMC, as joint leader of the team with Carlos Sastre. Menchov was replaced as leader of Rabobank by Robert Gesink. With Geox, Menchov finished 8th in the 2011 Giro. The team were not invited to the Tour de France, a blow to Menchov, who had been considered a favourite. Menchov finished fifth overall at the

, having helped teammate

Juan José Cobo Juan José Cobo Acebo (born 21 February 1981 in Torrelavega, Cantabria) is a retired Spanish professional road racing cyclist. He won the 2011 Vuelta a España as a rider, his first and only major title but in July 2019 he was stripped of th ...

to overall victory.

Katusha (2012–2013)

At the end of 2011, Menchov moved to Russian team for the 2012 season. Menchov focused the 2012 season on the

2012 Tour de France The 2012 Tour de France was the 99th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. It started in the Belgian city of Liège on 30 June and finished on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on 22 July. The Tour consisted of 21 stages, inc ...

, although he was devastated with crashes. Menchov also won the Russian national time trial crown. He started Tour very well with eighth place in prologue, but due to health problems finished only 15th place overall at the end. He rode in the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

representing the Russian National Team both in Olympic road race and individual time trial After, the Olympic Games, Menchov rode the Vuelta a España where he won the penultimate stage in Bola del Mundo after outsprinting

Richie Porte Richard Julian Porte (born 30 January 1985) is an Australian professional Road bicycle racing, road bicycle racer who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His successes include wins at 8 UCI World Tour, World Tour stage races: Paris–Nice in 201 ...

. After suffering a knee injury before the Giro d'Italia, Menchov announced his retirement from the sport of cycling in 2013.

Return to the sport: ''Gazprom–RusVelo'' (2019)

Menchov will return to cycling in 2019, in the role of ''directeur sportif'' for UCI Pro-Continental team

Gazprom–RusVelo Gazprom–RusVelo (), a part of the Russian Global Cycling Project and sponsored by Gazprom, is a Russian road and track cycling team that suspended its activities in 2022. It was founded in late 2011 and granted UCI Professional Continental st ...

Doping

On 10 July 2014, a UCI press release detailing various athlete sanctions specified that Menchov had been banned (for a period of two years) until 9 April 2015 due to adverse biological passport findings. Due to this, he has been disqualified from the 2009, 2010 and 2012 Tours de France. On 22 January 2015, USADA released its reasoned decision on the case of Dr. Geert Leinders in which it stated that Menchov received blood transfusions during the 2005 Tour de France.

Career achievements

Major results

;1997 : 1st

Volta a Lleida The Volta a Lleida was a road bicycle racing, road cycling stage race held in the Lleida (province), Lleida region of Spain. It was a 2.2 category race on the UCI Europe Tour between 2005 and 2008. List of overall winners {, class="wikitable" , ...

;2001 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall

: 7th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré ;2002 : 6th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré ::1st Stage 2 ;2003 : 1st Jersey white

Young rider classification Young rider classification (french: classement général des jeunes) is a cycling jersey competition in multi-day stage race events, such as the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and many others, which awards the current leader by overall time for ride ...

: 1st

Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama Clásica a los Puertos de Guadarrama is a professional cycle road race held in the Sierra de Guadarrama, Spain in late August each year. The event was first run in 1978 and since 2005 it has been organised as a 1.1 event on the UCI Europe Tour T ...

;2004 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Tour of the Basque Country ::1st Stage 4 : 1st Stage 5

: 1st Stage 6

: 1st Stage 1 Vuelta a Aragón ;2005 : 2nd Overall

::1st Combination classification ::1st Stages 1 & 9 : 3rd Overall Tour de Romandie ;2006 : 5th Overall

::1st Stage 11 : 6th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré ::1st Stage 4 : 9th Overall

Volta a Catalunya The Volta a Catalunya (; en, Tour of Catalonia, es, Vuelta a Cataluña, link=no) is a road bicycle race held annually in Catalonia, Spain. It is one of three World Tour stage races in Spain, together with the Vuelta a España and the Tour of th ...

;2007 : 1st Jersey gold

Overall

::1st

Mountains classification The King of the Mountains (KoM) is an award given to the best climbing specialist in a men's cycling road race; in women's cycle racing A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a femal ...

::1st

Combination classification ::1st Stage 10 : 3rd Overall

::1st

Points classification ::1st Stage 5 : 4th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré ;2008 : 3rd Overall

: 4th Overall Tour de Romandie : 5th Overall Giro d'Italia : 5th 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 bicyc ...

: 6th

Clásica de San Sebastián The Donostia-Donostia Klasikoa — Clásica San Sebastián-San Sebastián (San Sebastián Classic) is a one-day professional men's bicycle road race in northern Spain that has been held every summer since 1981 in San Sebastián. It is the mo ...

;2009 : 1st Jersey pink

Overall Giro d'Italia ::1st Jersey violet

Points classificationAwarded after the disqualification of apparent winner

::1st Stages 5, 10 & 12 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall Vuelta a Murcia ;2010 : 2nd Overall Tour de Romandie : 2nd Overall Vuelta a Murcia : 2nd Overall
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 ...
;2011 : 2nd Overall Vuelta a Murcia ::1st Stage 2 : 5th Overall

: 5th Overall

Tour of Austria The Tour of Austria (german: Internationale Österreich Rundfahrt) is a stage cycling race held in Austria. From 1949 to 1995 it was a race for amateur cyclists, turning into a professional event in 1996. In 2005 and 2006 it was organised as a 2 ...

: 7th Overall Giro d'Italia ;2012 : 1st MaillotRusia

Time trial, National Road Championships : 1st Stage 20

: 4th Overall

Vuelta a Andalucía The Vuelta a Andalucía (Tour of Andalusia) or Ruta del Sol (Route of the Sun) is a regional Spanish road bicycle race first held in 1925. Since 2005, it has been a 2.1 category race on the UCI Europe Tour. The race became a part of the new UCI P ...

;2013 : 4th Overall

Volta ao Algarve The Volta ao Algarve (Portuguese; en, Tour of the Algarve) is a road bicycle racing stage race held annually in the Algarve, Portugal. Since 2017, it has been organised as a 2.HC event on the UCI Europe Tour. The race became part of the new UCI P ...

: 8th Gran Premio Città di Camaiore

General classification results timeline

DSQ = Disqualified

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Menchov, Denis Cyclists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 2012 Summer Olympics Doping cases in cycling Russian Giro d'Italia stage winners Giro d'Italia winners Olympic cyclists of Russia Russian male cyclists Russian sportspeople in doping cases Russian Tour de France stage winners Russian Vuelta a España stage winners Vuelta a España winners 1978 births Living people Sportspeople from Oryol