«When I heard the news and the next day I learned that Mader was dead – murmurs Andrea Peron – I seemed to see that day againI live in Switzerland, I saw it in Switzerland and it got a lot of attention. It was almost the same dynamic, even in the unfolding of events in the days that followed. It was like reliving that 1995 Tour in a Motorola jersey…».
The choice to continue
Today in Zurich will take place a commemorative event for Gino Mader, with his parents at the centre and the two-wheeled community gathering at the velodromeOur memory, however, goes back to days we experienced firsthand at the 1995 Tour: those of the fall of Fabio Casartelli, of the slow parade of the peloton across the finish line in Pau and Armstrong's victory in Limoges with his fingers raised. We don't want to rehash the pain, but thinking about it carefully No one told what happened at Motorola when they learned that their partner had died.How did they decide to continue, while Bahrain Victorious abandoned the Tour de Suisse? Why did they decide to continue? How do you deal with the loss of a teammate in a team?
«We were at the Hotel Campanile – he recalls Peron - And we found ourselves on the lawn out there, in front of the little lakeJim Ochowitz, who was the Motorola team manager, had come to ask us what we wanted to do. It was the first time something like this had happened; fortunately, we didn't have a precedent. But we all knew Fabio and his motivation for that Tour. We talked for a long time and in the end we decided to continue, just to bring him to Paris. Because Fabio, ever since he left Normandy (the 1995 Tour started on July 1st from Saint Brieuc, ed.), always said he wanted to get to Paris."
You had prepared together, right?
We had spent June training in Livigno and we kept talking about this Tour and how great it would be to get to Paris. And in the end, we decided to continue precisely out of respect for our friend, otherwise we would have stopped. We reached the end and Fabio's bike always travelled on the roof of the team car until the last finish line.. For us that was the best way to finish the Tour. It was a subjective decision of the team, obviously. al Team Bahrain they considered a different choice, with other motivations that deserve the utmost respect.
Do you think that if Fabio's accident hadn't happened at the Tour, but in any other race, you would have continued anyway?
Probably not.
Was there anyone on the lake that evening who didn't want to go on?
We were all pretty close, there was no vote, it was more of a therapyWe needed to be together more intimately. Everyone was looking for us, everyone was asking questions, everyone wanted to know, everyone wanted to be close to us, but that moment was just for us. We discussed it, we talked to each other, but in the end we all agreed to continue.Fabio had infectious energy and enthusiasm. He was always fun, always motivated, always optimistic about everything. He transmitted this to us, and so we knew he would want to come to Paris.
You talked about Ochowitz's intervention, what did he come to tell you?
Jim was devastated, like everyone else, but maybe he felt the responsibility on his shouldersMaybe not the accident, but definitely the fact that Fabio was selected for the Tour. He always had a big heart and he had a great bond with Fabio, since he also lived in Como. We were all more or less in the same area, we were almost like family.
When did you hear that Fabio had died?
Clearly, upon arrival. But going up the last climb I remember that there was a strange atmosphere, when we from Motorola passed by, people clapped in a strange way. I remember Darcy Kiefel, an American photographer, who took a picture of me on the Tourmalet and was crying in the meantime.And I thought: why is he crying? Then, slowly, it all dawned on me. The radios weren't there yet. We'd known about the crash right away, and that it was a bad one. There was still a lot of fighting in the group, and while those who had been involved were starting to come back from behind, I went to ask the flagship if we should wait for Fabio, but they told me that they had taken him to the hospitalThen I spoke to Perini, I don't remember if he had fallen too or if he had seen it, and he seemed shocked. We continued the stage, almost all of us separated, until Cauterets.
The next day the group pedaled at a snail's pace to Pau: a very slow procession, after which Bjarne Riis said that it would have made more sense to cancel the stage than to hurt themselves like that…
It was a very tough day, in a certain sense I understand Bjarne because it was really a very long stage with a lot of climbs. It was hard for everyone, also because we were emptyThere was already the fatigue of two weeks of Tour, but above all we were carrying a heavy burden inside us and we didn't have the adrenaline of the raceIf I have to tell you, I don't remember anything about that day, except the arrival in Pau and this interminable parade through the Pyrenees at a walking pace, with the whole group coming to ask us. I don't remember what climbs we did, where we went, nothing...
What do you remember about Armstrong's victory in Limoges?
Lance was incredibly motivated to do something reminiscent of Fabio. And when he was like that, he brought out an uncommon energy. It was a victory for Fabio, we didn't celebrate that eveningWe tried to maintain a respectful, but fairly light-hearted, demeanor. It takes a lot of strength to continue in that stateWhen these things happen to you, finding the energy to keep going and complete stages of the Tour de France is incredibly difficult. We rode the Pau stage at a walking pace, but then the race continued, with all the difficulties of a Tour de France.
With the same head?
We were forced to react, but at least for me there was no longer any sense in seeking victory, the performance, the result. There was only the finishing line and taking Fabio to Paris. The real struggle was not to get sucked into the negative emotions and negativity of what had happened, otherwise it would have been impossible to move forward.
Were you Fabio's roommate on that Tour?
When I entered the room that evening, I remember very well that there was his suitcase open on the bed, because they had opened it, I think to look for the documents. The suitcase was open, but Fabio was no longer there.It was a heavy thing.
There has been a lot of talk about racing safety in recent days.
I don't think that then, as now, anyone was to blame in terms of protection. Gino Mader and Fabio before him passed away doing what they lovedEvery cyclist takes on a certain amount of risk, just like those who ride motorbikes, as happened to Simoncelli and, for example, skiers. I remember the death of Ulrike Maier in 1994, whom I knew. She crashed into a pole and died. I think of mountain climbers who die in the mountains. What makes me angrier are the deaths that can be avoided..
What you mean?
I think of the poor Davide Rebellin, who was killed because a truck driver ran over him and didn't notice himOr all the deaths that occur almost weekly, hit by distracted drivers. This makes me angrier, because something could be done for themDeath is always the same, but those deaths must never happen again.
