Sepp Kuss facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Sepp Kuss

Kuss at the 2023 Vuelta a España
Personal information
Nickname	The Durango Kid The Mailman The Eagle of Durango
Born	(1994-09-13) September 13, 1994 (age 30) Durango, Colorado
Height	1.82 m (5 ft 11+1⁄2 in)
Weight	61 kg (134 lb; 9 st 8 lb)
Team information
Current team	Visma–Lease a Bike
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Rider type	Climber Super-domestique
Major wins
Grand Tours Tour de France 1 individual stage (2021) Vuelta a España General classification (2023) 2 individual stages (2019, 2023) 1 TTT stage (2022) Stage races Vuelta a Burgos (2024) Tour of Utah (2018)

Sepp Kuss (born September 13, 1994) is a professional cyclist from Durango, Colorado, USA. He is famous for winning the 2023 Vuelta a España, which is a major cycling race. He was the first American to win this race since 2013.

Sepp Kuss rides for the team Visma–Lease a Bike. He is known for being a very strong climber. He often helps his team leaders, like Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard, win big races called Grand Tours. He has helped them win six Grand Tour titles!

Even though he often helps others, Sepp has also won races himself. He has won stages in the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España. He is one of only two cyclists ever to finish all three Grand Tours in one year and then win one of them!

Sepp Kuss: A Cycling Journey

Starting in Cycling

Sepp Kuss began his cycling career in mountain bike racing when he was younger. He also raced while studying at the University of Colorado Boulder. He won three national titles in college for mountain biking. At that time, he wanted to see how far he could go in cycling after finishing his studies.

In 2016, Sepp started racing for an amateur team. He got his first win on a tough uphill stage at the Redlands Bicycle Classic. Later in 2016 and 2017, he rode for another team before joining LottoNL–Jumbo in 2018. This was a big step for him.

Becoming a Professional Rider

In 2018, Sepp Kuss had a great year. He won three stages and the overall race at the 2018 Tour of Utah. This showed he was a very talented rider.

He then started riding in major races called Grand Tours. These are long, multi-week races. He rode in the 2018 Vuelta a España and the 2019 Giro d'Italia. In 2019, he won his first Grand Tour stage at the 2019 Vuelta a España. He attacked alone from a group of riders and rode to victory. He also helped his team leader, Primož Roglič, win the overall race that year.

In the 2020 Tour de France, Sepp finished 15th overall. He was helping Roglič again. This was the best finish for an American rider in the Tour de France since 2015. He also helped Roglič win the 2020 Vuelta a España.

Big Wins and Team Support

In July 2021, Sepp Kuss won Stage 15 of the 2021 Tour de France. He broke away from a large group of riders on a tough climb. He kept his lead all the way to the finish line. This made him the first American to win a Tour de France stage since 2011.

Kuss at the 2022 Tour de France

During the 2021 Vuelta a España, Sepp and his teammates helped Roglič try to win his third straight Vuelta title. Sepp was very strong, even wearing the King of the Mountains jersey for a few stages. He finished eighth overall in the race, which was his first top 10 finish in a Grand Tour. Roglič won the Vuelta again.

In 2022, Sepp helped his team leaders, Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard, in the 2022 Tour de France. He played a key role in helping Vingegaard win the yellow jersey. Sepp is known as a "super-domestique." This means he is a very strong rider who works hard to support his team leaders, often by setting a fast pace on climbs or protecting them from other riders.

Kuss (right) riding in support of Primož Roglič at the 2023 Giro d'Italia

Kuss (right) riding in support of Jonas Vingegaard at the 2023 Tour de France

Sepp continued to be a key helper in 2023. He supported Roglič's win in the 2023 Giro d'Italia and Vingegaard's win in the 2023 Tour de France. Then, he rode his third Grand Tour of the year, the 2023 Vuelta a España. His team, Jumbo-Visma, was trying to make history by winning all three Grand Tours in one season.

On Stage 6 of the 2023 Vuelta, Sepp won after attacking from a group of riders. This put him in second place overall. Two days later, he took the lead in the race and held onto it! He successfully defended his lead for the rest of the race, even though his own teammates, Vingegaard and Roglič, were also strong contenders. Sepp Kuss became the first cyclist since 1957 to ride all three Grand Tours in one year and then win one of them. His team also made history by winning all three Grand Tours in the same season!

In 2024, Sepp was supposed to race in the 2024 Tour de France, but he got sick and couldn't start. However, he bounced back quickly. He rode well in his next race, the 2024 Vuelta a Burgos. He won a mountain stage and then held on to win the overall race by a small margin. He also started the 2024 Vuelta a España but finished 14th.

About Sepp Kuss

Sepp Kuss has Slovenian family roots. In 2022, he married Noemí Ferré Fernández, who is also a professional cyclist from Spain.

Achievements

Mountain Bike Wins

Road Race Wins

Grand Tour Finishes

Sources:

Grand Tour general classification results
Grand Tour	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Giro d'Italia	—	56	—	—	—	14	—
Tour de France	—	—	15	32	17	12	—
Vuelta a España	65	29	16	8	DNF	1	14
Major stage race general classification results
Race	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Paris–Nice	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
Tirreno–Adriatico	—	—	—	—	68	—	—
Volta a Catalunya	—	DNF	NH	12	—	19	13
Tour of the Basque Country	DNF	95		—	DNF	—	41
Tour de Romandie	—	—		14	12	—	—
Critérium du Dauphiné	34	26	10	23	—	—	DNF
Tour de Suisse	—	—	NH	—	DNF	—	—

See also

In Spanish: Sepp Kuss para niños