IMOLA – A red marble, the figure of a cyclist. A few hundred meters from the Imola motorway exit, heading south, if you look to the right you see theformer Mercatone Uno tower with the iconic marble at its feet Marco Pantani. A symbol that brings back a myriad of memories tied to the Pirate. A place that yesterday, twenty years later, was filled with those who shared laughter, successes, and tears with the champion from Romagna. Former Mercatone Uno riders, sports directors, masseurs, mechanics…
All organized by her ex-partner Fabiano Fontanelli and Micaela Cenni, daughter of Romano who have always believed in cycling, first with Germanvox and then with Marco. A museum dedicated to the two faces of the Romagna team, who have written pages of sporting history through epic feats that will remain indelible forever. A slice of everything that has been, a floor of that tower has been taken, almost as if to escort the memory of Marco and Romano behind that marble lying on the green lawn that sees the years pass by and the glances of all generations.
Desire to remember
We arrive at the tower, the ball is behind us. The square surrounding us deserves a red carpet for the number of people who have contributed to making this sport great. Giuseppe Martinelli, Orlando Maini, Roberto Conti, Davide Cassani, Michele Coppolillo, Dmitri Konychev, Marcello Siboni and we could go on for at least ten lines, just look at the opening photo.
All this was born from the will of two people. «Fabiano Fontanelli organized everything – says Micaela Cenni – wanted everyone here to say goodbye to Marco and my dad, 20 years after the closure of that project, which today remains a benchmark for what it achieved. Everything we owned was sold. I recomposed the Mercatone Uno shirt collection, partly with some things we had, partly I bought them againI want this city to have a place to remember my dad and Marco."
All for one
A real reunion, like those you have after many years with former classmates. Here Twenty years have passed and there is a difference, most of them were part of the victory of a Giro d'Italia or a Tour de France. If we close our eyes, with a little imagination, we can still see them with that iconic yellow jersey and the Mercatone Uno writing on their chest, on their back, on their skin, in their hearts...
We climb the stairs and arrive in the conference room of the current Center Tower. Cassani takes the floor and, as only Davide can, with his deep and charismatic tone, begins to recall what those seven years (from 1997 to 2003, ed.) meant to him.
«We haven't seen each other for years – he says – it's wonderful to find you all here and the extraordinary thing is to be behind Marco's marble, there's no better placeWe're here because Romano Cenni believed in cycling at various times, starting with Germanvox, then with Mercatone Uno with Bartoli, Cipollini, and Casagrande. Then he ended his career in 1995 with the arrival of Saeco. But what's happening? Mercatone Uno returned in '97 thanks to two people, Cenni and Luciano Pezzi. It's the two of them who join forces and bet on this rider from Romagna, Marco Pantani."
Each to his own
The room fell into a religious silence. From here, a waltz of anecdotes and memories began, bouncing from one chair to the next, everyone having a memory to share of Marco and those years. One could write a book with what was said, stories that are already known, but which bring to mind a time when the strongest cyclist in the world was Marco Pantani and wore the Mercatone Uno jersey. After his speech, Cassani said: "Everyone here has a memory of Marco, whoever wants to share it».
Martinelli, urged by Davide, reaches him: «Here I learned how to be a sports director and the dynamics of a high-level team thanks to the advice of Luciano Pezzi and Franco CornacchiaI could talk about Marco for hours. I remember I wasn't sure he wanted to leave for the Tour after winning the Giro d'Italia in '98. I went to pick him up in Cesenatico, and until we got to the start in Ireland, I didn't really believe it.
«He had trained like a beast – jump up Roberto Conti – I remember we stopped at a fountain in Rimini and Marco asked me and Siboni: «Guys, if I go to the Tour, how much do you think I'll make?». We replied: «You could get on the podium, maybe third». Needless to say, he got really angry with us and told us he was only going to win».
The voices follow one another, each one has something to tell. hands and the cape on the Galibier, Accounts on the Marmolada, Coppolillo and his amateur challenges, Erase and the recovery from the '95 injury. Agostini as a schoolmate, the mechanical "Falcon" and his adjustments on the Pirata's Bianchi. Stories and emotions from those who experienced those years firsthand.
The marble
“My Pantani, my Champions”This is the title of the memorial inaugurated today, as well as the title of Romano Cenni's book edited by Beppe Conti. As soon as we look out, we see a vial containing hundreds of Marco Pantani marbles like the one outside. A simple memory, but with limitless meaning.
An entire floor dedicated to the memory of Cenni and Pantani, Hanging jerseys that retrace the beginnings and achievements. The bikes that have climbed Europe's most important climbs.Newspaper front pages with headlines that still send shivers down your spine. A journey through the memories of two of the people who made a team and a period in cycling worldwide special. A journey for everyone.
So from yesterday, anyone travelling on the A14 towards Ancona and finding Marco Pantani's gigantic red marble on the right, can slow down and come in to experience those memories and take your own marble home to jealously guard, knowing that it is much more than a children's toy.
