Giro d’Italia peloton decides to donate stage 19 prize money to victims of cable car tragedy

The riders’s union said the pros unanimously decided to pay tribute as the course passes near the scene of the disaster

The Giro d'Italia peloton
The Giro d'Italia peloton
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The Giro d’Italia peloton will donate the prize money from stage 19 to the victims of the Mottarone cable car tragedy. 

Last week 14 people were killed when a cable car fell to the ground due to a snapped cable on the way to the summit of the Mottarone mountain in the Western Alpes of Northern Italy - the only survivor was a five-year-old boy, named Eitan.

The Giro d’Italia 2021 route had initially been scheduled to take the peloton over the Mottarone mid-way through stage 19, the penultimate mountain stage of the race, but the organisers opted to redraw the route to keep spectators away from the scene of the tragedy. 

On the morning of stage 19, which will be raced from Abbiategrasso to Alpe di Mera, the pro riders’ union the Cyclistes Professionnels Associés (CPA) announced that all prize money would be donated in memory of the victims.

The CPA said: “Although the Giro will not climb the Mottarone, the riders will pay tribute to the 14 victims of the Stresa cable car crash. They have unanimously decided to donate all prize money from today’s stage to little Eitan and to the families affected by this terrible tragedy.”

Stage 19 now bypasses the Mottarone and instead takes on the slightly smaller Alpe Agogna, 70km into the 166km stage.

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Speaking after the finish of the previous day’s stage, Italian rider Alberto Bettiol (EF Education-Nippo) paid tribute to the victims of the incident, as he celebrated his first pro win on home soil. 

Bettiol said: “It really means a lot for me, for my team and for the people that always believe in me. It’s a gift that I want to give to my former agent Mauro Battaglini who passed away last year, he was like a second father to me so this victory is for him. For sure, he looks at me from the sky. I also want to give a thought to all the victims in the Mottarone cable car and all the families."   

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Alex Ballinger

Alex Ballinger is editor of BikeBiz magazine, the leading publication for the UK cycle industry, and is the former digital news editor for CyclingWeekly.com. After gaining experience in local newsrooms, national newspapers and in digital journalism, Alex found his calling in cycling, first as a reporter, then as news editor responsible for Cycling Weekly's online news output, and now as the editor of BikeBiz. Since pro cycling first captured his heart during the 2010 Tour de France (specifically the Contador-Schleck battle) Alex covered three Tours de France, multiple editions of the Tour of Britain, and the World Championships, while both writing and video presenting for Cycling Weekly. He also specialises in fitness writing, often throwing himself into the deep end to help readers improve their own power numbers.  Away from the desk, Alex can be found racing time trials, riding BMX and mountain bikes, or exploring off-road on his gravel bike. He’s also an avid gamer, and can usually be found buried in an eclectic selection of books.