Cyclist Davide Rebellin has died after being hit by a car at the age of 51.

Italian Davide Rebellin died this Wednesday after he was hit by a truck near the municipality of Montebello Vicentino, according to the Italian news agency ANSA.

Davide Rebellin, 51, was cycling on the highway when he was hit by a truck that, unaware of the accident, continued on its way, according to La Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper.

The Italian cyclist, who was the first to win all three Ardennes classics in the same year, ended his career in October after three decades at the professional level.

The San Bonifacio-born runner scored this “triple” in April 2004 when he combined successive triumphs in the Amstel Gold Race, Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, a feat that only Belgian Philippe Gilbert has since matched in 2011 year.

Work Service Cycling, Davide Rebellin’s last team, has already expressed dismay at the Italian’s death, posting a statement on Facebook deploring his “sudden and tragic absence”.

“Keep pedaling with the same smile, the same enthusiasm and the same passion as always. This is not how we imagined the future,” the team says, adding that “it hurts to say goodbye to the champion and the recommendation for everyone.”

Work Service Cycling is associated with the pain of family and friends who are crying out for cycling, and adds that it represents Rebellin “on a bike, looking for new paths, new climbs and new challenges even up there in the sky.”

In addition to two more victories at Flèche Wallonne (2007 and 2009), Davide Rebellin also won the Zuri-Metzgete and San Sebastián classic (both in 1997) and the Giro dell’Emilia (2006 and 2014).

Davide Rebellin has also won stage races such as the Tirreno-Adriatico (2001) and Paris-Nice (2008) and a stage of the Tour of Italy (1996), passing through the Volta ao Algarve twice (sixth in 2006 and fourth place in 2007). ) and one at the Tour of Portugal (27th in 2017).