The Beautiful Race: The Story of the Giro d'Italia

by Colin O'Brien Narrated by Carlotta Brentan

Overview

Born of tumult in 1909, the Giro d'Italia helped unite a nation. Since then, it has reflected it's home country-the Giro's capricious and unpredictable nature matches the passions and extremes of Italy itself. A desperately hard race through a beautiful country, the Giro has bred characters and stories that dramatize the shifting culture and society of its home. There was Alfonsina Strada, who cropped her hair and raced against the men in 1924 and Ottavio Bottecchia, expected to challenge for the winner's Maglia Rosa, the famed pink jersey, in 1928, until he was killed on a training ride-most likely by Mussolini's Black Shirts. And what would a book about the Giro d'Italia be without Fausto Coppi, the metropolitan playboy with amphetamines in his veins, guided by a mystic blind masseur, who seemed to glide up the peaks. But let us not forget his arch rival Gino Bartali-humble, pious, and brave. It recently emerged that he smuggled papers for persecuted Jewish Italians. Then there is the Giro's most tragic hero, Marco Pantani, born to climb but fated to lose. Halted only by World Wars, the Giro has been contested for over a century, and The Beautiful Race is a richly written celebration of this legendary race.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

11/27/2017
O’Brien, an Irish sportswriter living in Rome, wonderfully captures the colorful characters and landscapes that have shaped a century of Italy’s national cycling race. As he explains, the adage goes that the Giro, which started in 1909, did more to unite Italy than Giuseppe Garibaldi’s Risorgimento in 1870. There is plenty here to support that assertion, especially through the 1950s, when the stars of the Corsa Rosa—the Pink Race, so named for the pink jersey worn by the race leader—were primarily Italian and came from all over the country. Founding director Armando Cougnet oversaw a grueling race that contrasted with the established and rigid Tour de France; the Giro immediately drew swarms of passionate cycling fans. O’Brien hits the historical highlights of the race, starting with the 1920s dominance of Alfredo Binda, then details the 1950s rivalry between Gino Bartali and Fausto Coppi, which symbolized two sides of midcentury Italy (Bartali was a religious Florentine; Coppi came from working-class Turin), and the globalization of the race in the 1960s with riders such as Belgian Eddy Merckx. The author provides seven “Salita Famosa” sections that illustrate how formidable climbs have influenced racing (the Passo Croce d’Aune inspired the quick-release lever design, for example). O’Brien has written an excellent, detailed narrative that expertly places the Giro within the context of modern Italian history. Photos. (Apr.)

The Guardian

"There is a feast of anecdote to enjoy. A marvelous account and a tremendously exciting story. "

Road Magazine

"The Giro and Italy, Italy and the Giro: this book helps to explain how each has helped shape the other. An excellent introduction to the history of the Giro and all that it means to Italy and cycling. "

From the Publisher

"O'Brien wonderfully captures the colorful characters and landscapes that have shaped a century of Italy's national cycling race. An excellent, detailed narrative that expertly places the Giro within the context of modern Italian history."--Publishers Weekly

"There is a feast of anecdote to enjoy. A marvelous account and a tremendously exciting story. "--The Guardian

"The Giro and Italy, Italy and the Giro: this book helps to explain how each has helped shape the other. It is clear that the Giro has been an important feature of Italian sport--and indeed the country--since 1909; some have even suggested that 'the race has done more to unite Italy than Garibaldi's Risorgimento ever managed.' An excellent introduction to the history of the Giro and all that it means to Italy and cycling." --Road Magazine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940160189031
Publisher:	Dreamscape Media
Publication date:	01/16/2024
Edition description:	Unabridged

Videos