Alvaro Bernal, a Colombian corn farmer, traversed the pouring rain to reach the cobbled square in Zipaquirá, a quaint town in the Andes. His grandson, Egan Bernal, had just won the Tour de France, cycling’s greatest honour, and cemented himself as arguably the most successful sportsman in his nation.
“We’re in love with him,” the 75-year-old pensioner said. “This is a victory for Colombia and for Zipaquirá.”
Bernal, known in his home country as “the boy wonder”, hails from humble beginnings but has sent records tumbling. He is the first rider from a Latin American country to win the Tour, and at 22 is the youngest champion in 110 years.
“He should know that we love him here,” his grandfather said.
Zipaquirá, a sleepy mountainside town a short drive north of Bogotá, the capital, draws tourists to its cathedral built in a cavernous salt mine. With its cobbled streets and old colonial buildings it’s the quintessential Andean town. Now its residents have a new reason to celebrate.
Bernal’s victory at the Tour, fought over 21 gruelling days, marks arguably the highest achievement for Colombian sports, eclipsing the victory of Juan Sebastián Cabal and Robert Farah in the men’s doubles in tennis at Wimbledon just two weeks earlier. Four years ago Bernal was pedalling 20km daily to university in Bogotá. His training was navigating the region’s hilly climbs and sporadic thunderstorms.
When it became clear that Bernal was the champion-in-waiting on Saturday, the central square in Zipaquirá filled with supporters. A big screen showed the race live, while confetti rained down from overhead. The crowd cheered in ecstasy; many dressed in the national team’s football shirt, yellow, like the Tour winner’s jersey. Some held their own bicycles aloft. Others waved the national flag. Entrepreneurial hawkers had quickly created shirts emblazoned with their favourite son’s image.
The party went on through the night and showed little signs of abating on Sunday morning. Many had cycled in from neighbouring towns to join the celebrations, holding banners aloft as the sun broke through the morning fog.
Fabio Hernan Rodríguez, a local coach, trained Bernal when he was an eight-year-old equipped only with a beaten up mountain bike. “He was always humble but so driven,” he said, while posing for photographs with wellwishers. “This isn’t a surprise to me. I knew this was coming.”
The newspapers could barely contain their excitement. “Colombia makes history,” the front page of El Espectador read on Sunday. “Yellow fever!” read a headline on the website of El Tiempo.
For many Colombians the victory represents a chance for their country to shed its reputation as a nation hamstrung by political violence and drug trafficking. “We have our problems, but we can achieve anything,” said student Katherine Salinas.
In Colombia, cycling is second only to football as the nation’s favourite sport. While across the world, road cycling is often viewed as a rich man’s pursuit, in Colombia it is commonplace. Every weekend cities close their main thoroughfares to cars, allowing cyclists to enjoy the urban streets. Each major race is must-watch television across the country.
Colombia’s president, Iván Duque, was similarly generous in his praise for the young champion. “What happened today fills us with emotion,” he tweeted on Saturday, when Bernal took an insurmountable lead.
Duque went on to mention Nairo Quintana, another Colombian who had been the country’s golden boy of cycling until this weekend, having won the Giro de Italia in 2014 and the Vuelta de España two years later.
In Zapaquirá, locals struggled to contain their emotions. “We are just too happy, we can’t hide it,” said Alfredo Molano, who had travelled from Bogotá to celebrate the victory. “This is phenomenal, it’s immense for Colombia.”
For Alvaro Bernal, the champion’s grandfather, the euphoria will eventually fade and life will get back to normal. “We are here and we are waiting for him to come home,” he said. “I haven’t spoken to him yet but we love him very much.”