Endless Thread - The GOAT

Episode Date: February 23, 2018

The Italian cyclist Gino Bartali could rightfully be called "the GOAT" -- the Greatest of All Time -- for his athletic achievements alone. But in this episode, we tip our hats to him as a humanitarian. During World War II, Bartali was living a double life. It involved the Catholic church, secret missions, Jewish refugees, and what may be the most honorable fake ID operation of all time.

Support for endless thread comes from Mathworks, creator of MATLAB and Simulink Software, to design and develop engineered systems, accelerating the pace of discovery in engineering and science. Learn more at Mathworks.com. Support for WBUR comes from Is Business Broken, a podcast from the Marotra Institute at Boston University that explores questions like, why is innovation in healthcare so hard? Is ESG just greenwashing? of course, is business broken? Listen, wherever you get your podcasts. Produced by the I-Lab at WBUR, Boston. Amory. Yes. Confession time. Oh. You know that Michael Jackson Giff of him eating popcorn and smiling from the thriller

video? Yeah. That's me right now, waiting for this confession. I am not a sports junkie. That's it. That's your confession? Yep. That is a weak-sauce confession right there, Ben. I know. There's a much bigger one coming just in a much later episode. Oh, okay. Well, listeners, I guess I should probably remind you to please subscribe because Ben might actually have something to confess down the line.

Yeah, I might have one later, but in all seriousness, this is a real confession. I am not a sports fan. I play sports. I just don't watch a lot of sports. Still, there is a phrase that even I can understand, the Babe Ruth of X. Babe Ruth, arguably baseball's greatest player of all time. The greatest of all time, the goat, generally considered to be a kind of larger-than-life athlete who in personality, performance, et cetera, just kind of transcends. If you say a person was the Babe Ruth of X, you're basically saying they're a true legend, a character that history shall not forget, which is why today we're going to talk about Gino Bartley. Gino Bartley, who, you might ask? Bartley at the time was kind of the Babe Ruth and Clark Gable of Italy rolled into one.

That is a documentary filmmaker named Orange Jacoby. We will hear a lot more from him in a minute. But yeah, Gino Bartoli was this really well-known Italian athlete, a national athletic hero of sorts, a cyclist, who competed in the Tour de France twice in 1938 and 1948. And the kind of amazing part about Bartley is that his sports performances were only a tiny part of this much bigger story. of some pretty risky and technically criminal things he did during World War II. And it's a story that most people didn't know about at the time. In fact, a lot of people and a lot of Italians even, still don't know the story we're about to tell you.

Yeah, Bartoli, the Babe Ruth of Cycling, was living a little bit of a double life. A double life involving the Catholic Church, secret missions, Jewish refugees, and what may be the most honorable fake ID operation in history. Yeah, so even if he wasn't like Babe Ruth exactly, this guy's story is the epitome of extraordinary. Which is why we're going to call this episode, The Goat! I'm Ben Brock Johnson, and this is Endless Thread, a show featuring stories found in the vast ecosystem of online communities called Reddit. I'm here with my co-producer, Amory Siebertson. We are coming to you from WBUR, Boston's NPR station, and we are making this show with little help from our friends at Reddit.

Amory, how did you find this story? So you know when you go to Google something, but then you mistype the thing that you're looking for, and you end up with something totally different, or maybe even something better than what you were looking for? Yeah, I knew you were going to ask me about this, so I looked at my recent search history, and I found ice fishing fatalities, and I think that was on purpose. But ice fishing fertilities would probably give me something very different. Okay. All right. So that's how this next story ends. ended up on Reddit. A redditor whose username is Eto Martini was looking online for a Mario Batali cookbook, but he accidentally added an R in the middle of Batali's last name, and that,

of course, caused a totally different book to come up, a book about the Italian cycling champion Gino Bartoli. So the book he found is called Road to Valor, a true story of World War II Italy, the Nazis, and the cyclist who inspired a nation. Wow. So we went from recipes to Nazis in one typo. Yep. And just a little bit of data here because I was curious. When the Redditor Etto Martini posted about Bartoli to the Today I Learned community, it was 11 times as popular as other stuff posted at the same time. It was like this one-day, one-hit wonder on Reddit. And it makes sense because the story is pretty remarkable. It is. And it is also a way better story than the story of Mario Batali. So we reached out to Eile Maconan. She co-authored this book,

