Lucca, 17 June 2024 – “We were going down, then we found ourselves in front of the machine. At that point you apply the brake and close your eyes, but the impact is inevitable”. Great fear due to a bad accident yesterday morning during the cycling race Sportful Dolomiti Race, when a car found itself on the race course, hitting the runners. Among these, a big scare for the runner from Lucca Stefano Cecchini, 46 years old, well known in the amateur circuit for the many victories achieved, whose family owns two famous shops in the historic centre. The testimony of the accident, however, comes directly from Emanuele Labateamateur cyclist of the Lucca team Stephenwho was part of the leading group, who found the car after a blind curve.
“After the first climb – he continues -, he had gone down the hill and we had separated, we were a leading group made up of around fifty bikes. After the start of the descent we made a blind bend, and found this car in front of us. It all happens really fast, but we quickly realized that the impact was inevitable. We were going down at about 50 kilometers an hour, but the car was also traveling at about that speed. There was a general fall, but 3 of them got the worst of it. Whoever found the car literally in their face was seriously hurt, and their bicycles had to be thrown away. I have bruises on my shoulders and a swollen arm, but it could have been worse, and in fact I managed to finish the race.”
According to an initial reconstruction, there would have been an elderly lady driving the car, in an evident state of confusion, who would have even forced three roadblocks in the organization of the race. It would appear that the lady reported that she was late for mass. The accident occurred on the Forcella Franche curve, in Riamonte.
“Fortunately Stefano managed to avoid the impact a little – says his father, Luigi Cecchini, medical historian and athletic trainer – . Unfortunately he got stuck on the rear-view mirror, and this cost him a fracture of his humerus. Furthermore, he has lost two teeth and has around thirty stitches in his mouth. But the way it went, it could have really ended worse, having seen him I feel calmer. Between tomorrow and Tuesday he will be operated on by a trusted doctor, who had already helped him in the past, near Verona where he has now been transferred.”
The cyclist himself indulged in an outburst on social media: “Thank you very much to all the people who were close to me, to those who helped me and cared for me – writes Cecchini on his Instagram profile -. To date I have 30 stitches on my face , 2 fewer teeth and a broken humerus. Now I just want to hug my children and my wife, my dad, my mom and my brother. With love, Cecco.”
In addition to the Lucca area, a 34-year-old from Rovereto and a 49-year-old Irishman paid the price. All three suffered multiple fractures and were admitted to Agordo hospital. The organizers were furious: “There was no way to stop the woman, we tried in every way, but avoiding the accident was impossible.” In the meantime, police investigations have begun to reconstruct what happened in detail.
