«When he died I was four and a half years old, I remember a caring and affectionate father. Like that day in the garden at home, when I learned to stay balanced on the bike: he took off the wheels, held my saddle, let me go ». The eyes of Faustino Coppi, son of the Campionissimo, are shining. Lucid like those of the Couple fans, cyclists and pedal enthusiasts, about sixty in all, who met yesterday morning in Calderba, like every Epiphany, in front of the cyclist’s temple and the monument dedicated to the Heron.
The tribute to the myth of Castellania 63 years after his untimely death (January 2, 1960, due to malaria mistaken for bronchopneumonia) which is intertwined with the memory of the Treviso cyclists who are no longer there. Faustino Coppi’s first time in Ponte di Piave coincides with a special anniversary: 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of Airone’s last great season, his fifth triumph in the Giro with the feat on the Stelvio and the World Championship in Lugano. Not to mention that this year a stage of the pink race will take off from nearby Oderzo.
«Being here and receiving so much affection is a great gift for me», confides the son of the Piedmontese icon, «the more time passes, the more vivid the memory. After so many years, it is exciting to see how many consider dad as a member of the family».
All with a view to a special two-year period, which will culminate with the Tour de France 2024 and the stage starting from Pinerolo: «This year the Giro includes the Camaiore-Tortona, arriving near Castellania. While the following year the Grand Start of the Tour from Italy will also be a tribute to my father: in the Piacenza-Turin, we will pass through a via di Tortona, the climb that leads to the stadium, named after my father and brother Serse. The Giro means a lot, the Tour is worth even more».
The mayor Paola Roma strongly wanted Faustino Coppi in Calderba. The gift to a community that loved and continues to love the Campionissimo so much: from Negrisia was the late Angelo Coletto, wingman of the Airone. The monument to Coppi, idea of Armando Vidotto and Luigi Tempestin, was erected in ’72. Then Germano Bisigato, with the Ex Cyclists association of the Province of Treviso, gave life to the temple in 2000, which today collects 36 photos of missing Treviso cyclists.
Just Bisigato, with Edi Tempestin, is the promoter of the ceremony that takes place every Epiphany, with the permanent presence of the lovers of San Lazzaro Caffè, Santa Cristina and Pedale Opitergino. Many gathered early in the morning in Piazza del Grano in Treviso, in front of the shop of the legendary Nani Pinarello, to then take the direction of Calderba.
There are Remo Mosole, the former professional Flavio Vanzella, the former cross world champion Renato Longo, the organizer of the Belvedere Gianfranco Carlet. There is Carla Pinarello, there is the journalist Simone Gambino (ex Tuttosport). There is the love of cycling enthusiasts, there is infinite love for the greatest ever.