The 12 of the 2001 August Valentina Alessio was in Mexico for a Junior World Cup track raceHe had summoned her Federico Paris, then coach of the Italian speed team. Lombardy from Lecco, he was 18 years old and he would have imagined anything except setting a world recordInstead, she found herself sitting next to a sacred monster like Theo Bos, five world titles on the track and more than thirty victories on the road. Who knows if the boys and girls that Alessio trains on the track in Pordenone They know her story. The last person to have told us about her was Mateo Duque, the young Argentine from Gottardo Caneva.
"When I set the world record," he recalls, smiling, "it was a wonderful day. I was a junior, but they took me to race with the elite. I just had to do the 500 meters, so they gave me Villa's bicycle, who I think was there to make the quartet. So they gave me his bike because it was already ready, with the ox horns and everything else. I was more or less the same height as him, even if some measurements weren't right and he actually told me not to move his saddle...».
And you?
And I ran with his saddle height. I was among the elite, I placed fourth and as I was leaving, a judge came to tell me that I had to go for anti-doping.I was dead tired, I had just finished the test and he came over to talk to me in English. I looked at him. I asked him what he wanted. And he explained to me that it was needed to validate the world record. (35″550, ed.).
You didn't expect it?
No, but I went with him anyway. I sat down next to Theo Bos and only then did I begin to realize that I had done it.
Statistics say you were born in Lecco in August 1983. How did you end up in Friuli?
I got married here and stayed. I ran until 2008, so I stopped early and when that happens you have some regrets.I gave what I could, but now I see that things are changing. When I was racing, if you had no opportunities on the track, you could join a military corps or you went to work basicallyNot everyone joined the military, certainly not me. Then I also had health problems and in the end I decided to quit anyway.
A career almost entirely on the track, right?
I won 17 Italian titles and joined the national team as a junior. Then I stopped for 2-3 years due to thyroid cancer and I started doing the track again in 2006 as it should be.I did the last two years, but there was no speed sector anymore. In fact they started again this year after 12-13 years of waiting, but the sector is not yet stabilized.
How do you get to the Pordenone velodrome?
In recent years, I trained here in Pordenone. I knew Gino Pancino (from Pordenone, world champion on the track in 1966) and I also knew Rino De Candido because he was the coach of the junior men's national team and together we played many World Cups. They knew that I was living here and they needed a support for Silvano Perusini, who managed the trackAnd when he chose another path, he left the velodrome in my hands.
What's it like running a velodrome like Bottecchia?
It's not easy, because it's not a small velodrome. We have 150 members, but luckily I have a mechanic who gives me a handYou can't do anything alone, especially since we split training into two shifts anyway. There's the kid who's never been on the track before and the more experienced one, but you can't follow everyone at the same time. That's why I need a hand, understand?
Do you follow their training?
I train them. I always divide them into two shifts, with the novices and women in the first round, while the juniors and under-23s are in the second. In short, I'll try to organize myself as best I can.
Do they ever ask you about your career?
No, not really. I avoid telling him what I did, because having been an athlete does not mean you can be a good coach.There have been some former champions who have caused disasters. So I started studying, I did the third level and finally two years ago I took the course to fly the dernyThe track has always been my home, and every now and then I even go watch my boys race on the track. I've grown fond of them and sometimes I follow them.
What do you see when you think about Valentina at 18 and compare her to the juniors of today?
Not only girls, but boys too are so crybaby. They always want to have a beautiful bike and everything taken care of, even if there may not be much substance behind it. And they're very spoiled. Once upon a time they gave you the bike, they chose the gear ratio and that was itNow, if they don't have special wheels, if they don't have the latest generation Garmin, they almost don't race. We're talking about Duque, who is very good compared to other riders I've had. He's very precise. He gets off, looks at his bike, and makes some very meticulous calculations.
Do you ride your bike anymore?
Zero. When it comes to preparing for the Italian championships, the regional coach lets me go on the track every now and then to try out the techniqueBut I just don't have time to go out anymore. Plus, I have two kids who play soccer. In short, time is really short.
How much time do you normally spend on the track?
It depends on when they call me. He came to train on June 2-3 Francesco Ceci, which was preparing the Italians and couldn't find an open velodrome. He asked me this favor, we've known each other for a long time and I came here to spend two days with them. I'm usually here three times a week. And the rest of the time I work in an electronics store. But I admit, I'd like to have a day to myself every now and then and just do a few laps on the trackBut who has the time?
