The 111th edition of the Tour de France sets off today from Florence, it is the first major departure in history in Italy with an arrival in Rimini, on the edge of the Adriatic Sea, where 20 years ago the police found in a hotel room the lifeless body of the last great popular icon of Italian cycling, Marco Pantani, exceptional climber, last rider to have won the Tour de France and the Tour of Italy in the same year ( 1998). He was nicknamed the Pirate for his shaved head, his earrings and his famous bandanas. The second stage will start on Sunday from Cesenatico, his hometown, a small seaside resort where he now rests and where many fans still come to pay their respects.
From our special correspondent in Cesenatico,
The pilgrimage begins as soon as you get off the train: in a small brick building next to the station, the Pantani space. Three well-stocked rooms are entirely dedicated to the pirate’s exploits. Behind the counter, Ferdinando, called Paolo, his father: ” I had this museum built and I collected all of Marco’s memories, jerseys, trophies, bikes. He is here with us. »
Marco, in a pink or yellow jersey, Marco with the Pope, Marco on a motorbike… In photos or on screens, the face of the icon is everywhere. Every year, 12,000 visitors from all over the world, from all generations, come to remember the exceptional champion and the man who was so much like them. Piero traveled almost 1,000 km to spend a few minutes here: “ In the guestbook I wrote: we will never forget you. Even today, I watch videos of him on YouTube and it gives me chills. Now, there are many good runners, but not like him… Nobody gives us these emotions, not even Pogacar. »
Marco Pantani, a pirate cyclist and anarchist
Pierre Carrey is a specialist journalist and author of a book on Italian cycling. There have been songs about Pantani, he almost becomes a popular culture hero. Legend had it that Marco Pantani had to brake in the turns of Alpe d’Huez… uphill! He had the bandana, he was a pirate. »
A pirate and an anarchist, adds Pierre Carrey: “ Pantani is the anarchist, so he comes to take social revenge, to challenge the greatest. He hated Armstrong. For him, Armstrong was an upstart, he was a robot, he was a master, the man who wanted to reduce the peloton to slavery. And Pantani, facing Armstrong, was the man who stood up and said: “Me, never.” »
Also read10 years ago, Marco Pantani escaped forever
A few hundred meters from the museum, in the town cemetery, Gabriella and her husband have just paid their respects at the grave of Marco Pantani: “ Every time we come to enjoy the sea, we make a stop here. I liked Pantani’s way of being, his simplicity. I think he was a good boy, but he ended badly. »
The pirate ended up alone in an anonymous hotel room from a cocaine overdose, a suicide, according to an investigation disputed by the family. For several years, Pantani had been going badly: a positive doping test, exclusion from the race… The dark side of his life won out and today’s runners are distancing themselves, like Romain Bardet: “ It’s not a generation that I necessarily like to remember, it’s the dark years of cycling. Afterwards, we see that he’s a champion who is adored, the aura he has, certainly the tragic end too, there’s a kind of myth, but I didn’t grow up with these idols. »
A contested idol, but an idol nonetheless, Marco Pantani will remain one of the last romantics of cycling, a sport where, today, pirates are rare.
Also read: “When you win the Tour de France, you understand the greatness of this event,” explains Nibali
