My name is Elisa Balsamo and I was born on the 27th of february 1998 in Cuneo. I’m a professional cyclist since 2017. Now I’m racing for Lidl-Trek team.
I decided to write this blog in order to give pursue my passion for writing: I would like to be able to tell the story of my life as an athlete, both from a technical and competitive point of view and by giving voice to my feelings, thoughts and sensibility. In addition, I hope to interact with you and exchange ideas and opinions with all my readers!
When I was young I’ve achieved some good results, the most important are the four gold medals at the world championships in the junior category: in 2015 I won the scrach (a track speciality), in 2016 I won the omnium and the team pursuit (others two track speciality), in the same year I also won the road world championship in Doha.
In 2017, the transition to the top category was challenging, not only because of the very high level present in the élites, but also because I was busy with high school graduation at the classical high school. Despite of this, I managed to get my first results and my first convocation with the blue jersey to the World Élite Championships.
Between winters on the track and summers on the road, I grew, gained experience and started to collect satisfactory results. In March 2018 I got my first professional win, and in 2019 I won my first WorldTour race at the Tour of California.
In early 2020, my national teammates and I qualified all three endurance specialties for the Tokyo Olympics. Unfortunately, however, a short time later, COVID-19 disrupted our plans, forcing us to face an abnormal season, but still not lacking in results.
The year 2021 began with important placings in the spring classics, and in the summer of that year I flew to Tokyo to compete in my first Olympic Games, which, however, did not go as I had hoped. This did not demoralize me, on the contrary, it gave me the strength to give it my all and so, on September 25th 2021, I won the WORLD ROAD CHAMPIONSHIP in Leuven!!! Undoubtedly the most important and prestigious victory of my career! Just two weeks later I raised my arms to the sky for the first time in the rainbow jersey at the last stage of the Women’s Tour in Great Britain.
In 2022 I changed teams, landing at Lidl-Trek (then Trek-Segafredo). They say that the rainbow jersey gives an extra boost to who wears it, and indeed in that year I won three spring classics (Binda Trophy, Brugge-DePanne and Gent-Wevelgem), the Italian road championship and a historic world track championship in the team pursuit.
The year 2023 started immediately with two important medals at the European track championships (silver in the team pursuit and bronze in the madison) that allowed us to get valuable points for the Olympic qualification, then came two nice road victories at the Setmana Valenciana. Also on the road, during the spring, I picked up some prestigious placings such as second place at the Trofeo Binda and Brugge-De Panne; I ended the first part of the season with two more medals (silver in the omnium and bronze in the madison) in the third Nations’ Cup round in Milton. Unfortunately, during the Ride London in May, I had a bad accident that kept me down for almost a month. Thanks to the help of doctors, the support of my team and the love of my loved ones, I was able to return in time for the Tour de France Femmes. I faced the second part of the season with fatigue and determination and managed to raise my arms back at the first stage of the SImac Ladies Tour.
After a good winter, 2024 also started in the best way with a win at the European team pursuit track championships and the bronze in the madison also at the European championships. After two victories at the Setmana Ciclista Valenciana, the northern campaign was also very fruitful, with wins at the Trofeo Binda, Classic Brugge-DePanne, and second places at Gent-Wevelgem and Paris-Roubaix. Unfortunately, for the second year in a row, my season was interrupted in May due to a bad sprint crash in the second stage of the Vuelta a Burgos. However, I managed to get back on my feet and face a torturous preparation for the Olympic Games in Paris, taking a podium at the Giro d’Italia and one at the Tour de Frace. At the Olympics I competed in the road race and took fourth place in the team pursuit on the track. I ended the season with a win at the Tour de Romandie, which gave me a breath of fresh air, and several second places, including one at the European Road Championships. The year ended on a happy note, because on October 1st I got married surrounded by the affection of friends and family
After spending my first winter focusing exclusively on the road, I started my 2025 season with two victories at the Setmana Ciclista Valenciana and took home my first WorldTour win of the year at the Trofeo Binda. During the northern campaign I managed to get several podiums and placings and the win at the Schelderprijs.
As for studies, after graduating from high school at Liceo Classico, I decided to enroll in the faculty of Modern and Contemporary Literature at the University of Turin, obtaining my degree in April 2023. I am currently enrolled in the master’s course “Comunicazione, informazione ed editoria” at the University of Bergamo.
I’ve two more passion beyond cycling: reading and music (in particular the piano, that I played for ten years).