A Champion Cyclist Against the Nazis: The Incredible Life of Gino Bartali

by Alberto Toscano

Overview

The amazing story of champion cyclist Gino Bartali and how he helped save the lives of 800 Jews during World War II.

Italy, 1943. Although allied with Hitler, there were those who refused to accept the fascist policies of racial discrimination and deportation. Among them was Gino Bartali.

A champion cyclist, he won the Giro d'Italia (Tour of Italy) three times and the Tour de France twice. But these weren’t his only achievements. Deeply religious, Bartali never spoke about what he did during those dark years, when he agreed to work with the Resistance and pass messages from one end of the country to the other. Despite the dangers, Bartali used his training as a pretext to criss-cross Italy, hiding documents in the handlebars and saddle of his bicycle, all the while hoping that each time he was searched they wouldn't think to disassemble his machine.

As a result of his bravery, 800 Jews — including numerous children — were saved from deportation. He died in Florence in 2000 and was recognized as one of the 'Righteous Among the Nations' in 2013. In this book, Alberto Toscano shares the incredible story of this great sportsman and recalls the dramatic moments in Italy and Europe in the twentieth century.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526753403
Publisher:	Pen & Sword Books Limited
Publication date:	07/01/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	137
Sales rank:	1,021,626
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Alberto Toscano is an Italian journalist, writer and political scientist. He moved to France in 1986 and has worked with both Italian and French media.

He was a researcher at the Institute for International Political Studies (ISPI), Milan, has served as the president of the Foreign Press Association in France, and is president of the European Press Club, Paris. He was awarded the French National Order of Merit.

Table of Contents

Preface - Gino the Just ix

Introduction xiii

1 Italy: A Country that Pedals 1

2 The Small World of Ponte a Ema 9

3 Gino the Pious 19

4 Cycling, Fascism and Anti-fascism 27

5 The Tour de France 37

6 The Race Laws 47

7 Sport, War and Marriage 61

8 Secret Networks 71

9 Gino the Just 85

10 Gino the Old 103

11 Gino and Fausto 119

12 'I'm always chasing something!' 137

Afterword 151

Endnotes 161

Editorial Reviews

An informative testament to the kinds of risks and sacrifices the anti-Nazis in Mussolini's Italy during World War II...an extraordinary story of an extraordinary man in extraordinary times."

Midwest Book Review