Elisa Longo Borghini
Elisa Longo Borghini (born 10 December 1991 in Ornavasso, Italy) is one of the most experienced and successful riders in the women’s peloton. Racing for Lidl–Trek, she has won the Giro Donne, Paris-Roubaix and the Tour of Flanders, and has consistently performed at the top level in both stage races and one-day classics. Known for her strength on hilly terrain and her tactical awareness, Longo Borghini plays a dual role as team leader and road captain. Find Elisa Longo Borghini’s latest results, stats and race calendar on this page.
Biography of pro cyclist Elisa Longo Borghini
Few riders embody all-round excellence quite like Elisa Longo Borghini. Equally at home on the cobbles of northern Europe, the gravel of Tuscany and the high mountains of a three-week tour, she has spent her career winning the sport's hardest one-day races while also proving she can ride for the general classification.
Now in the colours of UAE Team ADQ, the Piedmontese rider remains a marquee name and a benchmark against whom the rest of the bunch measures itself. Her blend of raw power, racing intelligence and sheer durability has made her one of the defining figures of women's cycling's professional era.
Early life and rise in Italian cycling
Longo Borghini grew up in Ornavasso, in the mountainous Verbano-Cusio-Ossola province of Piedmont, in a family steeped in cycling. Her brother Paolo also raced professionally. She came through the Italian junior and under-23 ranks as a powerful, aggressive rider and turned professional in 2011, quickly establishing herself as a future star.
The breakthrough did not take long. By her early twenties she was already animating the biggest one-day races, and a third place at the 2012 World Championships road race signalled that a major talent had arrived.
Classics dominance and Monument wins
Longo Borghini built her reputation in the cobbled and hilly Classics. She won the Tour of Flanders for the first time in 2015 with a long-range solo move, took Strade Bianche in 2017, and added the Trofeo Alfredo Binda among many other honours.
Her defining one-day victory came at Paris-Roubaix Femmes in 2022, when she attacked alone on the cobbles to win the second edition of the race in commanding style. In 2024 she returned to the top step at the Tour of Flanders, underlining her enduring class on the sport's biggest cobbled stage.
Grand Tour champion: back-to-back Giro titles
If the Classics made her name, the Giro d'Italia Women confirmed her as a complete rider. Longo Borghini won the overall title in 2024 and successfully defended it in 2025, becoming a two-time champion of the most prestigious stage race on the women's calendar. Those victories, combined with overall wins at races such as the UAE Tour, showed she could win not just on a single explosive day but across a demanding week or more of racing.
Rider profile: strengths, style and characteristics
Longo Borghini is the archetypal all-rounder. She is exceptionally strong on cobbles and short, punchy climbs, can time-trial well, and has the endurance to contend in stage races. Tactically she is fearless, often favouring the long-range attack rather than waiting for a sprint. That aggression has won her some of the hardest races in the sport and made her a feared competitor whenever the road turns rough or uphill.
Rivalries
For much of the past decade Longo Borghini has gone head-to-head with the very best in the women's peloton. Her duels with Dutch greats such as Annemiek van Vleuten and Marianne Vos defined a generation of Classics and Grand Tour racing, while more recently she has traded blows with the likes of Lotte Kopecky, Demi Vollering and Kasia Niewiadoma. The rise of UAE Team ADQ's own young stars and the strength of rival super-teams keep those battles alive at the front of every major race.
Personal life
Longo Borghini is married to former professional cyclist Jacopo Mosca. Proud of her Piedmontese roots, she has long been one of the most respected and articulate voices in the peloton, admired for her sportsmanship as much as her results.
Records and milestones
- Two-time overall winner, Giro d'Italia Women (2024, 2025)
- Winner, Paris-Roubaix Femmes (2022)
- Two-time winner, Tour of Flanders (2015, 2024)
- Winner, Strade Bianche (2017)
- Two-time winner, Trofeo Alfredo Binda (2013, 2021)
- Olympic road-race bronze medals (Rio 2016, Tokyo 2020)
- World Championships road-race bronze (2012, 2020)
- Overall winner, UAE Tour (multiple editions, incl. 2025)
- Multiple Italian national road and time-trial titles
What's next for Elisa Longo Borghini?
Now leading UAE Team ADQ, Longo Borghini's ambitions remain at the very top: defending and extending her Giro d'Italia Women legacy, chasing further Monument and Classics wins, and serving as the experienced cornerstone of one of the sport's strongest squads. With her versatility and competitive drive undimmed, she remains a contender every time she pins on a number.
