Mirko Rossato, sports director of VF Group Bardiani CSF Faizané and technical manager of the team's "youth project", joins the debate on safety with a heartfelt open letter.

Good morning director, a few days after returning from Valle d'Aosta - thinking and rethinking, reading various posts and articles - I would like to reflect on the safety of these young athletes because I believe this is the topic that should be at the center of our discussion.

That day, the cursed day when Samuele Privitera fell, I was present: that day we witnessed a series of crashes, because the young riders go fast, they want to show themselves, they want to attack as always happens. Unfortunately, this is cycling, this is cycling that goes fast, very fast.

The roads are no longer like they used to be: with roundabouts, traffic dividers, obstacles, bumps, especially bumps, basically the riders encounter continuous obstacles that require maximum concentration. Every rider must be careful of opponents, careful of obstacles, the race becomes real stress. Unfortunately in three, four hours of racing - after many years of experience, I can allow myself to say - a moment of relaxation can happen, right?

The sports director's task, beyond tactics, is to warn about obstacles, alert the riders to be careful of that curve, to pay attention to that type of obstacle, to keep the riders' attention alive for what they encounter along the route.

Personally, I never liked radio earpieces, because I like to have meetings, explain to the riders how to race, if they make mistakes I want to talk to them again, help them understand where they went wrong so they can remember. Unfortunately, I must change my mind: during the race, there is absolute need for these blessed radio earpieces to warn the riders about various obstacles.

We are fortunate to have here in Italy, and they are also good abroad, one of the best radio information services in the world: thanks to them we experience the race from the team car, we should experience it by explaining to the riders how to move during the race, but above all by announcing the various difficulties they might encounter, from climbs to descents, to obstacles in their path.

Unfortunately, we cannot do this, we cannot warn the riders about a specific danger. I believe that Samuele's crash could have been avoided: as I said before, a moment of relaxation during a small descent can happen, you find yourself a bit relaxed, you hit this bump, your hands slip and then we all know how it ended. I repeat, a situation that could have been avoided.

Here is my reflection. These are 18-19-20 year old riders, but the discussion applies to older riders too, it's not an age issue. We must not forget that these are young riders who want to show themselves, who have the goal of realizing their dream. And unfortunately, it takes very little to get seriously hurt, even to lose one's life. And life stands above everything, above tactics, spectacle, and the race.

At UCI headquarters, radios are not well-liked because, they say, the spectacle is lost. It's not true... The riders have imagination, the desire to emerge and their races will certainly always provide great entertainment. However, we have a duty to protect them, we have the means to do so and especially to avoid having to mourn a rider like Samuele whose sports directors did not have the opportunity to warn him about the obstacle.

This is what we must ask, this is what we must obtain at all costs, this is what we must do for the good and safety of the athletes.

Mirko Rossato