Group of cyclists, traumatized after being attacked with a gun during training, on the road. “A terrible incident!”
An extremely serious incident rocked Italian cycling at the end of this week. During Saturday morning, several SC Padovani team drivers were training in the Val d'Adige area, in the Trentino-Alto Adige region, in northern Italy.
SC Padovani Photo/Facebook
As the group pedaled down the road, a car drove past them and a man inside rolled down the window and fired a gun twice at the riders. Fortunately, the fires did not injure anyone and the athletes escaped unharmed.
“We are relieved that all the boys are safe after what happened. This is a terrible incident that we hope will never happen again. The road is the boys' gym and as an organization we have taken all the necessary steps to make sure they can ride safely!
Unfortunately, we cannot do anything about the carelessness of certain individuals. What happened in Val d'Adige is not the only incident of aggression by drivers towards Padovani athletes who have trained here in recent weeks.
We must remember that Marco Palomba was hit by a car in September, so it is essential to raise awareness among all drivers so that they adopt a culture of respect!“said Galdino Peruzzo, president of the SC Padovani team.
The incident comes in an already difficult context for the SC Padovani team. In October, cyclist Kevin Bonaldo died aged just 25 after suffering a cardiac arrest during a race. The athlete was hospitalized for a month in a coma, in a hospital in Vicenza, but the doctors could not do anything to save his life.
Regarding Saturday's attack, the Marca publication notes that the reasons for the gesture are not known, nor if the weapon used was loaded with live ammunition. The vehicle involved left the area immediately, and the shots fired did not cause casualties or injuries.
The practice was stopped on the spot and the team members later went to the police to file a complaint.
