Gino Bartali

Gino Bartali (July 18, 1914 – May 5, 2000) was nicknamed “Ginettaccio” because he was grumpy and shy. He was an unforgettable champion road cyclist; he won the Giro d’Italia three times and the Tour de France twice. Bartali’s name is inextricably linked to Florence and Tuscany, not only because he was born and raised there, but also because of what he did outside his sporting achievements, which was way more incredible than winning any race.
During the Resistenza, Bartali helped 800 Jews and many anti-fascists using his bicycle. He cycled kilometer after kilometer, carrying forged documents under his saddle. The documents were made but the Florentine Curia and were used by Jews to escape from the Nazis.
The former President of the Italian Republic Carlo Azeglio Ciampi awarded Bartali a golden medal in 2005. Yad Vashem recognized Bartali as “Righteous Among the Nations” – the world center for documentation, research, education and commemoration of the Holocaust1 – together with other Italians who had the courage to go against Nazi’s massacres.

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