Franco Giorgetti

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Franco Giorgetti

Francesco "Franco" Giorgetti (born October 13, 1902 in Varese , † March 18, 1983 in Bovisio Masciago ) was an Italian cyclist and Olympic champion.

In 1920 Franco Giorgetti was a member of the Italian team that won the gold medal in the team pursuit at the Olympic Games in Antwerp , with Arnaldo Carli , Ruggero Ferrario and Primo Magnani . He finished sixth in the 50-kilometer race and retired in the sprint on the second lap.

The following year Giorgetti turned professional . In 1921 he won the Tour du Lac Léman . In the following years he lived primarily in the United States , where he drove mainly six-day races as a protégé of cycling manager John Chapmann . In total he started in 46 six-day races, but only three times in Europe, of which he won 14, together with prominent partners such as Robert Walthour, Jr. , Reggie McNamara , Alfred Letourneur and others. The US press called him the "Italian Kid" and the Italian dictator Benito Mussolini referred to him as "Cristoforo Colombo della bicicletta".

Franco Giorgetti has been the American master of the stayers four times . In 1933 he was also the Italian standing champion, started at the UCI track world championships in 1933 in Paris and became vice world champion, behind the pacemaker Arthur Pasquier . Shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War , he finally returned to Italy. In 1941 he became the national standing champion for the second time and ended his career.

1938 Giorgetti was by King Victor Emanuel III. honored as Cavaliere della Corona d'Italia ; In 1998, in Bovisio Masciago, a sculpture of him was unveiled in front of the sports center.

literature

  • Roger de Maertelaere: Mannen van de Nacht . 100 years of zesdaagsen. De Eecloonaar, Eeklo 2000, ISBN 90-74128-67-X , p. 212.

Web links
personal data
SURNAME Giorgetti, Franco
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Giorgetti, Francesco (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian cyclist
DATE OF BIRTH October 13, 1902
PLACE OF BIRTH Bovisio Mombello
DATE OF DEATH March 18, 1983
Place of death Varese