WEDGE NEWS – On Sunday 30 June, at 7am, the 35th edition of the cycling race called “La Fausto Coppi” will start from Cuneo. For this occasion, the Italian Red Cross, Cuneo Committee, supported by the other Committees gravitating on the cycling routes, will deploy a notable deployment of forces, to guarantee and maximize the safety of all cyclists on the following 3 routes: Classic ( length 101 km); Medio Fondo (111 km long with 2,500 meters of altitude difference); Gran Fondo (177 km long with 4,125 meters of altitude difference).
65 volunteers will be involved with 12 ambulances, 1 attended first aid station, 1 mobile clinic, 1 team on foot, 2 mobile radio links, 1 off-road vehicle and personnel equipped for rescue in inaccessible areas, an Advanced Command Post for the coordination of health care based in Piazza Galimberti in Cuneo and 1 logistics car with emergency trolley in case of major emergencies.
The ambulances, other vehicles and para-health personnel will be provided by the CRI offices in Borgo San Dalmazzo, Busca, Cuneo, Caraglio, Dronero, Melle and Valle Stura: four will follow the race in the two routes, gran Fondo and medium Fondo, others will be positioned in strategic points where, based on the experiences gained in recent years, accidents and the greatest critical issues have occurred.
Everyone will be coordinated and in radio connection with the Operations Room of the Cuneo Red Cross set up in the Piazza Galimberti garrison, which will act as an interface with the dedicated 118 Operations Center nurse, who will evaluate the dispatch of an air ambulance if necessary. The novelty this year is the inclusion of some CRI intervention teams, called “Red Lanterns”, equipped with first aid backpacks who will cycle in staggered groups, together with the competitors.
An interpreting service provided by CRI volunteers will also be in operation to respond to possible calls from foreign competitors of different nationalities. This year too there will be some innovations including the geo-localization of the vehicles used on the route thanks to a transponder system provided by the organization which, in the event of any interventions, will allow the exact place and coordinates to be found in the shortest time possible. geographical locations and consequently the closest or most suitable emergency vehicle to provide assistance.
The maps will be visible at the coordination center in Piazza Galimberti on one of the monitors with which the vehicle used as an Advanced Command Post (PCA) will be equipped. In Piazza Galimberti in Cuneo, the fulcrum of the event, a first aid station will be set up by CRI logistics staff, attended and managed by the Volunteer Nurses of the Cuneo Red Cross: they will provide nursing-type assistance to every injured person. An ambulance will also be operational here for the possible hospitalization of cyclists in need of further care and investigations.
At Grangia Sarìa (above Colletto di Castelmagno) and at Madonna del Colletto (Valdieri), two radio links will be positioned constantly in connection with the PCA to allow effective communications and keep the connection between all the vehicles in assistance open, which is fundamental in these situations. Finally, at the crossroads of the Valcavera hill, there will be a team made up of personnel trained in rescue with special vehicles and techniques (SMTS), equipped with an off-road vehicle for any interventions on difficult terrain. Five medical motorbikes and a medical car from the organization – external to the Red Cross – will finally collaborate with the CRI volunteers.
«Every year, 30 to 50 interventions are carried out (but these will be affected by adverse weather conditions) – explains the president of the CRI of Cuneo, Gianni Enzo Valsania, – of different severity and the Italian Red Cross has always guaranteed assistance at this important cycling event in the Cuneo area which attracts over 2,500 two-wheel enthusiasts from all over the world. The assistance device is updated and integrated every year, trying to improve the offer of services, in order to guarantee cyclists and all participants in the event the most suitable assistance related to the pathology encountered”.
Like last year, also for 2024, every update and communication of public utility can be found on Twitter with the hashtags @laFaustoCoppi and #CroceRossa by following the account @CRIcuneo. The tweets will also be translated into English and French.
