At Marta Cavalli's roots, talking with her father

If it wasn't clear after the Amstel, Martha's victory Horses at the Flèche Wallonne has turned a very powerful spotlight on the girl from Cremona. In fact, if he won the first time using his head, on the Mur d'Huy he thought and waited until the end, then he poured into the pedals the strength that bent the rocky Van VleutenNot many athletes can say they've achieved this.

In fourth grade

Where does Marta Cavalli come from? We know about her entire career with the jersey of Valcar, but what comes first? We knew that his father Alberto had organized some races for a few years and We started from him to go to the origins of the F championDJ Nouvelle Aquitaine FuturoscopeAppointment at 9 am, before the company work overwhelms him.

«I agree with Valentino Villa - he tells - we had put together the Freccia Rosa, a three-race challenge in which the classification jersey had the Valcar coloursVilla was putting the prizes there, ahead of the first blossoming of women's cycling. But Marta had started first.In third or fourth grade, she started saying she wanted to run, even though I tried to discourage her.».

The bike is coming

Alberto played football, then he became passionate about cycling, racing as an amateurThere was never a shortage of bikes at home, so it was It was predictable that the daughter would fall in love with her father's sport. Who instead did everything to advise her against it.

«I was telling you – he smiles – that the satisfactions are few, which are easier to lose than to winI tried to direct her elsewhere. Until one day she came home announcing that her friend Cristian was a cyclist and she wanted to do the same.She was now in fifth grade and since I knew Gloria Guarnieri from Cremona, I took her to rehearse. We started on Tuesday and Thursday, taking small stepsWhen a child starts running, the family is drawn into it, especially in the early years. I heard athletic directors say that parents should stay out of it, but Since Marta started, I stopped running and 3-4 times a week I dedicated myself to herHaving your family behind you is a big deal. In the good times you don't understand it, in the crooked ones it makes the difference».

If Marta plants the nail

Marta is a steel rod. You look into her eyes and you recognize a crazy determinationShe's proud. And the bicycle did nothing but amplify his character traits.

«Pedaling together – continues Alberto – didn't add much to my knowledge of Marta. Our family is very close. We eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner together.We are always present, it may happen that work forces us to be absent for a while, but We raised the children 90 percent of the time.My wife works part time for just this.

«Going out with her on the bike, I saw the same character that he always put into his passionsI know her very well. She's the kind of person who, if she hammers in the nail, then that's itHe knows what he can do, and these results will increase his confidence. It's not easy to attack certain champions, it takes a lot of courage... ".

FDJ, a growth project

From a rookie at Valcar and with Valcar she grew upThen when the time came he took flight. It's understandable that certain departures, like the most recent one by Elisa Balsamo, they are wounds for the Villa team, but at the same time we can be proud of them. Marta's words on what it means to run for a foreign team It makes you reflect on the difficulty of moving at 22 years old.

"When the FDJ approached us," Cavalli's father reflects, "we wanted to see if they were truly interested. We had to decide whether to make the leap or stay. We had, and still have, excellent relations with Valcar-Travel&Service. The second person who wrote to me when Marta won the Amstel was Valentino Villa. So first we evaluated the project. Then we had a family consultation, after having spoken with his attorney. (Fabio Perego, ed.). A global reasoning was made with a view to an evolution in Marta's growth. We put the economic issue on the table, but above all the projectShe wouldn't have left just to make up the numbers. We decided together, and in the end she went to France."

The Pink Cup

He said it clearly Cassani in recent days: To get to the top of the stairs you have to climb one step at a time. So if many were amazed by Marta's results, those who experienced it most closely were there waiting for them, certain that they would come.

«There have been important steps in his career – remembers the father – the first of all the victory of the Pink Cup in Borgo ValsuganaThere he realized he could do more. Unfortunately, he had that accident in 2016, falling in Montichiari. She remained in hospital in Brescia for almost a month and then stopped for another six, with the risk of having one of her kidneys removed.But she set off again, stubborn as usual, and returned to Montichiari to win the Italian pursuit title. I told you, she had nailed it. And the following year, too, moving up among the elite and racing against the monsters, she managed to score two victories. And in 2018, with the Italian championship, he understood that it was his pathNow we don't think about certain steps anymore, we just look forward."

Kneeling on the floor

The day Marta won the Amstel, There were only three people in the Cavalli houseAlberto, his wife Romina, and their youngest daughter, Irene.

“We’re not bar people,” he smiles, “also because during the races I sometimes throw tantrums and it’s better to keep everything within the four walls of our homes. When they started the Cauberg, I got down on my knees on the floorI was aware that he had that strength, everything was getting to that point to give the thrust. As soon as I saw that he had taken 30-40 meters, I said: “We're there!”. He won as a finisher, I knew he would hold on. The sprint wouldn't have been so safe, even if she grew up with the myth of Cavendish. Not because she was or wanted to be a sprinter, but because Cavendish was the fire under the straw. Seeing those sprints, he was exalted.When she was a quartet, she was faster, had more mass and more confidence. Then she specialized on the road. And now when we go out cycling together, on the flat, she forgets about dropping me. But as soon as the climb begins, I say to her: “My daughter, wait for me at the top or come back to meet me”. And she does this. She comes up and then turns around and we finish it together…».