The announcement of his death caused a wave of emotions in the peloton and among all cycling enthusiasts. Winner of numerous classics and achieving a resounding hat-trick (Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Flèche wallone, Amstel Gold Race) in 2004 during his career, the Italian Davide Rebellin, still active at 51, was hit on a roundabout and killed instantly by a German truck driver while he was on a training bike ride on November 30, 2022, in the town of Montebello Vicentino, in Veneto (north-east). The 64-year-old German driver did not stop. He was finally identified by analyzing images from surveillance cameras located near the scene of the accident, before being arrested in Germany in June 2023.
This Monday, Wolfgang Rieke, prosecuted for manslaughter and failure to assist a person in danger, was sentenced by the court of Vincenza, in the north-east of Italy, to four years in prison for having caused the death of the Italian. The prosecution had requested a five-year prison sentence.
Died at the age of 51, the transalpine runner also won the San Sebastian clasica in 1997, triumphed over Paris-Nice in 2008 and the Tirreno-Adriatico in 2001. During the road race at the 2008 Beijing Olympics , Davide Rebellin crossed the line in second place but, testing positive for EPO several months later, he lost his silver medal and received a two-year suspension.
