At just 16 years old, Luca Gugnino he is establishing himself as one of the most interesting young people on the Italian cycling scene. And to think that just four years ago the boy from Boves, born in 2009, held a tennis racket, a sport in which he defended himself with excellent results. Today, however, he is a talented rider, capable of achieving eight road victories this season. His best quality emerges above all uphill, a terrain where he manages to unleash all his power and where, race after race, he is refining his characteristics as a complete athlete.
“Physically I have remained the same, but mentally I have grown a lot and compared to last year I have acquired considerable experience – explains Gugnino –. In the mountains I behave well and there I truly feel like a complete runner. I also owe much of my progress to the advice of Vigor’s sports director, Salvatore Cirlincione”.
Luca started competing driven by the passion of his Spanish grandfather, Juan Carlos Berenguer, who in his home country directs the Under 23 team of Ulevel Frutamine. But his path was also supported by his father Diego and his mother Yolanda, originally from Valencia, who today run a bakery in Cuneo.
The young talent comes from the Vigor Cycling Team, a company with which he made his first rides in 2023 among second-year rookies. Looking to the future, Luca has chosen to remain in Piedmont: in 2026 he will debut among the juniors with the colors of the Piasco Cycling Union, led by Roberto De Filippo.
“I had the opportunity to join a team close to home and I was happy to accept to race for Piasco. It is a solution that also allows me to better combine school – I attend the Liceo Sportivo De Amicis in Cuneo – with training. My objectives will be to obtain good results, win important races and give satisfaction to my new team. My dream is to reach the top category and, one day, be able to win a classic monument like the Paris-Roubaix or the Milan-Sanremo”.
Putting to good use what he has learned this season, Gugnino he is one of those runners destined to continue to grow, improving step by step on every racing terrain. 2025 gave him a lot, eight victories and valuable placings such as second place in the Albese-Ghisallo, fourth in the Cei Cup and Novara-Orta, fifth in the Feralpi Trophy, eighth in the Italian road championship in Gorizia, tenth in the Lugo-San Marino and numerous other significant results. Off the bike, Luca still cultivates a passion for tennis, a sport he continues to follow with interest.
