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Francesco Casagrande (born September 14, 1970 in Florence) is a former Italian professional road racing cyclist. Casagrande was a professional cyclist between 1992 and 2005.
Biography He is a proven performer in the Grand Tours and the major one-day races. He wore the leader’s jersey into the penultimate stage of the 2000 Giro d'Italia, but faltered badly and wound up 2nd to fellow Italian Stefano Garzelli. Casagrande did, however, win the King of the Mountains competition and its Maglia verde (or green jersey) in the race. In major one-day races, he has won the Clásica de San Sebastián in 1998 and 1999, followed by the 2000 editions of the La Flèche Wallonne and Subida a Urkiola. Also in 1999, he placed 4th in the World Cycling Championships Road Race behind Óscar Freire, Marcus Zberg, and Jean-Cyril Robin. In his early career, Casagrande won the 1996 Tirreno-Adriatico and Tour of Basque Country — both one-week stage races. Casagrande also scored victories at the 2001 and 2002 Giro del Trentino and the 2002 Settimana Ciclistica Internazionale Coppi-Bartali. Casagrande is one of the most consistent performers in the past few years and has been in the final stages of numerous races. Lacking a strong sprint, however, has kept Casagrande from more victories. Palmarés 52 career victories including: Major wins Runner-up | ||||||||
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