Mario Cipollini caught up with justice.
The former Italian rider, star of the peloton in the late 1990s and early 2000s, was sentenced on Monday at first instance to three years in prison by the court in Lucca, Tuscany.
The ex-sprinter, now 55, was found guilty of violence and threats against his former wife, Sabrina Landucci, as reported by Sky Italia and several other transalpine media.
He was also convicted of threatening her new companion, former footballer Silvio Giusti.
The prosecutor had requested two years and six months of criminal imprisonment in June for a series of acts committed between 2016 and 2017. The winner of twelve stages on the Tour de France and 42 on the Giro, had in particular been accused by the mother of her two daughters of attacking her at work.
The latter had denounced the facts in January 2017. Mario Cipollini denied the punches, slaps, kicks and death threats of which he was accused.
85,000 euros in compensation to be paid to the victims
The winner of Milan - San Remo in 2002 also received compensation of 80,000 and 5,000 euros to be paid to Sabrina Landucci and Silvio Gusti.
The case was brought to court for the first time in 2019, but a series of hearing postponements linked to the Covid-19 pandemic and the former cyclist's health problems caused the trial to drag on.
Triple winner of Ghent-Wevelgem and three-time winner of the points classification in the Tour of Italy, Mario Cipollini retired in 2005 before attempting a brief comeback in 2008. He also created a cycle brand, MCipollini.
