Watch out cycling world, Enzo Hincapie is on the loose. The 13-year-old rider, son of former Lance Armstrong teammate George Hincapie, won the qualifying race Saturday morning in Athens, Georgia. He led the race for several laps before finishing 11th.

Cheering on the tall, lanky teenager were his father George, his uncle Rich Hincapie, founder of Hincapie Sportswear, and his "adoptive" fathers Christian Vande Velde and Bobby Urich, former Grand Tour pros who moved to Greenville.

"It's a big criterium for him. This is his first time on such a tight course, a super fast course with adults. He's only 13 years old. So it was great to see him fight through to the end there. He was very aggressive and at the front of the pack. It was really fun to watch him do well," George Hincapie told Cycling News after the finish of the final amateur race before the pro racers took the stage at the Athens Twilight. [ONTO p/b Hincapie Racing's Enzo Hincapie is fresh off two wins in the boys' junior 10-14 category of the Hincapie Spring Series. He followed that up with a fourth-place podium finish in the boys' junior 15-18 category at the Tiger Town Classic in the road race and criterium. A week later at the Hincapie Spring Series, he took first and second place in the 15-18 age group. On to the bigger stage.

Hincapie only had to travel about 55 km to Spartanburg, South Carolina, to test his skills against adult riders. The result was outside the top 20.

Most of the Athens Twilight crowd packed onto the course in College Town were unaware of Hincapie's career-building step. When the announcer pointed out that soon-to-be-crowned Luke Woodard was riding a single-speed bike in the 25km criterium, they cheered loudly from the sidelines and local bars on the course.

"It was really fun and very hard at the same time. The younger Hincapie told Cycling News how he felt about participating in this historic criterium, which has been held in Athens, Georgia, for 43 years.

Hincapie, who was called "Elephant" by his father, dabbled in bicycle racing for a few years, but became seriously interested in the sport in 2021 when he participated in a regional junior race. he also competed in the USA Cycling Amateur Road Nationals, where 13- to 14-year-old category, finishing in the top five in all three events: criterium, road race, and time trial.

"I do the crit as training and to work on my road power," Enzo Hincapie said. He was unsure whether he would compete the next day in the seventh and final round of the Speedweeks series, Spin the District in Hapeville, but apparently he was in good shape and finished 16th in the middle of the pack in the men's category 2/3 on Sunday.

Enzo is the middle child in the family, his sister Julia is three years older than him, and his brother Lucca is not yet ten. His family continues to own and operate Hincapie Sportswear and Hotel Domestic, and this fall they plan to host the 10th annual Gran Fondo Hincapie in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. They will probably participate in many more races this year.