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Mario Cipollini fined €165 for ignoring red traffic lightMario Cipollini

Mario Cipollini fined €165 for ignoring red traffic light

Police have stepped up roadside patrols after 8-year-old was knocked over earlier this month
by Simon_MacMichael
Tue, May 24, 2016 11:39
8

Cycling legend Mario Cipollini has been fined €165 for riding through a red traffic signal on a coastal road in his home province of Lucca, Tuscany.

The Gazzetta dello Sport, citing an Ansa report, says the 49-year-old former world champion was stopped by a police patrol after ignoring the traffic signal at Vittoria Apuana.

Local police have stepped up roadside patrols since a cyclist knocked over an eight-year old child crossing a pedestrian crossing with his grandfather earlier this month in nearby Forte dei Marmi.

The cyclist in that incident crashed into the youngster after overtaking a Range Rover that had stopped to let the pair cross, driven by local resident Pierluigi Collina – football’s most famous referee.

Now retired, he is reported to have got out of his vehicle and to have told the cyclist to “be careful” and “not to behave like that in future,” before comforting the child, who was not seriously injured.

The reaction of the cyclist to find the unmistakable features of Collina looming over him as he issued a warning was not recorded.

Cipollini is the sixth cyclist to have been fined for breaking the rules of the road since that incident, which took place on 1 May.

The winner of 57 Grand Tour stages did not contest the fine.

It's not the first time he has been sanctioned for ignoring traffic laws.

In 2003, when he was reigning world champion, he was fined €68 for riding on a section of the Livorno-Pisa-Florence superstrada from which bicycles are banned.

He told police that it was one of the few places he could train in peace - and that it was ideal for practising his sprints.

> Cipollini baits helmet lobby - by wearing one, and nothing else

Mario Cipollini
Italy
RLJ
red light jumping
Pierluigi Collina
Simon MacMichael

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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8 comments

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robertoegg | 8 years ago
1 like

Bloody kid should wear a helmet!

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davel | 8 years ago
0 likes

I'm sure it was the traffic light's fault - it probably ignored Super Mario previously...

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Yorkshire wallet | 8 years ago
1 like

I've been to Italy a number of times and using a crossing always seemed like take your chances affair. When I went to Rimini it was like Mad Max at times, with mopeds wheelieing down pavements, all one-way streets being two-way and pedestrian zones seemingly a free for all.  

Avatar
Dnnnnnn | 8 years ago
1 like

Cipollini and Collina in the same town? Amazing who can bump into you in Lucca...

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Jack Osbourne snr replied to Dnnnnnn | 8 years ago
0 likes
Duncann wrote:

Cipollini and Collina in the same town? Amazing who can bump into you in Lucca...

Sure is... I bumped into a woman from my office in Lucca a few years ago

Avatar
tritecommentbot | 8 years ago
1 like

How good are the Cippo frames? Would love to see a proper long term review of them. On the road and wind tunnel. Any real thought gone into them?

Avatar
steviemarco replied to tritecommentbot | 8 years ago
1 like

unconstituted wrote:

How good are the Cippo frames? Would love to see a proper long term review of them. On the road and wind tunnel. Any real thought gone into them?

I've had the RB 0.8K for 2 years now, originally with DA 9000 then Di2 9070 now Sram Red eTap, still same frame. It's not the lightest with Enve 4.5's (7.5kg) but it's a sublime ride. Very comfy compared to my CAAD 12 and the Scott Addict it replaced, even though it's got a huge BB and is really very stiff, it's stiff with 'compliance' a rare combination.

That's unbiased!lol

Avatar
tritecommentbot replied to steviemarco | 8 years ago
0 likes

steviemarco wrote:

unconstituted wrote:

How good are the Cippo frames? Would love to see a proper long term review of them. On the road and wind tunnel. Any real thought gone into them?

I've had the RB 0.8K for 2 years now, originally with DA 9000 then Di2 9070 now Sram Red eTap, still same frame. It's not the lightest with Enve 4.5's (7.5kg) but it's a sublime ride. Very comfy compared to my CAAD 12 and the Scott Addict it replaced, even though it's got a huge BB and is really very stiff, it's stiff with 'compliance' a rare combination.

That's unbiased!lol

 

Interesting to hear it's comfy! Was thinking maybe the frames were just super stiff carbon layups which I'm guessing Cippo would himself have no issue with, so it's nice to hear otherwise. I have a thing for the camo Bond Cippo. Can see myself bombing around on it like a hooligan cheeky. Just really appeals to some side of me. Could see myself going left-field and getting one when the time was right, but at the price these bikes are... I need to be reassured they're properly worth the cash. Wish sites would do some proper reviews of them because there really isn't a way to try before buying for most people.

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