March 1, 2019
Hello ,
I'm traveling just for fun this week. Taking a break from book promotion. So, apologies for this re-run of a story I sent you a couple years ago. But I think you'll agree it's a treat to be reminded of this guy.
Gino Bartali, one of the greatest cyclists of all time, took the secret of his most amazing feat to the grave.
“Good is something you do, not something you talk about. Some medals are pinned to your soul, not to your jacket.” So said this two-time winner of
the Tour de France. Above, Gino Bartali in 1936.
In between his cycling victories, Bartali helped save some 800 Jews from the Nazis. Gino Bartali grew from humble beginnings in rural Tuscany, his father a day laborer, his mother a lace maker. At age 11 he rode a bicycle to school in Florence from his village Ponte a
Ema.
Wheeling through the Tuscany hills, Gino developed a love for cycling, and a heart for tackling mountains. He won his first race at the age of 17, and at 24, rode to victory in the 1938 Tour de France, gaining international acclaim.
Back in Italy, Benito Mussolini wanted to claim Bartali's victory as proof Italians were part of the
master race, but in a risky move, Gino refused to go along with the fascist dictator. (Above, in the 1938 Tour de France, Gino Bartali is first over the Col de Vars in the 14th stage.)
When World War II sidetracked Gino's cycling career, he found an even
more valuable way to use his bike. In 1943, Germany occupied Italy and the Nazis started shipping Italian Jews to concentration camps. Bartali agreed to aid the Italian Resistance as a courier.
Under the guise of long training rides and wearing an Italian racing jersey, Bartali risked his life transporting photographs and counterfeit documents in the hollow frame and handlebars of his bicycle.
The photos and documents provided Italian Jews with false identity cards to protect them from the Nazis. People caught helping Jews evade capture were often executed immediately. Bartali saved a friend Giacomo Goldenberg and his family by providing food and hiding them in an apartment he owned in Florence.
Without his help, the family would most probably have died in the Holocaust. At left, the Goldenberg family--Elvira and Giacomo with their son Giorgio and their daughter Tea.
In July 1944, Bartali was arrested and interrogated at Villa Triste (Sorrow House) in Florence, where local
Fascist officials questioned and tortured prisoners. Fortunately, one of the interrogators had known Bartali before the war and convinced the others he should be let go. When the war was over, Gino went back to racing, racking up a third career victory in the Giro d'Italia in 1946, shown above. Then he shocked the cycling world by returning to win the Tour de France again, ten years
after his first victory. No other cyclist has achieved that feat.
Bartali was known as a fierce competitor up until he retired at age 40, after being injured in a road accident. He was somewhat of a loudmouth on the cycling circuit, but modest about the fact he's credited with helping save the lives of hundreds of people. The story did not come out before he passed away in 2000.
Biographer, Ali McConnon told CNN, "He was very modest about it. He held a profound sense that so many had suffered in a much greater capacity than he had. He didn't want to be in the spotlight or diminish the contributions of others."
Bartali rarely spoke of his actions in the war. When asked by another reporter to recount his greatest victory, Gino said, “I won the challenge of life, winning the love of the people.”
A most difficult challenge, but one which we can take up every day. And we don't even need a bicycle to do it!
As if on cue, after my story last week about people making money selling racist black collectibles...one of the worlds most well-known brands gets called on the carpet for a new line of keychains.
These monkey-like trinkets by Prada closely resemble racist caricatures
used to denigrate African Americans.
A couple book recommendations from Sandy, Go. Went. Gone. by Jenny Erpenpeck, and Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens, who I'm really hoping to see
when she visits Spokane in a couple weeks.
Last year we had some conversation here about
Manhattan Beach, by Jennifer Eagan, a novel that goes into great detail about WWII era naval yard divers.
In the news this week, the the British Navy will name a dive locker after their first female deep-sea diver Donna Tobias. A dive locker is used by divers who perform underwater maintenance on submarines. Watch for more here soon about women deep-sea diver pioneers.
Until next week... Have you read a great book? Tell me about it. Have a burning question? Let me know.
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