The Museo del Ciclismo Madonna del Ghisallo reopens on Saturday, March 3rd, 2018. It will be a beautiful end-of-winter opening because just like the rest of Italy, it has been snowing in Magreglio (CO).
This season at the Museum will certainly be an exciting one. There is a series of special events and press releases on the way. After the unexpected crowd for #NibaliDay, a lot of fans are expected again for when another famous champion will come to visit the museum and dedicate his time to the memorabilia and to the people he knows at the Casa dei Ciclisti, just as Fiorenzo Magni wanted: Olympic champion Paolo Bettini.
The events calendar will be revealed soon. One piece of news can be announced immediately even if it might sound strange given that the Spring weather hasn’t yet arrived at the museum or anywhere for that matter: beginning on March 3rd, at the reopening of the museum, a photographic exhibition for the Milano-Sanremo will be on display in honor of the Spring classic taking place on Saturday, March 17th, 2018, thanks to the precious archives of Vito Liverani and the Torriani family, as well as the Gazzetta dello Sport archives.
The Museum will also be teaming up with the Museo AcdB in Alessandria for a special initiative in honor of the Milano-Sanremo.: the Ghisallo museum will be lending one of their most standout jerseys in their collection to the Alessandria museum and then at the Casino’ di Sanremo: Eddy Merckx’s world champion jersey that he wore when he won his 6th of 7 total Milano-Sanremos in 1975, matching the number of wins of Costante Girardengo before beating the record and winning his 7th spring classic in 1976. Eddy Merckx’s jersey is being loaned to the Ghisallo Cycling Musuem by Rossana and Roberto Albani.
This exciting piece of cycling history will add a special touch to the precious bicycle collection beside it: Fausto Coppi’s bike from 1949 when he won the Giro and the Tour, as well as Gino Bartali’s bicycle that he used when racing alongside Fausto Coppi that same year. These two ‘rival’ bicycles are back together after many years, and besides being in the company of Eddy Merckx’s jersey, they will also be joined by Costante Girardengo’s bike, the first campionissimo in the great history of cycling.
Mark your calendars:
Saturday, March 3rd, 2018: The Ghisallo Cycling Museum reopens
March 3rd-28th, 2018: Photograph display for the Milano-Sanremo
Saturday, March 3rd, 2018: ComoLake Team Presentation
March 16th-27th, 2018: Museo del Ghisallo with AcdB Museum host a temporary exhibit called “On the Wheel of Memories … campionissimi at Sanremo’s Casino’ “. It’s a temporary exhibit in honor of the Milano-Sanremo (Saturday, March 17th) that displays three original bikes in the prestigious foyer of the Sanremo Casino’, having been previously displayed at AcdB. These are bikes that made their mark during an unforgettable era of cycling, making history with great cycling champions: Costante Girardengo, Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali, together with Eddy Merckx’s world champion jersey that he wore when he won his 6th Milano-Sanremo. In collaboration with @AcdBMuseo and @MuseoGhisallo (from the private collections of Gianfranco Trevisan, Giovanni Meazzo and Rossana and Roberto Albani).
The exhibit inauguration will be on March 16th at 17:30 and coincides with Paolo Reineri’s book presentation “A colpi di Pedali-La straordinaria storia di Gino Bartali”. Gioia Bartali will be present together with Fausto Coppi and Costante Girardengo relatives.
Translation by Casey Thompson (Bike It! Bellagio)
