Gino Bartali
Cycling to freedom during World War II
đŽđ»
«I was always fascinated by what I call âunsung heroesâ: those are
people who do amazing things, but they never ask for a reward
and Gino Bartali was such a person».
- Amalia Hoffman -
(Author of the book «The Brave Cyclist»)
"Good is something you do, not something you talk about."
Gino Bartali
Watch the video«Gino Bartali: the Italian cyclist who rescued Jews»
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«History is always
written by the
winners» said Dan Brown in his
novel «The Da Vinci Code».
If this is true, then Gino Bartali
was a winner during World War II.
But Bartali didnât win any battles. He won
bicycle races.
What is the connection between a cyclist
and a war hero?
To answer that, we need to go back to Italy
By the fall of 1943, the Nazis arrived in Italy and it became a very dangerous place for Jews. If Jews were stopped in the streets by Nazis or Fascists, and they showed an identity card that labelled them as Jewish they could be sent to concentration camps.
Identity card 2
Identity card 1
WHO WAS GINO
BARTALI?
He was famous before Italy joined the war. He won the famous bike race, «the Tour de France», in 1938. The Italian Prime Minister, Benito Mussolini, wanted Bartali to say he won the race for him. But Bartali said NO.
WHY WAS HE CALLED «HERO»?By 1943, Nazi Germany governed Italy. They wanted to eliminate all the Jewish people. Bartali didn't accept this. He was catholic and the cardinal of Florence asked him to be in a secret group: it protected Jewish people in Italy. They asked Bartali to help them because he was a cyclist and he could take documents around the country. The documents helped Jewish people to escape. He hide them inside the frame of his bike.
«Iâm just a cyclist»
People called him a hero but he didnât agree.
He said: «Iâm just a cyclist». Nevertheless, thanks to people like Bartali, 80% of Jewish
people in Italy survived. For them, Bartali was a hero.
âThe greatest victory that Bartali ever brought home was the victory against evil.â
âBartali was the greatest rider of his time. But as great of a rider as he was, he was an even greater human being.â
Itâs true, he was just a cyclist, but he wasnât an ordinary person. Look at this legendary photo: during a climb, a photographer took a photo where you could see the passage of a water bottle between Bartali and his arch-rival, Fausto Coppi.The photo quickly became a symbol of knightly sports rivalry, the contest between gentlemen and fair play that characterized the relationship between the two champions. But, the truth about the photograph has always been in debate: it is not known which one passed the water bottle to his rival.
What is known is that he was an ethical and righteous person and a gentleman who risked his life to save lots of Jewish people in difficulties.
After the war Bartali never spoke of his underground work during the German occupation.Hence many of his courageous endeavors remain unknown.
Write a subtitle here
Write a title
It could be interesting to read this article...I hope this activity made you more educated!đ€©
Your English Teacher
Gino Bartali: Italy's Secret World War II Hero
Milena Bova
Created on May 9, 2024
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Transcript
Gino Bartali
Cycling to freedom during World War II
đŽđ»
«I was always fascinated by what I call âunsung heroesâ: those are people who do amazing things, but they never ask for a reward and Gino Bartali was such a person». - Amalia Hoffman - (Author of the book «The Brave Cyclist»)
"Good is something you do, not something you talk about."
Gino Bartali
Watch the video«Gino Bartali: the Italian cyclist who rescued Jews»
Write a subtitle here
Write a title
«History is always written by the winners» said Dan Brown in his novel «The Da Vinci Code». If this is true, then Gino Bartali was a winner during World War II. But Bartali didnât win any battles. He won bicycle races. What is the connection between a cyclist and a war hero? To answer that, we need to go back to Italy
By the fall of 1943, the Nazis arrived in Italy and it became a very dangerous place for Jews. If Jews were stopped in the streets by Nazis or Fascists, and they showed an identity card that labelled them as Jewish they could be sent to concentration camps.
Identity card 2
Identity card 1
WHO WAS GINO BARTALI? He was famous before Italy joined the war. He won the famous bike race, «the Tour de France», in 1938. The Italian Prime Minister, Benito Mussolini, wanted Bartali to say he won the race for him. But Bartali said NO.
WHY WAS HE CALLED «HERO»?By 1943, Nazi Germany governed Italy. They wanted to eliminate all the Jewish people. Bartali didn't accept this. He was catholic and the cardinal of Florence asked him to be in a secret group: it protected Jewish people in Italy. They asked Bartali to help them because he was a cyclist and he could take documents around the country. The documents helped Jewish people to escape. He hide them inside the frame of his bike.
«Iâm just a cyclist»
People called him a hero but he didnât agree. He said: «Iâm just a cyclist». Nevertheless, thanks to people like Bartali, 80% of Jewish people in Italy survived. For them, Bartali was a hero.
âThe greatest victory that Bartali ever brought home was the victory against evil.â
âBartali was the greatest rider of his time. But as great of a rider as he was, he was an even greater human being.â
Itâs true, he was just a cyclist, but he wasnât an ordinary person. Look at this legendary photo: during a climb, a photographer took a photo where you could see the passage of a water bottle between Bartali and his arch-rival, Fausto Coppi.The photo quickly became a symbol of knightly sports rivalry, the contest between gentlemen and fair play that characterized the relationship between the two champions. But, the truth about the photograph has always been in debate: it is not known which one passed the water bottle to his rival.
What is known is that he was an ethical and righteous person and a gentleman who risked his life to save lots of Jewish people in difficulties.
After the war Bartali never spoke of his underground work during the German occupation.Hence many of his courageous endeavors remain unknown.
Write a subtitle here
Write a title
It could be interesting to read this article...I hope this activity made you more educated!đ€©
Your English Teacher