It was the summer of 2012 when Fabio Aru landed at theAstanaMartinelli had spotted him and caught him the previous year and At that time, Nibali was not mentioned in the Kazakh team. Instead, that summer the rumors began and then suddenly the news became official. Nibali left Liquigas, which would become Cannondale the following year, to join VinokourovIt was the beginning of the dualism that promised to revive the glories of Coppi and Bartali, Moser and Saronni, but history followed other paths.
Mountain biking in Montecatini
Nibali has retired, Aru remembers. Six years of difference is not a small amount and the arrival of the Sicilian meant having a reference to follow.Nibali was already Nibali, with podiums at the Giro and the Tour and the victory at the Vuelta. Aru instead came from two consecutive Val d'Aosta titles and second place at the GiroBio U23. Who could have ever said that the Sardinian would have stopped before Vincenzo, when promised to be his heir after challenging him?
«When I went to Astana – says Aru – there were some rumours. I had signed the year before, in the summer of 2011. And in 2012, we began to hear that Nibali would also arrive. I met him at the USA Pro Cycling Challenge in Colorado, which was my first race as a professional, and he was wearing the Liquigas jersey. The day I finished second in a stage, the penultimate one in Boulder, we found ourselves joking in the hotel. Then we met directly in Astana, first in Montecatini on retreat and then in Sardinia».
«In those years there was still Basso – he continues – but Vincenzo was already one of the strongest. The first few years we had a lot of fun mountain biking at the beginning of the seasonHe's always loved off-roading, just look at the videos he used to upload to Instagram back then..."
Nibali's school
The relationship between the two is immediately very good. Nibali has the world to conquer, Aru takes his first stepsIt's well known that he has interesting numbers, but how he can adapt to professionalism is a question mark. So in 2013 Martinelli takes the shortest route and takes him to the Giro d'ItaliaNibali's first Giro.
«The 2013 Giro – he recalls – was for me certainly a very important experience in one of the strongest teamsVincenzo was in great condition. I was sick, but then in the last week I found some energy. It was a transition I would wish for every young person. It was worth many years of experience.».
«It wasn't so much him who taught – Aru recalls – but me who logically I observed him in every way. From how he was positioned on the bike and everything he did.I remember an important anecdote from a few years later, when he, so to speak, put himself in the position of someone who could teach me something. It happened on my first Tour so we're talking about 2016He was coming off the victory at the Giro, when he turned the standings around against Kruijswijk and Chavez…».
From the Tour to Rio
Nibali came from second pink jersey and from the Tour two years earlier, Fabio had won the Vuelta and the time had come to debut in France. The calendar had been organized down to the last detail. Nibali would have focused on the Giro and then, passing through the Tour, he would have arrived at the Rio Olympics. Aru instead would have arrived there passing through the Great Boucle.
"I remember that we left for that Tour," he recalls, "and of course I had arranged the meeting. Before the Tour started, Vincenzo told me to get behind his wheel, because he would be my pilot in the flat stagesIt was the first Tour, a difficult race in terms of improving and staying ahead. We reached the final week, after which we were supposed to go to the Olympics together."
"Him after the Giro he wasn't in great condition – Aru again – was giving me a hand and trying to get into some breakaways, but on a personal level he wasn't going that strong. When you're used to winning races and you see yourself a little under par, you start to have doubts.I remember we were on a flat stage the last week and we were talking. I saw him feeling a little down and so... I took the opportunity to thank him for what he had done in those days.
«I told him to hold on, that there were only a few stages left. And that he would arrive at the Olympics in excellent condition and I would be by his side.There was a difficult moment in Rio too. He was having the beginnings of cramps, and I told him to hang in there. He told me to do my own thing, I told him again to hold on., because the moment would have passed."
The rivalry erupts
In the meantime, things had changed between them. The young Aru was demanding space, Nibali was defending his and soon the great understanding ended.
«As riders we were different – Aru recalls – because he always tried to take advantage of every opportunity, even those in which he may not have had super legs. But he always tried to leave his mark on whatever race he participated in. And many times he managed to pull out some high-level performances, something that perhaps I should have done more of as well.
«It happened that at a certain point we found ourselves against each other, but not as some newspapers that exaggerated the situation reported Because they tend to do so. Now we've both changed in character; as the years go by, we begin to think differently. We were against each other, but not in the sense that we argued., but maybe there were moments of tension. Even though we are six years apart, we are both competitive and so everyone wanted to get higher and higher. But in recent years this rivalry has changed and It's become a bit of a tease. There's a lot of respect.».
The Shark's Legacy
It would have been difficult in 2017, when Nibali moved to Team Bahrain-Merida, imagine that their long-awaited and announced rivalry would never blossom.
«I have never hidden that the age factor was on my side – Aru smiles – and it would have allowed me to continue for a few more years. But as I've said several times, this was my decision and I'm happy with that. Vincenzo will be missed by cycling. Except perhaps for the last few years, it has always been present: an athlete who guaranteed excellent performances. Both for stage races and one-day races.
«So definitely leaves a great void and an important legacyI always hope that athletes capable of doing just as well come along. In short, someone who can come close to what he did... ".
