Morini left Chile without being able to see Viviani's world championshipMarco Bertini remained with the Veronese, while Fred left with the younger group. They saw the victory together during the stopover in Paris, but obviously it wasn't like following it from the centre of the track.Bertini has been with Viviani for several years, so Fred has no problem pleasing his colleague.
When we spoke at the end of the World Cup in Kigali (opening with the event's mascot), Morini confided to us that those on the track would be the last. So, now that the Chilean trip is over, we thought we'd check whether he'll stick to his guns. The World Cup in Santiago, Chile, was truly the last one for the Umbrian who was a professional for two seasons and had to retire due to a serious back injury consequence of a fall during training?
"It could be," he says, smiling and already hesitating a little, "even though we've only just started talking about it. My business has expanded and a little more presence at home is necessary, also for the childrenThe days are always getting longer. You add a training camp or a race. Recently I did the World Championships in Africa and then I went to Chile. They asked me to do two more training camps before Chile, but I said I couldn't do it.».
What has all this blue given you so far?
I'm very sincere, It gave me back a lot of what I missed during my years as an athlete.I had to stop early, and experiencing certain emotions helped me even out some of the scores. Not because I would have won the World Championships or the Classics, but I would have liked to be on a team that won them. It wasn't possible, but in that sense, the national team certainly gave me a lot back. It also gave me some visibility, I have to be grateful to cycling for this too.. Plus, it also gave me what I might call the good values we try to pass on to younger people.
What are you talking about?
The new generations arrive, they have more demands and less attention, they receive fewer educational gestures. Once upon a time there was more severity in the teamsIn Fusi's national team, you finished lunch and had to put your chair back under the table. You couldn't pick up your fork until everyone was at the table. You would never have eaten with your cap on, instead. Today they arrive with headphones, they talk, listen to music and have lunch with their partner next to them.
Is it possible to get messages like this across?
Yes, with due manners. I'm telling the truth, in the end the kids who come all have a form of respect, some more than others, towards the blue jersey and the national team atmosphere. If you tell them, they don't get offended and they don't respond rudely, absolutely not. The national team still manages to preserve all of this.
Which of your many trips have left the biggest impression on you?
I liked them all, at least in absolute terms. The Tokyo Olympics with the quartet's gold certainly gave me the greatest emotions., the pleasure, the maximum enjoyment, if you will.
What does it feel like to be there in the middle of it all as they do it?
You experience it as a privileged fan. And then seeing the athlete who after the victory comes and gives you a pat on the back makes you understand that your work is being recognized. It pays you back. Do you know what's a really nice thing? The fact that even just before leaving, it happened to me with Guazzini before they won the quartet, they come and ask you if you have ten minutes to do a check. They are the ones looking for you and this makes you feel good, because you feel that you are useful. Maybe what you do doesn't change anything in their physique, because they're already ready and trained to win, but it's nice that they seek you out. It happened at the Olympics with Ganna, Milan, and Consonni. It happened at the last World Championships, before the Madison final. It's probably an extra mental support and in that moment you become a real teammate.
What do we talk about when I'm on the couch?
Of numbers. Young riders people are not very passionate about cycling, unless we are talking about PogacarHe's only interested in history and big names to a certain extent, while I was learning about the riders of the 70s and 80s. What unites them all are the numbers"I did the Three Days of De Panne, I saw 450 watts and I was there. I felt good, but I knew I had to stay in that range." And if you tell them they could have tried to break away, they say no, that otherwise they wouldn't have the strength for the finale. They rely on numbers, that's cycling today.
Is it the same with Ganna, Milan and the others?
No, with Ganna we also talk about other things. Pippo, Milan and Consonni also discuss their personal lives.We talk about cycling, yes, but also about other things. They're still young, but no longer very young in the cycling world. They ask how work is going. They ask if I miss the life of a rider. They see that when I'm with them, I feel good. We talk about everything, they asked me if I have already opened the new center. Instead, there are younger guys who could lie on the table with their headphones on and get a massage without saying a word.
Is it fair to say that the national team, at least for the older players, is like a family?
Yes! We have a great WhatsApp group that we, as staff, occasionally reply to, but we're all involved. He was born before Tokyo and is hyperactive..
So do you understand why Viviani wanted to finish on the track and didn't stop at the Giro del Veneto?
He wanted to do his last World Championship, and then this date happened. If it had been in September, he would have done it anyway and then finished. He wanted to leave his mark on the track world championship and he made it clear to us from the first day we were in Chile.As soon as we arrived, he said he wanted to leave his mark, that he was fine and had done everything possible to get there in the best possible way. He wasn't there to say hello, he did everything to win.
For example?
He asked to be treated at the times he needed to be treated. "Not tomorrow morning, because I have to go out and do that kind of work. Better in the afternoon." We asked him if he was coming to the velodrome to see the boys and more than once he replied that he would follow them from the room, because he wanted to do some work on his body. He went to win. It may be easy to say now, but it was as if he was already certain he would succeed.
You know you won't stop this time either, right?
I would miss it if I had to close completely, that's why I say that I will stop with the commitment I have given up to nowMaybe I'll be able to do a few days, but I'm already saying no to next year's European Championships. We'll see about the World Championships, a World Cup to do it in, but all the commitment I've had up to now will no longer be there. I have a lot to do at home, I have made a major expansion of the work and I have to follow it up.
And then, in any case, with Jovanotti you've found another important athlete to follow...
He's a champion too. He is a champion in the truest way, because he is attentive to everythingNow that I've started following him a little more, I hear from him with incredible continuity, almost every day. The work, the exercises to do. We see each other, we plan, we rehearse. He is a great professional and the bike also has an incredibly positive influence on him.. He lives it as a passion, but he also knows that his concerts are real athletic performances and cycling is the best way to prepare for them. He previously worked with Fabrizio Borra And one day he said to me, "Look, there were others too, but I feel in your hands what I felt with the coach." Because that's what he called him. And I think coming from him, that's a really nice compliment.
