Originally posted by rossoreduk
HEY DOES ANYONE KNOW WHATS HAPPENED? HE'S BEEN FOUND DEAD???
Originally posted by el Inglés
A man who , for reasons of expiediency , was crucified to save the Italian Olympic Com. and Italian football : some years ago there was a scandle in Italy of drug taking in football and the way the sports autorities ignored it . They need a scape goat and cycling was it : Pantani became a victim in the doping witchhunt that the " suits " used as a smoke screen for there previous inactivity .
and may the Gods have mercy on us all for allowing it to happen .
I agree with you entirely. Leave the trash talk to the gossip mags where they trash people who do nothing to earn celebrity status other than their looks or family name. People who earn celebrity by hard work deserve respect.Originally posted by jonny_velo
until the autopsy is finished there should be no speculation...
il pirata was an amazing champion and a larger than life character...
RIP
Pantani died from brain swelling
An autopsy showed on Monday that cyclist Marco Pantani died from severe swelling in his brain and heart, although the reason for these catastrophic symptoms was still unclear, a doctor involved in the research said.
Dr. Giuseppe Fortuni said further tests were necessary and that the investigation into the death of the 1998 Tour de France and Giro d'Italia winner would continue. Results from further tests should come within two weeks, he said.
Tormented by doping accusations in recent seasons, Pantani was found dead in a hotel room in this seaside resort on Saturday.
The Italian sporting hero had suffered from depression in the past, but prosecutors have played down the possibility of suicide - a widespread speculation in the Italian media. Authorities here say they will not be drawn out on the cause until investigations are completed.
Pantani's heart and breathing stopped after "cerebral edema and pulmonary edema," Fortuni said after the three-hour autopsy.
"We can absolutely exclude violent trauma," Fortuni told a throng of reporters. "We will investigate in every direction." Pantani, 34, was found dead on the floor of his room at the "Le Rose" apartment-hotel in the Adriatic city of Rimini. About 10 bottles of tranquilizers of four different brands were found in the room, some of them empty, others just open, police said.
The sudden death of Pantani, Italy's most popular cyclist, shocked the nation.
Pantani was the last man to win both the Tour de France and the Giro -cycling's most important races - in the same season.
Short and slight, he scaled huge mountains faster than anyone.
To the entire country, he was simply "the Pirate," a nickname he earned for his hoop earring and the bandanna that covered his bald head.
Italian newspapers reported Monday that Pantani lamented in notes found near his body that he had been left alone and that nobody could understand him.
The prosecutor investigating the cause of Pantani's death said none of the cyclist's words resembled a suicide note, according to Corriere della Sera.
"There is not one single line that makes one think of goodbye message," Prosecutor Paolo Gengarelli told the paper.
Paola Dente, a Rimini police official handling the case, said the letters had not been made public. "The contents are a private matter," Dente said.
Several top Italian sports officials Monday said changes needed to be made in the way top athletes are dealt with.
Gianni Petrucci, president of the Italian Olympic Committee, which oversees all doping tests in Italy, said in an interview with RAI state radio that athletes accused of taking banned substances should be dealt with more sensitively.
"We all have to believe that we could have done something for Pantani," he said.
Italian sports minister and IOC member Mario Pescante said Pantani was "a victim of modern sports." "He was investigated by at least seven state prosecutors. To me, that seems - frankly - too many," Pescante was quoted as saying by the news agency ANSA. "The penal responsibility of athletes is absurd. Sports sanctions would be enough."
Pantani spent the last days of his life mostly isolated from his friends and family. He was found after hotel employees, growing concerned that they hadn't seen him all day, opened his room.
Funeral services were planned for Wednesday in Pantani's hometown of Cesenatico, just north of Rimini.
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