http://www.gazzetta.it/
http://204.73.203.34/
"You are in the presence of greatness. The man you have in front of you is Giovanni Pettenella, also known as Vanni, a man who used to sell chickens in his hometown of Caprino Veronese before relocating to Milan to race bicycles. A man who from humble beginnings went on to win a gold medal in the track sprint at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics Games, besting on the occasion another Italian by the name of Sergio Bianchetto. A man who at those same Games also won the silver medal in the Kilometre, coming in behind the Belgian rider Patrick Sercu who would later became a legendary Six Day racer. A man who during the semifinals of the Tokyo Olympic track sprint against Pierre Trentin astounded the crowd with a 21 minute trackstand before finishing his adversary with a blindingly fast sprint. A man who on a hot day in the summer of 1968, at the Italian National Track Championships held in Varese, set the world trackstand record of one hour and five minutes, a record that stands to this day.
"In Varese on that hot August day in 1968 the commentator covering the event for Italian national television ran out of people to interview, and a crowd of curious spectators slowly started flocking to the velodrome to witness the event. Pettenella's adversary on that occasion was that same Bianchetto of the Tokyo Olympic sprint final, a rider who after one hour and three minutes of trackstanding under the fierce summer sun collapsed to the ground, unconscious. In a drawer of his office desk Pettenella still has a photograph of the final minutes of the race. Bianchetto is lying unconscious on the track with Vanni still trackstanding and waiting for the doctors to validate his victory in the first sprint."
Mordecai Silver New York, NY This email is intended for the recipient only. If you are not the intended recipient please disregard, and do not use the information for any purpose.