For days now, various newspapers, websites and especially social media have sparked a debate about the crisis in Italian cycling, with inevitable polemical implications linked to the numbers of registered members, races, fees, facilities and so on.

We have received an open letter from federal president Cordiano Dagnoni that aims to clarify many of the aspects touched upon in the discussion. We present it to you while obviously keeping the door open for any replies and clarifications.

Dear Editor,

In recent days we have read all sorts of things and more, and many accusations have been leveled at the Italian Cycling Federation that I have the honor of presiding over. Many accusations that deserve a response.

The reduction in the cycling population, let's call it that, concerns registered members, not practitioners: according to the latest Nielsen data, cycling in Italy has two and a half million practitioners (far more than football) despite the demographic decline affecting the entire country. Our practitioners, however, do not need a membership card to engage in the activity. This also explains the drop in the transition from Giovanissimi to Esordienti. From Giovanissimi, who train and race in protected and closed environments, we move to Esordienti, who instead race on open roads, with all the risks that entails. Unfortunately, more and more families are choosing other sports for their children. This does not happen with off-road cycling.

As a Federation, it is well known that we have presented a package of rules that for the first time proposes to introduce rules truly protecting those who ride a bicycle, whether amateur or professional, putting motorists, car manufacturers and administrations, each facing their own responsibility. Only in this way, in our opinion, that is, with everyone's contribution, can we hope to restore a minimum of safety on Italian roads. By the way, we are the first Federation in Europe to propose the introduction of mandatory helmets for everyone: a proposal we have also brought to the European Parliament in Brussels.

It is not true that there are no races to participate in, we have over four thousand a year. We are among the leading nations in the world for the quality of professional races. The clubs exist, they are lacking in major cities, precisely because of the lack of facilities. If there were more structures, in fact, and we're not just talking about velodromes, but also simple cycling tracks, given that we have sixteen different disciplines, we would have more registered members and practitioners. It's proven. But this responsibility, which the Federation does not shy away from, must necessarily be shared with institutions, starting with the Government, with which, in fact, since the beginning of my term we have been collaborating on the construction of the Spresiano velodrome. Work has already begun and according to the plan agreed by all the actors involved, it will be completed by 2028, giving us a facility we haven't seen since 1985, when the famous snowfall ended the history of the Milan Palasport.

Regarding the competitiveness of our riders and our teams, in 2026 there are 56 Italians in WorldTour teams, a figure comparable to France (55). Italians are present in 16 of the 18 WorldTour teams, representing approximately 10% of the world elite. As far as road racing is concerned, the examples cited in the articles of these days go precisely in the direction of a request for support for the development of our sport that we have been making for years, without unfortunately having received any response. We are convinced, and indeed it should be the primary mission of a sports federation, that it is above all grassroots activity that should be supported. In this sense, for some time now, we present projects, carefully crafted in every detail, that do not receive support, and no one has yet explained to us why.

Despite this, with the resources available, in recent years we have gone from an average of 45 medals per year in previous administrations to 115; we won the Nations Cup in the Junior and Under 23 categories in 2024 and 2025; we were awarded at the last UEC conference as the top-ranked nation; we have the 2024 junior world champion, 2025 Under 23, winner of the last Giro Next Gen, Lorenzo Finn: our Seixas, but apparently not exotic enough and therefore less fascinating... If France's Seixas is taken as an example by many, I would like to remind you that the last French rider to win the Tour de France is a certain Bernard Hinault in 1985, 41 years ago. And then, returning to our cyclists, I cite the progress shown by Pellizzari and Piganzoli. And we always forget that we have one of the strongest sprinters in the world, Milan, and an absolute champion who continues to be competitive on road and track, Ganna.

If we want to stay in the professional sphere, we do not deny the difficulties in finding resources for a WorldTeam, yet we are the fifth country in the UCI ranking, behind Denmark, Slovenia, France and Belgium and ahead of countries like Great Britain and the Netherlands, just to name two of absolute reference. A position resulting from 12 seasonal victories (of which 4 at the Giro d'Italia) with 5 different professionals.

Do we want to talk about our Olympics? Out of 40 medals won at the Paris Games, 4 were brought by cycling, 10%. In Tokyo we increased by one medal compared to Rio. In Paris one more. Did we not do our duty? And what do these medals have less than those that were justly paraded in triumph by the national and international press? And do we want to talk about women's cycling, where we are a leading nation? But then, is cycling measured only by professionalism? Does Italy's second place in the UCI women's elite ranking not count (sixth place for Elisa Longo Borghini and eighth for Elisa Balsamo in individual rankings)? Do successes and medals in XCO (Olympic discipline) not count (Avondetto and Zanotti just to name the recent ones)? And those in cyclocross? A small clarification on team relays that some mock: they represent the true thermometer of a nation's level, and for this reason we are proud to never fall off the podium.

As we are proud that a third of our medals come from the Paralympic Sector: perhaps they count for less? It is a sector in which the Federation has invested heavily, since my appointment in 2021, prompted by the then CIP president Luca Pancalli to structure a sector, that of track activity, which was non-existent. A sector in which we are happy to have won the first Paralympic medal of Paris in 2024.

Regarding relations with the Professional League and the commissioning matter, I want to remind you that the League is an association that acts only and expressly on delegation from the Federation. The Federation has the right and duty to oversee its operations. We arrived at the recent commissioning, decided by the Federal Council, because its president, the Honorable Roberto Pella, committed a series of violations of the Convention in place between FCI and the League: violations, for which Pella is under federal investigation, which initially only produced a suspension of the Convention itself, in the hope that from that moment things would change, which unfortunately did not happen, forcing the Federation to take the further measure.

On the electoral system, it is not true, as is claimed around, that the 3,400 clubs are excluded. As in football, the system is of the second level. Clubs vote during provincial elections for their candidates to the national assembly. A system that arose from the need to reduce the number of people present at the assembly in a federation that is among the first for number of affiliates. The system of major electors protects everyone. And then, what would one want to insinuate, that with another system someone else would have been elected?

On the matter of salaries, finally, it is not correct to say that I have assigned myself compensation. It is the Federal Council that, following what has already been established by many Federations, even much smaller than ours, has decided to pay the Federation president a fee, which moreover I myself have agreed to reduce in order to obtain the necessary resources to provide an economic return also for federal councilors and regional presidents, who do enormous and valuable work for the movement. Do you want to know what figures we're talking about? Two thousand euros a year for regional presidents, plus 50 cents per registered member. Are we really scandalized by this?

Cordiano Dagnoni
FCI President