«My last race – says Chirico – was the Lombardia. I had been sick, I shouldn't have even done itBut there was a rider missing, so I started telling the team that I could do a maximum of 50 kilometers. At that point I got into the team car. In Como, I went to see some friends to see the final part of the race and from there I took the bike and came home.It wasn't easy, because I still had the number on my back and a bit of a lump in my throat. I arrived, my partner was there and honestly I cried. Because I realized that in that moment my racing career endedI still have the shirt with the number at home, I haven't washed it. That shirt will remain the only one I don't washI didn't win the Roubaix, I didn't do anything, but I don't wash it and it stays there. My last shirt».
A very strange autumn
Porto Ceresio slumbers peacefully on the shore of Lake Lugano. The day is strangely hot, you ride your bike in a t-shirt and shorts, but you understand that it's not normalAutumn resembles a timid summer, while Luca Chirico waits for us at the door of his new shop. He called it “On the run – Luca Chirico Bike Experience” and inaugurated it last Thursday, even though construction had begun in the spring. The idea was to open it for the summer and attract some foreign visitors, but the project changed, so everything was postponed.
«And in the meantime I was running – he smiles – My brother-in-law, who has a construction company, supervised the construction site. So luckily it lightened my load a bit on that front. The part that involved me was more of a looking for suppliers and bikes at a time when there were no bikesThe job was to fit the meetings into my training commitments. It's not easy to go from athlete to entrepreneur, change everything. I haven't gotten into the optics yet, I'm missing some thingsI have some gaps, but little by little I'm starting to get into the groove that helps you understand how to move forward, how to proceed. At first, my head is in a state of chaos, incredible. A thousand things to think about, especially the bureaucracy. Luckily my sister, who owns two pastry shops, helped me…».
Why shouldn't you have done Lombardy?
Since June I have been dealing with a very painful inflammation of the entire left sideAt first it came and went, then sometimes I didn't hear it. Instead, since August it has always hurt, without understanding what is the causeAfter the Livigno withdrawal, I returned to Peccioli and had more problems. From there I cancelled all the races, there was no point in making fun of myself and the teamIt was really disheartening. I was pedaling 30 percent left and 70 percent right.
Meanwhile, the Drone Hopper has had its problems. Have you considered looking around?
The truth? I haven't even tried to find a team for next year.I didn't feel like it, I was really down. I wasn't the professional I expected, because anyway Since I had the problem with my iliac artery I have never returned to the levels I would have liked.But I don't feel sorry for myself and I've never made excuses. I'm so happy with my life. I got married to Francesca on Saturday, and in two weeks everything changed.We wanted to get married early because his father was very ill, but he couldn't. In the end, we got married anyway; it was what he would have wanted, too.
Any regrets?
I have from the point of view of the results, because I realize that I really could have given moreThese are clichés that maybe everyone says. But I look back and say that If my body hadn't gotten in the way, I could have done a lot more.. And what can I do?
Why the name “On the Run”?
Because for me this is an escape from what I've beenI was a rider and for the name of the shop I was looking for a name from cycling slang that would belong to meI realize that I haven't made many escapes in my life, but I hope this one is the most important one that takes me far.
Will you miss the rider's life?
lately I had a hard time leaving home, but it was a hardship linked to physical suffering and so it wasn't right. Every time I packed my suitcase, I was feeling down and asking myself: why am I doing this? The leg problem persists, I've been around a lot. I'm still going to physiotherapy, This morning I was in Bellinzona to be treated by the only one who took away some of my pain.I would like to try to feel good because one day I would like to go out on my bike with my friends and one of the best is Fabio Aru.
He also had surgery on his iliac artery…
Indeed we discuss this topic a lot, because we had pretty much the same problem. The difference is that he was already an established champion, I was 22 years old and I found myself having to face this problem that was bigger than meAnd in the end, what do you do? You make peace with it, but you experience sport in a totally different way.
How do you live?
Fabio himself in recent years it wasn't the Fabio I know now. He was often nervous because being accustomed to high level competition, because of this problem it had become just a numberYou lose confidence. Before it hit me too, in 2015 at 23 I had a great Giro d'Italia. I told myself that this was the beginning of a journey, instead last year the problem emerged from the first race.
The rest of the morning goes by in chatter and storiesThe cake his sister baked for Nibali's surprise farewell party. The training routes in the lake area. Memories of his teammates from the early days, from Barbin to Rino Gasparrini who deserved to pass. Milesi sporting director and his last times as a pro in that heavy team climate. Now all this belongs to the past and perhaps a little bit of sadness will surface when friends leave for the first retreatsBut for now he's not thinking about it. And instead we have a problem: he hasn't told his mother yet that he has decided to quit. Let's hope he did so before this article came out…
