At 67 years old, Claudio Courts He's enjoying a well-deserved break and uses his bike only to stay fit ("I started cycling again after thirty years, to keep myself in shape..."). His career spans about 45 years, first as a cyclist and then as a sports director, traveling the world and discovering champions. We talked about it recently in relation to Daniel. Martinez, the latest product of a long experience lived in Colombia, in what was the last stage of his wanderings: «When the sports minister changed in 2016 they removed me from office., also because the budget we had available was very limited and we could no longer afford the expenses of travelling around the world for the races".
At that point, Corti tried to test the waters around, made plans, contacted sponsors, but without a team, rejoining the caravan proved impossible.
«Try to look at how many people were left out like me: Ferretti, Stanga, and Amadio himself before the Federation's call... A wealth of experience thrown away, if you are without a team you have no chance of finding spacesAt that point I decided to put everything behind me and enjoy my retirement. After all, with what I've done, I didn't feel like getting back into the game for something small».
The importance of leaving home
Not that Claudio has distanced himself from the world that was his life. Meanwhile, he's honorary president of the youth cycling club in his hometown of Capriolo, and he's always happy to keep an eye on the younger ones. He also looks at cycling races, seeing many who started out with him competing.
«For example Esteban Chaves . he says – he lived near my house in Bergamo, I brought him to Italy when nobody knew him and he ended up touching a Tour of Italy. He lost it only because Nibali invented one of his moves when he seemed doomed.But Esteban played an important role, he acted as a driving force for his compatriots."
This is an important concept that Corti wants to develop: «The problem for many Colombians was that they remained confined to their own world., they suffered from homesickness when leaving home and avoided doing so. But that's the only way to stand out. Chaves led the way, young people understood that if they wanted to make a living from cycling they had to move and by earning well they could bring their families with them."
Martinez, raised in sacrifices
We had talked about Corti in relation to Martinez: «He reflects what I said. At the beginning he wasn't a champion, but compared to the others he had an unusual determination. He wanted to be pro at all costs and he sacrificed himself for this, he grew and now he is one of the candidates to win the next Tour. But compared to riders who have invested and achieved, there are others who had great means and remained there, such as Fabio Duarte who in my opinion could have been a champion, when he won the U23 world title in 2008 he seemed destined for great things, but he had a weak character".
Froome's discovery
Corti's story is not only linked to Colombians. For example, we owe him the discovery of a talent like Chris Froome.
«We went to do a race in South Africa, in 2007 – he says – the Giro del Capo, we had the Barloworld team focused on Felix Cardenas (who finished 2nd behind his Russian teammate Efimkin, ed.) and I noticed this tall guy who was holding his ground with agility when climbing.At the time he still had a Kenyan passport, which struck me and I decided to bring him into the team. The following year I decided to try it at the Tour de France: on the penultimate day, in the time trial won by Cancellara, he finished 14th.It was the first time he had tackled a 3-week race, He had worked so hard for his teammates and yet he still had the strength and desire to fight., I realized that there was truly good in that boy and I took him into my custody."
Froome and the borrowed car…
Their relationship went beyond cycling: «He lived near home, He often asked me to borrow my car and I gave him my wife's car to go out in the eveningHe had great resources, but he had to find his niche. In one stage of the Giro, on the climb to San Luca, he had broken away with 15 riders and that day had the strength to win, but he finished fourth. He needed to mature mentally as well, not just physically..
«You could see that he could do a lot, but I certainly never thought at the time that he would win so many Grand Tours. If you look closely, the best of Ineos has passed through my hands, like Thomas. Nobody thought that a track cyclist like him could have a great career as a road cyclist, but Geraint has always been someone who enjoyed cycling and this is still evident today., in the descending phase of his career."
Let's go back to Froome, can he emerge again?I doubt it, he's taken too many beatings in recent years. Recovering from an injury like his is already difficult, but on top of that, many disappointments were added that undermined his self-esteem. Those were too difficult years; he lost the habit of competing with the best. To emerge, a rider must believe in it 100 percent, himself before his teammates, managers, or anyone around him. Results come from within."
The lack of Italians
Looking at this cycling from the outside, Corti can only consider it far from his own ideas.
«I'm always amazed and astonished – he says – by what young people today do, but I believe it's also generated by the fact that before the young people like Evenepoel and Pogacar of today there was a generational gap. There were champions, but they wore out quickly: someone like Quintana in his first three years, in stage races, never finished outside the podium, but then he couldn't hold on.I see in these guys a strength and enthusiasm that the previous generation didn't have, perhaps not even my generation. I struggled in my first years as a pro; it took me years to find my footing. I'm just sorry that among these young champions who are shaping an era, there isn't an Italian..."
