 Plaza at the2010 Tour de France | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Rubén Plaza Molina |
| Nickname | El Professore |
| Born | (1980-02-29)29 February 1980 (age 45) Ibi, Spain |
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) |
| Weight | 77 kg (170 lb; 12.1 st) |
| Team information | |
| Current team | |
| Discipline | Road |
| Role |
|
| Rider type | Climber |
| Amateur team | |
| 1999–2000 | Banesto amateur |
| Professional teams | |
| 2001–2003 | iBanesto.com |
| 2004–2006 | Comunidad Valenciana–Kelme |
| 2007 | Caisse d'Epargne |
| 2008 | Benfica |
| 2009 | Liberty Seguros |
| 2010–2014 | Caisse d'Epargne |
| 2015 | Lampre–Merida |
| 2016–2017 | Orica–GreenEDGE |
| 2018–2019 | Israel Cycling Academy[1][2] |
| Managerial teams | |
| 2021– | Israel Cycling Academy |
| 2023– | Israel–Premier Tech |
| Major wins | |
Grand Tours
| |
Rubén Plaza Molina (born 29 February 1980) is a Spanish former professionalroad bicycle racer,[3] who competed professionally between 2001 and 2019 for theComunidad Valenciana–Kelme,Benfica,Liberty Seguros,Movistar Team (over three spells),Lampre–Merida,Orica–Scott andIsrael Cycling Academy teams. During his career, he recorded a top 5 overall placing in the2005 Vuelta a España, and won three Grand Tour stages.
Following his retirement, Plaza has worked as adirecteur sportif forUCI Continental teamIsrael Premier Tech Academy since 2021,[4] and forUCI ProTeamIsrael–Premier Tech,[5] since the start of the 2023 season.
Plaza was born inIbi, Spain. In 2006 he was implicated in theOperación Puerto doping case, but was later acquitted of any involvement. Nevertheless, after an abridged 2007 season withCaisse d'Epargne he spent 2008 and 2009 with smaller Continental level teams in Portugal. Despite this, in 2009 he was able to take his second victory in the Spanish national championships, before finishing 4th overall in theVolta a Portugal, a result which was later upgraded to 3rd by the disqualification of hisLiberty Seguros teammateNuno Ribeiro for a doping violation.[6] The simultaneous positive tests of two of the team's other riders caused the team to disband, leaving Plaza without a ride for 2010. Despite being linked to theAstana team, Plaza returned to Caisse d'Epargne, the signing made official in December 2009.[7]
In 2015, he won Stage 16 of theTour de France, his secondGrand Tour stage win.[8]
In 2015, he also won Stage 20 of theVuelta a España. He was named in the start list for the2016 Giro d'Italia.[9]
Source:[10]
Road race Time trial, National Junior Road ChampionshipsRoad race, National Road Championships
OverallGrande Prémio Internacional Costa Azul OverallVuelta a Aragón OverallVolta a la Comunitat ValencianaRoad race
OverallVuelta a Castilla y León
Combativity award Stage 20 OverallVuelta a Castilla y León| Grand Tour | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Giro d'Italia | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 56 | 30 | 47 | 71 |
 Tour de France | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | — | 101 | 47 | 91 | 30 | 72 | — | — | — |
 Vuelta a España | 5 | — | — | — | — | 14 | — | — | — | — | 45 | — | — | — | — |
| — | Did not compete |
|---|---|
| DNF | Did not finish |
Departing riders include Rubén Plaza, who retires, and Kristian Sbaragli, who is heavily linked with a move to Mathieu van der Poel's Corendon squad.
Media related toRubén Plaza at Wikimedia Commons
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Spanish National Road Race Championships Winner 2003 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Spanish National Road Race Championships Winner 2009 | Succeeded by |
