The bicycle has been his passion since childhood and for four seasons it was also his job. A professional from 2017 to 2020, Luca Raggio started from Coreglia, raced all over the world and returned to his native Liguria at the end of his career with a clear objective: to personally commit to growing the cycling movement in his region.

Clear ideas and a strong desire to give back some of what cycling has given him. Five years ago, Luca became a promoter, together with some friends, of the Più Sport project through which he brought many children back to cycling.  Few proclamations and plenty of work: schools, safety, race organization and events.

Over the years the project grew, a youth team was added to the Giovanissimi squad, and Luca and his associates received recognition for what they managed to accomplish.

At the end of 2024, after some reflection, he decided to run for the federal elections for the position of regional president, which Luca Raggio now holds. "It's a demanding task, but I carry it out with passion and pride. For me nothing has changed, I try to bring the guidelines I used for the Più Sport project on a larger scale: small but constant steps. Everything with the support of a proven team that has the right mix of experience and youth" the former professional tells tuttobiciweb

Passion. It's not a word that Luca Raggio uses often, but it's what he manages to convey when he talks to us about the activities of the Ligurian committee. "We are truly very proud to have 'restarted' the activity at the Genoa Velodrome. Being able to count on good weather conditions, we opened the track a few months ago, allowing our athletes to do good preparation".

The race calendar, another cornerstone for Raggio. "The lack of races in past years had become a problem. The gap with other regions is still high but we managed to schedule various events. Between road, off-road and enduro we have a good number of races for Giovanissimi (about 30 ed.). We have appointments for Juniors, Allievi and Esordienti as well, although we know we can and must improve on that front".

In the race calendar, important appointments for the senior categories should not be forgotten, such as the now imminent men's Giro dell'Appennino scheduled for April 26th.

Speaking of the top category, with Raggio we cannot fail to mention three Ligurian athletes who are making their way in professional cycling: Lorenzo Finn, Andrea Raccagni Noviero and Nicolò Garibbo. "They are guys I know well, I've watched them grow. They have talent and I'm sure they'll have several opportunities to show it. Meanwhile, also thanks to them, boys and girls in our region are becoming passionate about cycling".

Luca not only praises the talented professional fellow countrymen, but also proudly highlights the presence of a prestigious team with Casano active among the Juniors: "It's a historic team. This year the managers decided to join forces with the Pedale Casale Armofer of Stefano Cinerari and Luca Colombo, who raced at Casano himself. I'm convinced that this union can benefit the movement and that the athletes can do well".

As they have done well at the beginning of this season, the Quiliano Bike, a  new reality like Contraband, and Più Sport among Esordienti and Allievi. "The Ligurian movement is growing, continuously growing. We've done a lot for this, and there's still much to do" affirms regional president Raggio. Then he adds: "Cycling has taught me to work hard to achieve goals and above all to work as a team. My collaborators and I will continue to pedal to reach important milestones".