COMANO TERME – In two weeks, the Giro d'Italia has finished, will close the last page on the career and that point a new life will begin for Marta BastianelliThe strangest aspect of this whole story is that there's more emotion in the person telling her about it than in her. A sign that she's been making the decision for a while now, and thanks to this... she managed to distribute her emotions in the long period she allowed herself before leaving the sceneThe Italian road championship will be held on Sunday: last race with the jersey of Blue Flames.
Is it possible that you never think about it?
At the Tour of Switzerland I met up with some girls from my team and I realized it was the last time I would run with themThey were all excited, but I'm trying not to take it that way. I'm happy that it's my last year and that I'll stop after the Giro Italia. Of course it can also be a bad thing, because you think that certain girls, especially foreign ones, you will never see again.. With the Italians, however, the opportunity will arise.
Zero emotion?
I know that the Giro will be the last race and I'm actually starting to realize itThings are going like this, the final race is approaching. These have been very peaceful days. I've always made my own path, thinking about what awaits me tomorrowOne day at a time. And I have to say that I am increasingly convinced of my choice.
What will the first few days as an ex be like?
Everyone asks me what I'm doing the next day. My vacation will be staying home to enjoy my family, the things left behindWe have the sea nearby, I don't have to travel very many kilometers. In my opinion, not everyone in this environment understands the normality of life. I tasted it when I had the baby girl.I've already had a taste of what awaits me, both beautiful and complicated, because life isn't all roses and flowers.
Any worries?
This career lasted twenty years, I'm very happy. I've had a calm experience since the beginning, I've always tried to be professional., so consequently it doesn't weigh on me and I don't lose sleep over it. I'm ready to take this step.
Arzeni spoke of you as a champion, for the example you set with your lifestyle and your athleticism.
I've always said that the greatest recognition that can be given to me is that of the person, because it is what remains in life and in the future. There have been many champions and perhaps those who are not remembered were not up to the task. So I'm happy with the words of ChiefWhat I won will remain in the halls of fame, though. Marta is not just her victories.
What was it like to find yourself in this WorldTour that is growing so rapidly?
This team is like a family to me, because we have moved from the context of Alé Cycling al UAE Team Adq of nowWe met new people who want to grow and carry on an important conversation with women. I had a great time and I hope they continue to grow.
The old Alé Cycling was less gigantic…
This is a conversation I also had with some of my colleagues in Switzerland, but I don't want to be misunderstood, so let's put it down wellI'm happy with the change because it had to happen. It's just that... the change happened very quicklyI turned professional when I was 19 and until I was 36 we made very slow progress. In the last three or four years, however, the change has exploded all at once.Even us veterans struggled to keep up with him and I don't know if all this well-being is the best thing for the younger ones.
How can we say that it's wrong to have everything right away?
Maybe they should have the opportunity to earn it too. We wanted and achieved all this, but it seems to me that today many girls earn a good salary and just sit back. We were fighting to get there and I hope they have the same hunger.If well-being takes away the awareness of having to make sacrifices, then the game no longer works.
Doesn't this happen with everyone?
Sometimes I look around and I see girls who find the food already ready and sit downThis is not how it should work. Companies invest money, if they were to realize that we are taking advantage of it, they could very well close down and we would go back immediately.
Could your role and that of the more experienced ones be precisely that of talking to the girls?
Yes, but I've made it to the end, in a year or two there will be others abroad too, girls who come from my same generation. We got to the top, but we came from nowhere. Now we have the bus, but I remember when we did the Giro d'Italia inside the vansNow it's beautiful and right that the bus is there, but the message I would like to get across is that We have to live up to what we've achieved.
We add that many girls were taken into the WorldTour because the teams were understaffed.
Here's another step to review. You can't go from nothing to everything without demonstrating that you have the means and the desire to get there.. Instead, there are girls who are taking their final exams these days, who are already earning real money. That is perhaps a small step that needs to be reviewed, which It doesn't depend on us, but on those who manage everything...
A lot depends on the person, right? Someone like Gasparrini doesn't seem overly excited; in fact, she seems very tough...
She has her head on her shoulders, she's earned what she gets and she's not one to settle. She wants more, that's how a rider is made.. Unlike many who start playing with social media, "Gaspa"he rolls up his sleeves and doesn't miss a beat (the two are together in the opening photo, ed.) Life is like that.
Sunday's Italian championship is too tough for you...
It's really tough. We want to do well, because We race only once a year with the Fiamme Azzurre who have supported us all year round for a lifetime, especially in my case, so we'll set out to have a great race. And if we fast girls have little chance, we will help Elena Cecchini who could get into a nice escapeIn any case, we'll try to honor the jersey; on Sunday I'll be racing my last Italian road championship. And thinking about it, I have to admit, it seems a little strange now...
