The Foundation

"... so that FABIO remains, FOREVER, alive in memory, beyond his sporting achievements..." This is the desire, the will, the purpose of some of the closest and dearest people to the unfortunate champion from Alba, which led to the birth of the "Fabio Casartelli Foundation" on June 13th, 1996.

Ninety-five were the promoters of the initiative, who thus became Founding Members: among them Gianluigi Luisetti and Pierluigi Marzorati, who took over as President in September 2002 after the Association met the requirements to become a Foundation in 1998.

The objectives outlined in the statute of the Association, which became a Foundation in 1998 after obtaining legal recognition from the Lombardy Region on 26.02.1999 with Resolution No. 41614, are important and largely focused on social issues. Among them:

• Providing funds to athletes, former athletes, and their families in particular conditions of need.
• Establishing scholarships for deserving young athletes to allow them to continue their education.
• Providing funds to promote the education of young people and their active integration into the community.
• Organizing congresses, exhibitions, reviews, debates, study meetings, and of course, sporting and cycling events in particular.

The work of the Members first, and then of the Friends of the Foundation after its establishment, has led to more than satisfactory results.

Among them is the donation of a fully equipped medical car to the 118 emergency service, as well as:

• Contributions to the Nostra Famiglia in Bosisio Parini (a non-profit organization that assists people with disabilities), Talea (a non-profit association assisting disabled individuals in Albese), and Insieme si può (a non-profit organization in Albese assisting with long-distance adoption).
• Contribution to the construction of a school-dormitory for children in Kenya.
• Donation of tandem bicycles to the National Association for the Blind in Como.
• The "Arte Sport e Territorio" sculpture symposium with the participation of internationally renowned artists, such as Italians Fabio Ceschina, Alcide Gallani, and Bruno Luzzani (the latter being the creator of the "Flight of Light" stele placed on the Col de Portet d'Aspet where Fabio fell), the Iberian Yolanda Spinola Elias, and the Japanese Kenji Takahashi. As part of the symposium, sculptor Bruno Luzzani created the monument dedicated to Fabio in Albese at the starting point of the annual Mediofondo "La Fabio Casartelli.”
• The commemorative relay from the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Ghisallo to the Col de Portet d'Aspet coinciding with the passage of the Tour de France ’97.
• Twenty-one editions of the Memorial Fabio Casartelli, a youth race, in collaboration with the G.S. Alzate Brianza, Fabio's first team.
• Twenty editions of the Mediofondo "La Fabio Casartelli" in collaboration with GS Spina Verde, then with Masneri Impianti, and now with Formaggilandia 2, founded by Fabio's friend and companion Roberto Maggioni.
• The ecological bike ride "Amici di Fabio," initiated in 2013 and resumed to allow cyclists to participate in the celebration for Fabio during the Mediofondo La Fabio Casartelli.
• Support for former cyclist Luca Panichi, confined to a wheelchair after a racing accident, who, through his performances dedicated to Fabio, keeps the memory of the athlete and man alive (in 2015, he climbed the Portet d'Aspet in pouring rain).
• Various sports events titled "... give your best…"
  
• School contests on road safety, on significant dates related to Fabio's career and life, including "A Ruota Libera" and "Angeli della Strada.”
• Contribution to the restoration of the Monumental organ of the parish church in Albese and concerts in memory of Fabio in Albese and Saint-Girons, from where the stage started during which Fabio's tragic fall occurred and which is twinned with Albese con Cassano.
• Organization and participation in exhibitions dedicated to Fabio.
• Support and representation at inaugurations dedicated to Fabio (bike paths, pedestrian and cycling bridges, etc.).
• Also, since 1996, Friends Supporters of the Foundation promote a several days' trip to France to remember Fabio at the Stele del Portet d'Aspet, Lourdes, and Saint-Girons, where they meet French authorities and sports friends, in the annually renewed memory of a champion and a man who has left a profound memory in everyone.

"Much has been done," emphasizes Pierluigi Marzorati, president for 22 years until 2023, an unforgettable basketball champion with Cantù and the Italian National Team (278 appearances, 4 Olympic participations with the silver medal in Moscow '80 and the European title in 1983) — "but ahead of us, we have a long way to go if we want, as we want, the memory of Fabio, a champion but above all a man, to live forever. When I was offered the position of president of the Fabio Casartelli Foundation, I deemed it right to accept because I thought it was the best way to express my gratitude to an athlete to whom I was connected by a strong, albeit unfortunately brief, friendship. In memory of Fabio, I believe it is a duty for all of us Friends of the Foundation to focus on prevention and safety, spreading its principles and rules especially among the youth, starting from a reflection on the experience of our unforgettable Champion."

These principles and objectives were reaffirmed by the current president Marco Torres, who took over in 2023.

Fabio was always available to everyone, especially to the less fortunate, and he never missed an opportunity to support and participate in events for disabled people.

For this reason, the Foundation was established upon his passing, with the aim of remembering him for both his sporting achievements and his human character, and to continue with those works that he could not. Because Fabio should live forever.

ORGANIZATIONAL CHART

Board Members

• Marco Torres – President
• Gianluigi Luisetti – Vice President
• Luca Grammatica – Board Member
• Amedeo Maspero – Board Member
• Antonio Molteni – Board Member
• Luca Panichi – Board Member
• Marco Saligari – Board Member

Advisory Board Members (without voting rights)

• Annalisa Rosetti
• Marco Casartelli
• Sergio Casartelli
• Rosa Luisetti

Auditor

• Gianfranco Melli