A bicycle from the 1950s branded Bartali and restored with an era-appropriate frame and other vintage parts, has been donated to the Memory Museum. The handover took place during an afternoon attended by Monsignor Attilio Nostro, bishop of Mileto-Nicotera-Tropea and secretary of the Calabrian Episcopal Conference, owner of the bike, Monsignor Domenico Sorrentino, bishop of the dioceses of Assisi - Nocera Umbra - Gualdo Tadino and Foligno, Gioia Bartali, granddaughter of the great champion, and Marina Rosati, director of the Memory Museum, Assisi 1943-1944.

"For our Museum - Rosati emphasizes - it is a great gift because, beyond the year of production of the bike, shortly after Bartali's great feats between Assisi and Florence, it is the symbol of a champion, a fervent Catholic, a person of great humility and humanity that we draw inspiration from to speak to our young people about the value of sport, sharing, and brotherhood".

During the ceremony, Monsignor Nostro was able to appreciate the Assisi exhibition and in particular the room dedicated to Bartali where his small chapel is located and where the bike has been placed. Both Bishop Sorrentino and Monsignor Nostro emphasized "the humanity of the champion whose sporting achievements are well known but perhaps less his great faith, courage, and the true meaning of sport that must not be forgotten. Aspects that, thanks to this story, to these symbols, should indeed be made known".

The bike, purchased by Monsignor Nostro, is one of those marketed in the 1950s by the great champion, whose figure is remembered at the Memory Museum; the Calabrian bishop then handed it over to Giovanni Nencini, son of cyclist Gastone, who took care of the restoration. The goal of the religious man and the son of the sportsman was to recreate a bicycle as close as possible to one from the times of the two-time Tour de France winner and also of Gastone Nencini himself, born just a few years after Bartali.

As Giovanni Nencini explains, "The bike was restored, given the condition in which it was found, respecting the color, of which there were still clear traces, as well as the brands, and the original characteristics. The bike is equipped with components contemporary to the frame, all original, with which top-of-the-range bikes of those years were assembled (Cambio Campagnolo Paris-Roubaix; Magistroni Movements; Gnutti Thousand-Groove Crankset; Brooks Saddle; Ambrosio Champion Handlebar and Stem; Universal Brakes; Nisi Rims)".

The donation of this bike enriches the Memory Museum, where the story of the 300 Jews saved during World War II is told. To thank Monsignor Nostro for the gift, Gioia Bartali brought a crucifix from Bartali's small chapel, which is also exhibited in the rooms of the Assisi Museum.