Road to Valor, about Gino Bartoli that Eto Martini originally stumbled upon. I feel like I need to thank Mario Batali for any other readers that I've kind of mistaken. So Ile became interested in Bartley after she found a mention in an Italian newspaper. And it was all about his work helping Jewish refugees during World War II. And that sort of piqued my interest. I thought, huh, a cyclist helped the Jews. You know, I went to. wonder how he did that. And as we did a bit more digging, we discovered, you know, not only had he helped the Jewish community, but he'd used his bicycle to do so. And I think it was that moment when we realized that here was this amazing athlete, someone who's a household name, but had the

secret that no one knew about. And that was no easy thing for Gino Bartley to keep a secret. Because he was such a celebrity and very charismatic, and he was this sports hero who had made all Italians proud when he won the Tour de France in 1938. This is Orrin Jacoby, who you heard a few minutes ago. Orin made a documentary, called My Italian Secret, and it tells the story of Bartali and other Italians who help Jewish refugees. Oran and Ely are going to help us tell this story, and really to help us understand why this Italian cycling celebrity put his career and his life on the line for the resistance. The answer starts with the Cardinal of Florence. A cardinal named Elie de la Costa.

He'd been a family friend of Bartoli, sort of a mentor to him growing up, and during the fall of 1943. This was when the Nazis had come into Italy at this point. Italy had become a very dangerous place for Jews. And there's a big community of Jews who had flooded into Italy and Florence and they turned to the rabbi of Florence, who in turn had turned to the Cardinal. The Cardinal approached Bartley and asked him if he would come and help them because they had this effort to try and save the lives of these people and to hide them in monasteries and to hide them in Florence and in other cities nearby. So Bartley does what Bartley does what Bartley does best. He gets on his bicycle. He becomes a kind of bike messenger for a network that

ran between Florence and a town called Assisi, a network that helped refugees get fake papers. Okay, Amory, and these messages he is bike messaging back and forth are essentially the fake IDs? They're the ingredients for the fake IDs. So the Nazis are everywhere at this point. And the only hope that Jews had for being able to really go anywhere, or especially to get food ration cards without being discovered was to have one of these fake IDs. And as I said earlier, this is like the most worthy fake ID operation of all time. How does it work? So the first thing that they did was they took a picture of every refugee in their care.

And then Bartoli would go to the various monasteries and the places around Florence where the refugees were hiding and pick up those photographs. And then take them to Assisi? Right, because in ASEZEZE, there was a pair of printers. It was a father and son. And they would create the actual fake ID papers that those photographs would then be attached to. The other thing they did was they gave them a name

and an address from somewhere in the south of Italy so the Nazis couldn't check up on the population roles and see if that person really lived there or not. So, for example, someone whose name was Vandalatus and came from Rome might get a name that sounded more Italian and less Jewish, might be named suddenly, you know, Gina Latanzi, and it might come from Mancona,

somewhere in the south of Italy instead of Rome. Now Bartoli was a great person to participate in this secret network in this way because he was one of the few people during the war years who had relative liberty to move around. He still trained on his bicycle so he could be seen in the countryside in Tuscany and Umbria. And if he was stopped, as you know many people would be, there are military checkpoints everywhere, you know, at least, usually at least someone at the checkpoint,

you know, would recognize him from some of his pre-war wins. But he would just say, oh, I'm out training for my next race, and they would let him go by, and they'd wave to him and they'd cheer him on, and all the time that he was riding his bike, inside the frame of his bicycle and the tube and underneath the seat and in the handlebars, he'd rolled up and hidden the false papers or rolled up and hidden the photographs that he was taking the other way.

Emery, the idea that this guy is rolling up photos and forgeries and putting them into the frame of his bike and the handlebars and the seat, this is like some spy versus spy stuff. How far of a ride are we talking here? It's about 110 miles. 1010? From a guy who, by the way, won the Tour de France in 1938, Child's play. Except that the roads of this region during the war were constantly being damaged or destroyed by bombs. So he had to dodge a couple of times. of bombs on his bike. No big's totally reasonable training regimen, Amory.

Sure, Ben. Okay, but here's the really interesting part. And that's that Bartoli would make some pit stops along the way of this ride. And unlike a Ben or Amory pit stop, this was another opportunity to basically fight the Nazis, or at least to help other people escape them. There's a town called Tarantula in the north of Italy, which is the central nexus of the railroad system. And it was also on the route that Gina would ride on his way for. from Florence to Assisi. He would often stop off there and stop in the cafe. And there was a moment, again, late in the war, when there were trains that were still running to the south that you could get on a train and you could get away from the Nazis.

And he one day came and really worked as a decoy where he rode his bike into the station. So, Ben, this is the voice of Andrea Bartley, Gino's line. late son, speaking in Oren's documentary. And what he's saying here is, my father played the part of a great cycling champion. Everyone gathered around him, and when the guards saw the crowd gathering,

they left the trains and tried to disperse the crowd. While the guards were busy, the Jews were able to switch trains without being seen or stopped by the soldiers. Then they could travel south to seek asylum. This is amazing. He's like creating an effective diversion while he basically stops for water.

And yet, I got to say, it is chilling to think how risky all of this was. Basically, anyone who was helping an enemy of state and, you know, Jews fell in that category, they faced risk of imprisonment. They could be killed. And you certainly risk your family as well. And at this point, Bartley was married. He had a young son. And it was a, you know, a risk that he didn't take lightly, and I think that weighed on him heavily, even though he did decide to, you know, continue to help, you know, his diaries from the wartime years when he discusses how difficult it was to sleep and basically that he was on edge and highly, highly anxious for much of that period.

Hard to blame him considering all of this. Did his family know about it? So they knew some things. For instance, he was hiding a Jewish family in their house. So I can't really keep that from them. but they definitely didn't know that he was a part of this network, this heroic operation that was stretched all over the countryside. But eventually, after all of that risk-taking, a group of Italian fascists caught up with him. Near the end of the war, he was questioned by the head of the secret police,

the kind of militia of thugs who were helping the Nazis in Florence. And someone had given him a tip about Bartley. Bartley gets questioned by the secret police in a minute. At Radio Lab, we love nothing more than nerding out about science, neuroscience, chemistry. But we do also like to get into other kinds of stories, stories about policing, or politics, country music, hockey, sex, of bugs. Regardless of whether we're looking at science or not science, we bring a rigorous curiosity to get you the answers. hopefully make you see the world anew. Radio Lab, adventures on the edge of what we think we know.

Wherever you get your podcast. So Gino Bartoli has been this like bike messenger for this big secret network of people hiding Jewish refugees in Italy during World War II. But near the end of the war, he gets brought in by the secret police. Here's documentary in Orrin Jacobi again and Eileen McConnan, the author. Orin says the secret police knew something was up. It was clear he had delivered something, he had done something. And it was held in the headquarters of the secret police where people were regularly being tortured and killed.

They'd pull people's teeth out. They'd pour sort of hot liquid down their throats. It'd kind of put cigarettes out on their face or elsewhere to try to force confessions out of them and all while in earshite, you know, of other prisoners. So Bartley's waiting down in this sort of prison waiting to be questioned. But after three days when they took him out to question him, one of the aides to the head of the secret police said,

Look, I can vouch for this man. says he hasn't done anything wrong, you should let him go. And it turned out to be a big cycling enthusiast who knew him from his pre-wartime races, but also had been a supervisor for Bartley early in the war. And they released him. But that was a narrow escape, and he could have been killed. Bartleley was incredibly secretive. So during the war, other than Delacosta, you know, the cardinal who had asked him,

no one knew, basically. So not even his wife was aware that he was involved in this effort. and I had the chance to interview her and she said to me, you know what, that was one of the greatest kindnesses he gave me. It was a gift. There was a great moment during the war when his wife would get upset

when he would leave and wonder where he was going and wonder when he was coming back and she told him, you know, you love the bicycle more than you love me. And Gino said, no, of course, I love you more. And then joking for his son, he turned over to his bicycle and he whispered,

No, I love you more. So she was always worried about him, but he didn't tell her where he was going, and he didn't tell anyone where he was going. Until after the war, Gino and his son Andrea would go on trips, and often they'd drive from Florence to Rome or Florence to Venice, and they would pass a Sisi. And finally one day, they got off the highway, and they drove up the hill into Assisi,

and drove up to where the cathedral is and got out of the car and walked into the cathedral. And there were these amazing great frescoes by Joto, the great Renaissance painter. And they tell the story of St. Francis of Assisi, which in a way is the story of what Bartley and these other people were doing. They were taking off their cloak to give it to the person who needed it. Here's how Gino's son Andrea remembers this. He says here, he started to tell me when I was about 30. Little by little when we drove past Assisi, he would say, Joto, I've always loved Joto.

bit by bit, he started telling me what he'd done to save Jews and other people. He told me everything, always making me promise not to say anything to anyone. And the story that Gino told Andrea that day was that this is where he had come to deliver the fake IDs, and he would wait in this big open hall where the frescoes are until a priest came from the underground chamber where the people were hiding, and would come and collect the false documents or would give Gino the photographs that he would then take off to the printers. And it was almost like he was getting something off his chest.

Wow. So eventually Gino finally tells his secret. Right, but only to his son, only to Andrea. It stayed a secret to everyone else almost until he died. Yeah, and I thought that was interesting because I get why he would do this during the war, but at first I didn't really understand why he wouldn't want anyone to know about his involvement in the resistance even all these years later,

but we sort of find out eventually why he feels this way. Yeah, and here's Gino in his own words. He's speaking here in 1985, so this is 40 years after the war has ended at this point. He says here, I don't want to appear to be an hero.

The heroes are only those for my account of my, that are been dead, that have been finished, that have done many of my. He says here, I don't want to talk about it or act like a hero. Heroes are those who died, who were injured, who spent many months in prison. Humility. Basically, he says, this is just what you do, and you don't brag about it.

The Italian resistance as a whole helped save more than 10,000 people. And it's important to say that the Catholic clergy helping Bartali were also going directly against the church leadership, which, generally speaking, turned a blind eye to a lot of the injustices happening in Italy at the time. Yeah, Gino Bartoli alone is estimated to have helped more than 800 Jewish refugees escape the Nazis. But after the war, there was one more thing he wanted to do for Italy. He wanted to win the Tour de France of 1948, a decade past his prime. Stick with us, and we'll tell you all about it after the break. There is something powerful about the sound of the human voice.

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Okay. So Bartali has saved all these refugees, and somehow he has continued to train on his bicycle while doing so. talk about multitasking. Seriously. But one thing that happens in World War II is that the aftermath for most of Europe is in some ways almost as grim as the war itself. Here's Eileen McCannan again. Italy at this time is in shambles. It's sort of the early years after the war. The country was struggling heavily with unemployment, all sorts of economic woes. And Bartoli himself was a bit at odds because he wanted to return to cycling but also realized that he was

basically lost his prime racing years during the war. Not to mention he was malnourished from the food shortages. And he's old. He's in his mid-30s, which is swell for professional podcasting, but it's geriatric for professional cycling. So the race starts. And things are not looking good for Bartley. Nope.

He's about halfway through, and he's 15 minutes behind the leader. He looks like an old man compared to his competitors. And it's starting to get to. his head. But then, one night, just before one of the toughest stages of the tour to France, he gets a phone call at his hotel. And who's on the other end of the line? It's the prime minister of Italy. And the prime minister explains and says, you know, Bartali, Italy is in a very troubled state. Do you think you can win the tour? It would help us at this moment. You know, Italians, basically, they need some good news and then sort of hangs up. This is like the opposite of the usual,

No pressure, but... Right, the prime minister here is like, Bartley, man, cut the crap, we need you, let's do this. And so Bartoli realizes the responsibility that's been placed on his shoulders, and the next day rides one of the most spectacular stages of the tour, and what's remembered is one of the most impressive comebacks.

He wins that stage, and he goes on to win the Tour de France of 1948, a full 10 years after his last, victory. The news travels back to Italy and it was a sort of kind of euphoria basically that spread through the country. And so Bartoli's victory in that stage and he went on to win the tour, you know, it was very much seen as being quite important in terms of improving the mood in Italy at the time. I think one historian said he gave the country back at smile. This is a pretty epic comeback, worthy of Bartley being called the goat. And that's why people who have heard of Gino Bartley usually only know about his

cycling, because that's the part of his story that he wanted people to know. So, Ben, you remember how in the beginning I mentioned that Gino Bartoli's role in the resistance is news to even some Italians? Yep. Well, not for long, because this year, the Giro de Italia, which is Italy's famous annual cycling race, it's starting in Jerusalem. Israel is hosting the first three stages of that race, all in tribute to Gino Bartoli and the work that he did for the Jewish community during World War II. It kind of makes you wonder what Gino Bartoli would think of all this, given that he was so humble about his involvement. Well, Gino died back in 2000. Andrea and his son died last June, so we turned to the next generation.

Pronto. Pronto Lisa? Si? Yeah, hi. I'm Jacamo Bologna here at Boston in the States United. Yeah, ciao. Ciao, how are you? This is Lisa Bartolui, Gino's granddaughter. We got her on the phone with the help of our Italian.

speaking colleague Jamie Bologna. I'm here. I'm here. Ben, that's here. Hi, Lisa. Ciao, Chao.

Lisa is an avid cyclist herself, and she runs a blog called Bichikletami, where she writes about her love of urban cycling and her family history. We asked her about her relationship with her granddad.

She says that she and Gina would watch the Giro de Talia on TV together. Sometimes they'd ride bikes together, but when it came to his personal life, He never really talked about his history or his story as a cyclist. He was very reserved and character. He didn't like to talk about his story.

So did he ever tell you anything about his work with the Italian resistance during World War II? No, I mean, I remember, he talked about a anecdote. Nope. He told her a few things, she says, but he never said anything in relation to the war. Lisa, why do you think he kept all of these secrets for so long and did it upset you that he kept those secrets for so long and didn't talk about them very much? It's something to admire about him. To have the secret for so long and not to take advantage and glorify. himself for it.

The Jiro de Talia is starting in Jerusalem this year as a tribute to your grandfather. What do you think of this as a tribute to him? Lisa basically says here that she sees it as a great way to honor her grandfather on a global scale, both as a cyclist and just as a human being. She hopes that this year's race will introduce a younger generation to her grandfather's story so that other people will be inspired to follow his example. Italy as a country has, even today, refugees and people immigrating to it.

How do you think about the refugee crisis in relation to the story of your grandfather? It's a personal question, so she's going to give you her personal opinion, but my grandfather in the character that he had, it didn't matter the race, the religion of the people. He was against people who were violent and he was against the oppressors. He saved anyone who was in threat for their lives.

So the message that he left to us for today is to let go of our prejudices that we all have. Do good. When he took documents and transported fake documents, false documents on his bicycle, he didn't want to know the names of the people, he didn't want to know what was on the documents. He only wanted to. help and save the people.

He didn't matter who they were or where, but he knew that they were in risk of death. And so that's the message. It's a very current message. Lisa Bartali, thank you so much for talking with us. Oh, okay, you're welcome. Thank you. Thank you very much. Endless Thread is a production of WBUR, Boston's NPR station, in partnership with Reddit. Grazzi to our colleague Jamie Bologna, our Italian interpreter with a very appropriate last name.

Jamie was worried about his grammar. Sounded great to us, man. And also, thanks to Orange Jacoby for letting us play some tape from his documentary My Italian Secret. There's more information about the film and about Eileen McCannan's book, Road to Valor at our website, WBUR.org slash Endless Thread. our show is a dream realized by Jessica Alpert, who, when we ask if she likes the episode we've put together, she always says, No, no, no, no, yes!

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