# Vasil Kiryienka

Vasili Vasilyevich Kiryienka (Belarusian: Васіль Васілевіч Кірыенка; Łacinka: Vasil Vasilevič Kiryjenka; born 28 June 1981) is a Belarusian former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2006 and 2020 for the OTC Doors, Rietumu Banka–Riga, Tinkoff Credit Systems, Movistar Team and Team Ineos squads. He currently works as a directeur sportif for UCI Continental team BelAZ.

## Career
### Early years

Born in Rechytsa, Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, Kiryienka won his first national time trial championship in 2002. His early career focused mainly on the track, where he won the Points Race at the 2008 UCI Track Cycling World Championships. Later that season Kiryienka won Stage 19 of the Giro d'Italia, a mountainous affair leading to Presolana, after spending the day on the attack and registering more than 6 hours and a half in the saddle. He attacked his six breakaway companions at the foot of the Monte Para climb and soloed to the finish for the win, by a margin of over four minutes.

### Caisse d'Epargne (2009–2012)

Kiryienka moved to the Spanish Caisse d'Epargne squad for the 2009 season.
In 2010 he finished second in the tenth stage of the Tour de France after he was outsprinted at the line in Gap by Sérgio Paulinho (Team RadioShack) after the pair's decisive attack with 14 kilometres (8.7 miles) remaining.
On 23 May 2011, during the Giro d'Italia, Kiryienka's Movistar Team teammate Xabier Tondo was killed in a freak accident at home while preparing to train with teammates. He was reportedly crushed between his car and a garage door. Five days later, Kiryienka rode to victory in a solo effort on Stage 20, a mountain top finish at Sestriere, and he dedicated the stage victory to Tondó, pointing skyward as he crossed the finish line. The team had met to consider withdrawing from the race after Tondó's death, but instead the riders unanimously voted to ride on. Kiryienka commented that the squad at the Giro hoped to get a further stage win (as Francisco Ventoso's win had come before Tondó's death) to honor him, while other members of the team grieved with Tondó's family.
In September 2012, Kiryienka finished third in the individual time trial at the road world championships.

### Team Sky (2013–2020)

Kiryienka left Movistar Team at the end of the 2012 season, and joined Team Sky on an initial three-year contract from the 2013 season onwards.
In May 2015, Kiryienka won the individual time trial of the Giro d'Italia, which was 59.5 kilometres (37.0 miles) long and relatively rolling. In June 2015, he won the individual time trial at the inaugural European Games in Baku, Azerbaijan. On 23 September 2015, Kiryienka won the individual time trial at the CI Road World Championships in Richmond, Virginia, United States.
Kiryienka had the honor to carry the flag of his native Belarus at the opening ceremony of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, where he competed in the men's individual time trial event; he finished in 17th place. In October, he competed in the same event at the World Championships in Doha, where he won the silver medal – giving him at least one medal of each colour for his career.
In January 2020, Kiryienka retired from the sport due to recurring "cardiac issues".

## Major results
### Road
#### 1999

    3rd Time trial, National Championships

#### 2000

    2nd Time trial, National Championships

#### 2001

    2nd Time trial, National Championships

#### 2002

    1st Time trial, National Championships

#### 2004

    National Championships
       2nd Time trial
       3rd Road race
    6th Overall Tour of Turkey

#### 2005

    1st Time trial, National Championships
    1st Coppa della Pace
    1st Giro del Casentino
    1st Coppa Comune Castelfranco di Sopra
    1st Coppa Mobilio Ponsacco – Cronometro
    1st Stage 3 Giro della Toscana Under-23

#### 2006

    1st Time trial, National Championships
    2nd Overall Scandinavian Week
       1st Stage 3
    2nd Scandinavian Open
    3rd Riga Grand Prix
    4th Tallinn–Tartu GP
    4th Szlakiem Walk Majora Hubala
    5th Overall Five Rings of Moscow
    6th Time trial, UCI World Championships
    8th Overall Course de la Solidarité Olympique
       1st Stage 6

#### 2007

    1st Stage 3 Ster Elektrotoer
    1st Stage 5 Vuelta a Burgos
    2nd Overall Étoile de Bessèges
    2nd Eindhoven Team Time Trial
    3rd Time trial, National Championships
    7th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
    8th Overall Tour of Austria
    8th Tour du Haut Var
    9th Time trial, UCI World Championships
    9th Grand Prix de Fourmies

#### 2008

    1st Stage 19 Giro d'Italia
    1st Stage 1 (TTT) Settimana Ciclistica Lombarda
    2nd Time trial, National Championships
    2nd Overall Ster Elektrotoer
    2nd Gran Premio Città di Camaiore
    7th Overall Vuelta a Murcia

#### 2011

    1st Overall Route du Sud
    1st Stage 20 Giro d'Italia
    2nd Overall Critérium International
       1st Points classification
    9th Overall Vuelta a Murcia
    10th Overall Tour of the Basque Country
       1st Stage 2

#### 2012

    3rd Time trial, UCI World Championships
    6th Overall Critérium du Dauphiné

#### 2013

    1st Stage 18 Vuelta a España
    UCI World Championships
       3rd Team time trial
       4th Time trial

#### 2014

    1st Stage 1b (TTT) Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali
    3rd Overall Bayern Rundfahrt
    4th Time trial, UCI World Championships
    Combativity award Stage 11 Vuelta a España

#### 2015

    1st Time trial, UCI World Championships
    1st Time trial, European Games
    1st Time trial, National Championships
    1st Chrono des Nations
    1st Stage 14 (ITT) Giro d'Italia

#### 2016

    1st Chrono des Nations
    2nd Time trial, UCI World Championships

#### 2017

    UCI World Championships
       3rd Team time trial
       5th Time trial
    6th GP Miguel Induráin

#### 2018

    1st Time trial, National Championships
    9th Time trial, UCI World Championships

#### 2019

    1st Time trial, European Games

### Grand Tour general classification results timeline

| Grand Tour | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
| Giro d'Italia | 35 | 73 | 37 | 25 | — | — | — | 84 | — | 102 | DNF | — |
| Tour de France | — | — | 60 | DNF | 77 | DNF | 86 | — | 103 | 112 | — | — |
| Vuelta a España | 34 | 16 | — | — | — | 73 | 110 | 83 | — | — | — | DNF |
Legend :
| — | Did not compete |
| DNF | Did not finish |

### Track
#### 2003

    UCI World Cup Classics, Aguascalientes
       1st Individual pursuit
       3rd Team pursuit
    UEC European Under-23 Championships
       3rd Individual pursuit
       3rd Team pursuit

#### 2004

    3rd Individual pursuit, UCI World Cup Classics, Aguascalientes

#### 2005

    1st Points race, UCI World Cup Classics, Manchester

#### 2006

    UCI World Cup Classics
       1st Scratch, Sydney
       2nd Points race, Moscow
       3rd Points race, Sydney
    3rd Points race, UCI World Championships

#### 2008

    1st Points race, UCI World Championships