Richard Carapaz became the first Ecuadorian to win a Grand Tour, as well as the first Ecuadorian cyclist to win an Olympic medal. He won the 2019 Giro d'Italia, and a gold medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the men's individual road race. as well as the road race at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo (postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic).