Prosecutors in Italian Lucca, led by prosecutor Letizia Cai, have filed a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence for former star cyclist Mario Cipollini, who was charged with violence and abuse of both his ex-wife and ex-girlfriend’s new girlfriend.
It is three years since Cipollini was charged, but due to delays related to the corona pandemic and the cyclist’s health, the trial started only now, writes cyclingtips.com.
Cipollini was charged with violence against his ex-wife Sabrina Landucci, whom he married from 1993 to 2006, and Landucci’s new girlfriend, former footballer Silvio Giusti. Landucci’s lawyer, Susanna Donatella Campione, is also demanding 80,000 euros in compensation on behalf of her client.
Landucci’s mother, Giovanna Di Simo, said in the witness box that the daughter experienced repeated incidents of domestic violence during her marriage to Cipollini.
Cipollini had a gun under his pillow. I saw with my own eyes that he grabbed Sabrina’s neck and chased her around the garden, with the bandage on his knee he had after a ski accident. He chased her around the garden with a gun, Di Simo said, according to cyclingtips.com.
She also claims that the former star cyclist came with repeated threats.
– STAR CYCLIST: Mario Cipollini won several races in his professional career. Photo: FABRICE COFFRINI
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– He called and screamed on the phone, both day and night. He sent her hundreds of text messages every day. He was intense and jealous. He first cried and asked for forgiveness, before threatening and insulting both her and the family members, she said from the witness box.
Mario Cipollini denies all charges, and said in court that he has never attacked or beaten his ex-wife, threatened her with a gun, or grabbed her by the neck.
The star cyclist’s team of defense lawyers has always claimed that Cipollini is innocent and must be acquitted. They will hold their final speeches in the ongoing trial on July 13, and afterwards the verdict will also come.
Cipollini won over 200 races during his career, including 12 stages in the Tour de France and 42 stages in the Giro d’Italia. After his cycling career, he founded the bicycle brand Cipollini Bikes.
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