In front of the Italian bus World Championships in Zurich, during the junior road test, we met a look we hadn't seen for a long time. And so we discovered that Claudio Astolfi, a professional from 2001 to 2005, has been living in Luxembourg for about five years.. To tell the truth, to understand this, it would have been enough to read the list of departures more carefully to realise that one of the two Luxembourg athletes at the start was called Flavio and had his surname.
When Manuel Quinziato, a year younger than him, noticed him, he went straight to greet him. Then, approaching, the Bolzano native recalled that the Roman was a legend in the youth categories. Astolfi had in fact won the Tour of Lunigiana, like Pogacar and Evenepoel, and in the same year he came third in the world championship. Unfortunately, his career was short-lived due to diabetes.But his story of an Italian with a suitcase seemed interesting to us. So we went further.
What are you doing in Luxembourg?
As soon as I got married and after quitting, I had the idea of moving. My mother-in-law is Italian and has lived in Luxembourg for yearsBut I tried first with my bike shop in Lariano. I kept it going for 12 or 13 years, but it never really took off. And so five years ago we moved, mainly to offer something more to the kids. Flavio and Lorenzo are in high school and speak three languages (at the top, family photo with his wife Chiara, ed.).
Did you do as Simone Masciarelli did, migrating to Belgium for his son Lorenzo and now returning to Italy?
No, cycling has nothing to do with it. I'm quite happy here; we live in a small village six kilometers from the city. I work in a large store of bike and I had to learn FrenchMeanwhile, the boys study and race. Flavio, the eldest, was registered with an Aprilia team until his second year as a student and could still compete in the Luxembourg national championships because residency was enough. Then as a junior he needed nationality and so last year he got dual citizenship.. Now he runs in the junior team of the Visma-Lease a Bike.
How did it get there?
Living in Luxembourg, as a student he often ran in Germany and also in Belgium. In his first year he won 7 races, in his second 9. He came sixth in the Gold Cup, then he won the Luxembourg time trial and road championships. And they took an interest. He's very happy. They have the same equipment as the WorldTour, even the trolley and backpacks.At the beginning of the year they held a training camp in Benicassim and spent a few days with the WorldTour and the women's team. And the great thing is that they don't put any pressure on him.
You were a junior almost thirty years ago, what differences do you see?
Everything has changed, from the power meter that even students now have, to nutrition. I was training with my dad behind me and at a certain point he would honk the horn and it meant I had to go.Yet at Visma, he's experiencing cycling with less stress than in Italy. They don't race every Sunday from February to October like we do. Maybe he does a four-day stage race, then recovers at home and studies and trainsHe's been unlucky this year. He fell at the Eroica and had some hip problems. Then he contracted mononucleosis, and the same happened at the European Championships and the World Championships. But given his condition and the terrible weather, he stopped early in Zurich...
Does Flavio feel Italian or Luxembourgish?
Italian. He always says his heart is Italian, but he's also happy with the national team up here, because coordinator Frank Schleck is great. It's a shame that he wasn't called up in Italy to take the tests that juniors usually take, It's evidently right that he makes his way in Luxembourg. He's made a change of nationality, he can make another and that's it. And in the meantime We're waiting for the little one, Lorenzo, to arrive, he's terrible...
Terrible?
This year He ran 16 races and won all 16. He's a second-year rookie, but a Belgian WorldTour team has already sent a scout. He's won three races in Belgium, one with three minutes on the second, which for the rookies is not badBut I asked everyone to leave him alone. I'll look after him up to the juniors, as I did with Flavio. Then, in the juniors, it's only right that he have his own coaches.
And do you still ride a bike?
This year I've gotten the urge again (laughs, ed.). Since it gets dark later here in the summer, I started doing two hours every day after work. And then I started doing some competitionsI won all the Masters races. Then I moved on to the elite races, the real riders. And I finished tenth overall twice and ninth once. Considering I'm 46, I'm not doing that bad.
Do you ever think your career could have lasted longer?
Unfortunately in those years with the problem I had we didn't go far. It's not like now that there is even the Novo Nordisk and there are tools that allow you to live togethere with diabetesThen it was a matter of stopping and getting an injection. And after 200 kilometers, it was really impossible to go on.
Do your kids know anything about their dad who runs?
They didn't see me, but they did some research. And then up here, cycling is popular, someone must have told them that their father was strong. They saw that I won the Lunigiana and they realized that I wasn't that badI then ran into Quinziato again at the airport, and he told me the same things. It's nice to be around each other again sometimes, it's nice that someone remembers...
