Michele Bartoli

Michele Bartoli (born Pisa 27 May 1970) is a retired Italian road racing cyclist. He was a single-day race specialist, winning three of the five Monument races. Bartoli won the UCI Road World Cup in 1997 and 1998.

Biography

Bartoli turned professional in 1992 with Mercatone Uno and in 1995 moved to the MG-Technogym team of Giancarlo Ferretti. In 1998, Bartoli signed for Asics. In summer 1998, Bartoli joined Mapei. After the Tour de France, won by Marco Pantani, Mapei showed interest in contracting Pantani, and Asics went for another sponsor, but Bartoli left and joined Mapei from 1999 to 2001.

In 1997 and 1998, Bartoli won UCI Road World Cup. From 10 October 1998 to 6 June 1999, Bartoli led the UCI Road World Rankings. During these years, Bartoli was helped by Paolo Bettini, with whom Bartoli had worked in the MG-Technogym and Asics teams. Bettini kept improving. After a crash in the 1999 Tour of Germany, Bartoli was injured and Bettini rose to prominence, winning Liège–Bastogne–Liège. From that moment, both demanded a leading role. Although they worked together at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, the feud culminated in the 2001 world championship during which the two refused to collaborate, which contributed to Óscar Freire of Spain winning the world title.

Bartoli left Mapei to re-join Ferretti at Fassa Bortolo for 2002-2003. In 2004, Bartoli moved...
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