Michele Bartoli

Bartoli joined Mercatone Uno–Medeghini–Zucchini as an amateur stagiaire in late 1992, signing his first professional contract starting in January 1993. He was competitive immediately, winning the overall and 3 stages at the first stage race he started, the 1993 Settimana Siciliana .

His breakthrough year was 1994, when he won the Brabantse Pijl, his first semi-classic win, and the thirteenth stage in the Giro d'Italia. In 1995, his star rose to prominence in the one-day classics, with fifth place in Milan–San Remo, seventh in the Tour of Flanders and third places in Liège–Bastogne–Liège and the Giro di Lombardia. He won the Three Days of De Panne and placed ninth overall in the Vuelta a España.[5]

Bartoli won the UCI Road World Cup in 1997 and 1998.
(pictured at the 1997 Paris–Tours)

In 1996, he joined the MG-Technogym team of manager Giancarlo Ferretti. He became a specialist of the classic races and claimed his first career monument win in the 1996 Tour of Flanders after an attack on the Muur van Geraardsbergen and a 16 km solo to the finish.[6] In summer, he was 19th overall in the Tour de France, before winning the Italian summer classics Giro del Veneto, GP di Larciano and Giro dell'Emilia. He finished third at the World Championships in Lugano behind Johan Museeuw and Mauro Gianetti.[7][8]

In 1997, Bartoli won his first Liège–Bastogne–Liège, after distancing his last breakaway companion, Laurent Jalabert, in the final kilometre.[9] His slender built (179 cm and 65 kg), combined with his feline ability to accelerate on steep climbs, made him the quintessential contender for the hilly Ardennes classics.[10] At the end of 1997, he won the UCI World Cup, confirming his status as the most regular classic race specialist.[11]

In 1998, he transferred to the Asics team and had the most successful season of his career. He won his second Liège–Bastogne–Liège, again before Laurent Jalabert, after a long solo attack.[12] In May, he won the GP of Aargau Canton in Switzerland and the thirteenth stage in the Giro d'Italia. Later in the year, he won Züri Metzgete, his second World Cup race of 1998,[13] as well as the Giro di Romagna, and finished third in the World Championships in Valkenburg behind Oskar Camenzind and Peter Van Petegem.[4] He ended the season as world number one on the UCI Road World Rankings and won his second consecutive UCI World Cup.[14] During his years with MG and Asics, Bartoli was helped by his friend and team mate Paolo Bettini, who became Bartoli's prime lieutenant in the races.

In 1999, Bartoli and Bettini joined Mapei, the most successful classics team of the 1990s.[15] He won Tirreno–Adriatico, the Brabantse Pijl and the Flèche Wallonne in the spring of 1999, but failed to win a monument race. In the 1999 Liège–Bastogne–Liège, Bartoli, seeking his third consecutive win, was distanced by rising star Frank Vandenbroucke and finished fourth behind his helper Bettini.[16] In May 1999, Bartoli broke his kneecap in a crash in the Tour of Germany, which ended his season.

He returned to racing in 2000, but his Mapei team mate Paolo Bettini demanded a leading role, eventually leading to a feud between the two friends. In the summer of 2000, he won the Italian National Championship in Trieste and the Grand Prix de Plouay, before entering the Olympic road race in Sydney. Helped by his Italian team mates Bettini and Danilo Di Luca, he won the sprint for fourth place, finishing just outside the medals. He repeated his fourth place at the World championships.[17]

In 2001, Bartoli won Omloop Het Volk early in the season, but failed to win another major spring classic. He left Mapei – exceptionally mid-season – to re-join Ferretti at the new Fassa Bortolo team. In October 2001, Bartoli and Bettini's rivalry culminated during the world championship road race during which Bartoli refused to work for Bettini. Bettini finished second in the sprint behind Spaniard Óscar Freire; Bartoli was 23rd.[18]

With Fassa Bortolo, he re-lived some of his former successes by winning the 2002 Amstel Gold Race and the 2002 and 2003 Giro di Lombardia.

In 2004, he moved to Team CSC but failed to claim a victory.[19] In the 2004 Tour de France, he abandoned during the 18th stage after being called back by manager Bjarne Riis from a break to protect his captain Ivan Basso.[20] Bartoli ended his professional career at the end of the 2004 season, suffering minor injuries.[21] He stated: "I just wasn't motivated to continue... I can't be a top level rider any more and that was a major influence on my decision, rather than my recent physical problems."[22]