A veil of sadness descends on the world of cycling: Gaetano Gazzoli, the great patron of Gran Premio Capodarco, has passed away. The classic race will reach its 53rd edition on August 16th.

"Cycling is my life, it runs in my veins. As a young man, I raced as an amateur, now I make others race, and it's beautiful to see the passion in young men and women," he once said in an interview on the eve of the 50th edition of GP Capodarco.

He would add: "I was a domestique, in 1965 I raced with Sima Jesi and Giancarlo Polidori became the Italian amateur champion. I raced until I was 27, with many placings and some nice victories like the GP della Repubblica, right in Jesi. Until five or six years ago I was still riding, now I've stopped."

Gaetano had been ill for some time and had just left the hospital at the beginning of the week. In a twist of fate, Gaetano passed away... following the wheel of Don Franco Monterubbianesi, the founder of the Capodarco Community who died two days ago at the age of 94.

Capodarco was the jewel in Gaetano's crown, an event that always drew massive crowds, with the spectacle of that final wall where the names of all riders are written, because anyone who lines up at the start deserves applause, encouragement, and thanks.

The same thanks that the cycling world wants to pay to Gaetano Gazzoli, a friend who has left us.