From the reels to the ‘pro contract with Van Der Poel: the tale of Luca Vergallito

How do you switch from Zwift rollers to a ride next to Mathieu Van Der Poel, which allows you to earn a professional contract with Alpecin-Deceuninck on the field? It looks like a reality show, it’s the story of Luca Vergallito, born in Milan in 1997, winner of the Zwift Academy 2022, which involved more than 160,000 cyclists. At a time when the strongest youngsters find it hard to pass professionals, Luca has signed a contract with Alpecin-Deceuninck, a team starting this year in the World Tour and home of the MVDP phenomenon.

WHAT A STORY

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Luca, after an adolescence in which he practiced triathlon, ran for a year and a half as a junior, then got stuck in the Under 23, effectively giving up competition. In the meantime, his passion for cycling led him to study preparation and nutrition techniques, an interest that led him to a degree in motor sciences. Meanwhile, his outings attracted the attention of enthusiasts on Strava: Luca, with the nickname “The bandit” holds various climbing records, including the one on the Muro di Sormano. And there was no shortage of victories in some prestigious granfondos, at a time in his life in which he always favored studying anyway.

SU ZWIFT

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During the pandemic, Vergallito rode on Zwift, thus attracting the attention of trainers on the occasion of various roller races, in which he unleashed an impressive amount of watts. Along with 4 other finalists, he was then selected to compete for the contract: he spent a week in the pre-season training camp of Alpecin, Spain. His tests, both on the road and outdoors, earned him the contract. “Dream comes true”.