The Current8:47A Canadian cyclist’s fourth-place finish in a gruelling Giro d’Italia
Canadian cyclist Derek Gee has been in bed for three days — perhaps not surprising after completing one of cycling’s most gruelling races, the 3,443-kilometre Giro d’Italia.
But after finishing fourth, Gee is already looking to the future with a renewed confidence.
“I got back on the bike today, although not for very long,” he told The Current’s Matt Galloway.
The Giro d’Italia is one of cycling’s most prestigious races, with 200 competitors crossing four countries in three weeks. This year’s course took them across mountains, cobblestones — and even through the Vatican, where racers were blessed by Pope Leo.
WATCH | Cyclists ride through Vatcian City to recieve Pope’s blessing:
British rider Simon Yates clinched the overall victory in the final stage Sunday, but Gee was already a fan favourite after a strong showing as the lone Canadian in the 2023 race.
He spoke to Galloway about overcoming setbacks in the race, and why finishing fourth has helped him to finally believe that he can compete with the best of the best. Here is part of their conversation.
You said that if someone told you a couple of years ago, in your words, that I’d finish top five in my favourite race, the one I’ve adored since I was a little kid growing up in Ottawa, I would have had a hard time believing it was possible. What did it mean for you not just to ride the Giro but to finish in fourth?
It is hard to describe. I mean, it has always been my favourite race. I remember in 2012, watching Ryder Hesjedal, the Canadian, win this race. That was huge for cycling in Canada, and for me as a young cyclist.
To be able to top five it, I mean a few years ago, I would have had a hard time believing I was going to turn professional. So to be there and to be able to compete with the best? Yeah, I missed the podium, but not by much. It’s definitely a pretty special moment.
What do you love about the Giro? I mean, as I said, people often talk about the Tour [de France], but the pink jersey of the Giro is something special for cyclists.
The Tour is the biggest race in the world without a doubt, it’s one of the biggest sporting events in the world. The Giro is essentially the harder version of that … the stages are longer, the mountains are higher, the weather is worse. It’s really, I think, the grand tour for the real cycling enthusiast.
You had kind of a rocky start. There was a crash and a [tire] puncture, tell me a little bit about your mindset in this race.
It was definitely a roller coaster. My legs weren’t great at the start of the race. I wasn’t doing very well overall.
I had an untimely puncture on one of the stages through Tuscany on some gravel roads, lost some time there. And then crashed in Napoli.
I was definitely a little down in the dumps. Luckily I had a good team around me that was basically saying, “Hey, don’t worry. It’s an incredibly long race. It doesn’t matter where you are a week in, two weeks in. It matters where you are three weeks in.
How did you find what you needed in yourself, to pull yourself out of where you were in those darker moments?
It’s a reliance on the work that you’ve put in so far. Despite how you feel in the moment, you can always think back to the hours you’ve put in, the work that the team and the staff around you have put in to get to that point.
Derek Gee, a cyclist from Ottawa, was a breakout star at the recent Giro D’Italia cycling race. He credits superfan Sean Moretti for boosting his energy with some very enthusiastic roadside encouragement.
It’s like, “Well, there’s a long way to go and I know I’ve done the work to be good.” So it’s just a matter of waiting out those rougher times. And also knowing that in a race that long, everyone’s going through it, even the winner. No one has a clean three weeks.
Were you surprised with what you found in yourself? I mean, you know that you can do this, but at the same time, one of the things that races like this are about is kind of grabbing something in yourself that you didn’t even know existed maybe, and moving beyond, pushing yourself beyond the limits that you thought you had.
A hundred percent. There is the mental aspect of it, of being able to go day in and day out. But I think it also goes back to where I was a few years ago.
It has taken a lot to almost convince myself that I can be competitive with these guys. The people at the front of the Giro are the people that I looked up to as a kid, it’s where I always wanted to be. And probably never believed I could be.
Those around me the last few years have told me I could, but obviously it’s a lot harder to believe in it yourself. But I mean, you need to believe that you belong there in order to race with the best.
So there was a lot of that this race, of realizing that I could be up there and competing with the best over a race like this.
You believe it now?
I definitely believe it now.
What’s the next goal for you?
Fourth exceeded my own expectations, but to be so close to the podium, there is a part of me that believes I can get there. That’s, I think, where the focus will be in the coming years.
