Tributes from current and former teammates and team management alike have flooded in for Elena Cecchini after the 34-year-old former five-time Italian national champion ended her career at the Eneco Tour on Sunday.
Demi Vollering, Lotte Kopecky and Urška Žigart were amongst the many riders and staff who paid heartfelt homage to the SD Worx-Protime racer in an Instagram reel posted by her team.
They highlighted Cecchini's own personal success in a pro career spanning 16 years and multiple eras and disciplines, her key role as a team captain in later years, and her continuing presence as a reference point and example to follow for many in the peloton both on and off the bike.
"You were one of the stars of women's cycling, you were one of my big, big idols. Thankyou for everything you've given to the sport, you've been one of the guiding forces," Žigart said.
"Thankyou for all the lessons and all the time I spent with you," added Vollering, "I am forever grateful."
Like her husband Elia Viviani, Cecchini spanned multiple disciplines during her career, racing successfully across various specialities in both track and road. The 34-year-old also participated in two Olympic Games road races, first in 2016 and again in 2024.
Two things that were constantly highlighted throughout her career were her consistency and versatility as a racer, picking up no less than three road titles in as many years - 2014, 2015 and 2016 - as well as the time trial titles in 2018 and 2018.
Her biggest non-Nationals and Worlds road success came in the sadly missed Thuringen Rundfahrt der Frauen, formerly one of Germany's biggest stages before it folded, where she took the overall title in 2016, laying the foundations for that victory with a second place on the queen stage to Schleiz. Two further stages followed in the same race, in 2018 and 2019.
Her formation as a track racer, too, garnered some major results, starting with a silver medal in the points race in the Junior Worlds in 2009, then continuing with a gold at the points in the Junior European Track Championships a year later.
After five more medals in the U23 category in the Europeans, at senior level she also took a bronze in the points race and scratch in 2014, before increasingly focussing her attention on the road. Another individual highlight in the Europeans was still to come, though, in the shape of a silver medal in the 2019 road race.
Cecchini's gift for racing against the clock saw her help Canyon-SRAM take the final trade team time trial World Championships title, as well as forming part of the team that got Italy gold in the mixed team relay in the Europeans in 2021. Bronze in the same year in the World Championships mixed team relay also followed, along with silver in the same event in 2022.
However, in the later part of her career, after she joined SD Worx-Protime in 2021, her ability to ride well on multiple terrains helped her focus increasingly on a team captain's role for her new squad.
As such, she became a key figure behind the scenes for one of the sport's biggest WorldTour teams, last riding in her usual support role at the Eneco Tour, helping teammate Femke Markus race to second overall before registering a DNF on the final stage.
Her huge experience in all kinds of races also likely contributed enormously to Cecchini's ability to play a key team role. During her time on the road, she participated in no less than 18 Grand Tours, 12 of them in the Giro d'Italia Women. But the Classics were also very much part of her program, with 12 starts at the Tour of Flanders and five in Paris-Roubaix.
It was already known before the end of the 2025 season that Cecchini would retire in 2026, with her stating in a press release last year that "As a top athlete, you lead a privileged life. Once you stop, you can't get it back. So, I'm happy with my decision."
"Her importance to our team's successes in recent years cannot be underestimated. You can count on her in every area," added team manager Danny Stam at the time.
"She is a sounding board, tactically and technically strong. Both on and off the bike, she is always there.
"When Elena ends her career next year, she will be remembered as a pioneer who worked tirelessly to lower the barriers to entry in cycling."
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