# Mikel Nieve

Mikel Nieve Iturralde (born 26 May 1984) is a Spanish former professional road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2008 to 2022.

## Career
### Euskaltel–Euskadi (2009–2013)

Born in Leitza, Nieve won the sixteenth stage of the 2010 Vuelta a España, shaking off four riders to win solo in the mountain finish at the Alto de Cotobello. He earned another prestigious victory in the fifteenth stage of the 2011 Giro d'Italia, the queen stage of that year's edition, which Alberto Contador later described as the most difficult stage of his life. Nieve had broken away early, and crested the penultimate climb of the day, the Passo Fedaia, with only Stefano Garzelli in front of him. On the lower slope of the final climb to Gardeccia-Val di Fassa, Nieve passed Garzelli, and held on to win the stage after having spent a little less than 7 hours and a half in the saddle.
He finished 10th twice in the Giro d'Italia in 2011 and 2012. He also finished 10th twice in the Vuelta a España in 2010 and 2011.
In 2013, Nieve rode his first Tour de France, where he finished 3rd on Mont Ventoux and 9th on Alpe d'Huez. He ended up finishing 12th overall. After the disbanding of the Euskaltel–Euskadi team was confirmed at the end of the 2013 season, Nieve agreed to join Team Sky on an initial two-year deal.

### Team Sky (2014–2017)

In 2014, he won stage 8, the final stage of the Critérium du Dauphiné as well as finishing 8th overall.
In 2015, Nieve finished 8th overall in the Vuelta a España, his highest Grand Tour finish to date.
In 2016, Nieve won stage 13 of the Giro d'Italia. He also went on to win the mountains classification. Nieve also rode the Tour de France, where he helped Chris Froome take overall victory as one of his mountain domestiques.

### Mitchelton–Scott (2018–2021)

In August 2017, it was announced that Nieve would join Mitchelton–Scott for the 2018 season. During the 2018 Giro d'Italia, Nieve won the penultimate stage of the race, having been a part of the 27-rider breakaway on his 34th birthday. He finished 10th overall in the 2019 Vuelta a España, finishing in the top 10 of the race for the fourth time in his career, having entered the race as a domestique for teammate Esteban Chaves. At the 2020 Tour de France, he abandoned a Grand Tour for the first time in 19 attempts, having finished each of the previous 18 in the top-25 placings overall. He then rode the 2020 Vuelta a España, and finished 13th overall.

### Caja Rural–Seguros RGA

In December 2021, Nieve announced that he was joining the Caja Rural–Seguros RGA team for the 2022 season, after thirteen years at UCI World Tour level.

## Major results
### 2007

    9th Overall Vuelta a Navarra

### 2008

    3rd Overall Cinturó de l'Empordà

### 2009

    7th Overall Vuelta a Mallorca
       7th Trofeo Inca

### 2010

    4th Trofeo Inca
    7th Giro di Lombardia
    10th Overall Vuelta a España
       1st Stage 16

### 2011

    8th Gran Premio de Llodio
    10th Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stage 15
    10th Overall Vuelta a España
    10th Overall Vuelta a Burgos

### 2012

    5th Overall Tour de Suisse
    10th Overall Giro d'Italia

### 2013

    4th Clásica de San Sebastián

### 2014

    4th Clásica de San Sebastián
    8th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné
       1st Stage 8
    10th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
    Combativity award Stage 18 Tour de France

### 2015

    2nd Overall Tour of Slovenia
    4th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía
    6th Giro di Lombardia
    8th Overall Vuelta a España
    10th Overall Tour de Pologne

### 2016

    Giro d'Italia
       1st Mountains classification
       1st Stage 13
    10th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía

### 2017

    8th Giro di Lombardia
    9th Overall Tour de Suisse

### 2018

    1st Stage 20 Giro d'Italia

### 2019

    4th GP Miguel Induráin
    8th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
    10th Overall Vuelta a España

### 2020

    9th Overall Tour de Pologne
    10th Overall Vuelta a Burgos

### 2022

    10th Overall Troféu Joaquim Agostinho

### General classification results timeline

Grand Tour general classification results :
| Grand Tour | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
| Giro d'Italia | — | — | 10 | 10 | — | — | 17 | 25 | — | 17 | 17 | — | 25 | — |
| Tour de France | — | — | — | — | 12 | 18 | — | 17 | 14 | 23 | — | DNF | — | — |
| Vuelta a España | — | 10 | 10 | — | 23 | 12 | 8 | — | 16 | — | 10 | 13 | 31 | — |
| Major stage race general classification results ||||||||||||||||||
| Race | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 |
| Paris–Nice | — | DNF | — | — | 85 | — | — | 28 | 25 | — | 56 | — | — | — |
| Tirreno–Adriatico | — | — | — | — | — | 10 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Volta a Catalunya | — | — | 26 | DNF | 13 | DNF | — | 12 | 53 | — | — | NH | — | DNF |
| Tour of the Basque Country | DNF | — | — | — | — | 24 | 45 | — | 29 | — | 8 | NH | 49 | DNF |
| Tour de Romandie | — | 41 | — | — | — | 52 | — | DNF | — | 16 | — | NH | — | — |
| Critérium du Dauphiné | 42 | — | — | — | 17 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Tour de Suisse | — | — | — | 5 | — | — | — | — | 9 | — | — | NH | — | — |