Cycling is like a contagious disease and when it hits you... Take, for example, the Venice Marathon that was held last Sunday: starting from Mestre and finishing in the heart of the lagoon city. If that day someone had told you "the president of the Veneto regional council Roberto Ciambetti is here", you would have looked for him on the authorities' stage, imagining seeing him in his usual jacket and tie.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Undeterred by rain and high water, there he was pedaling in St. Mark's Square and not for pleasure but with a precise task: "On Sunday, at the Venice Marathon, I had the honor of being a cycling escort for the top runners, crossing the most beautiful city in the world in an atmosphere suspended between sport, history, and sea" Ciambetti recounts, who is also vice president of the Professional Cycling League.

And he adds: "Basically, we were with the first 6-7 athletes and we were opening the way for them: with the whistle we made the 21 km stragglers move... We had the top runners of the classic marathon. Pedaling in St. Mark's Square, among the water reflections and the magic of Venice... An emotion that you don't forget! When Venice reflects itself in water and in the athletes' effort, the result is pure universal marvel"