Giro D'Italia 2013: Vincenzo Nibali Continues to Prove He's an Elite Cyclist

Vincenzo Nibali captured his second career Grand Tour race and earned his third victory of the year on Sunday, winning the 2013 Giro d'Italia by 4 minutes 43 seconds.

There is no debating the Italian's dominance now, widely considered to be in the same class as world powers Alberto Contador, Chris Froome and Bradley Wiggins.

Nibali had the lead after the seventh stage of the event and never let go, cementing his victory when he captured the last two mountain stages in convincing fashion. This was despite talk of several riders potentially teaming up to thwart Nibali's chances in the mountain stages.

All the 28-year-old did was improve on his lead down the stretch and eventually coast in the final stage.

Nibali, the No. 5 cyclist in 2013, according to CyclingRanking.com, has proven his dominance. When other cyclists begin to talk about conspiring to collectively take you down, you know you've made it. His victory on Sunday showed just how far he has come, building on his spectacular 2010 campaign when he won the Spanish Vuelta.

The victory in his home country should only boost Nibali's confidence as he continues to soar.

He said after the race, according to the Associated Press, via CBC.ca:

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It was a really unique emotion hearing all the fans cheering for me. I really enjoyed this stage. It was unbelievable seeing all those people along the road. This victory crowns a life's dream.

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Nibali has already said that he won't be racing in the Tour de France this year, but he still has the Vuelta and the world title race in Florence to look forward to. The way things are going for the Italian, it's safe to say he's going to be a prime contender in those races.

Any doubt that Nibali is an elite cyclist should have evaporated by now. He's shown more than enough to earn the distinction.