Italian former professional cyclist Mario Cipollini has been sentenced to three years on prison for domestic abuse charges brought against him by his now-ex-wife Sabrina Landucci and her new partner, Silvio Giusti. In addition to the prison sentence, an Italian court has also fined Cipollini—best known as Cipo in the pro world—85,000 Euros.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Cipollini committed “a series of acts damaging the physical and mental integrity of his ex-wife with punches, slaps, kicks, with injuries, and death threats.”
According to Wielerfliets, a Dutch paper, the judge in the case noted that Cipollini mistreated, threatened and stalked his ex-wife “over a period from the end of 2016 to the beginning of 2017,” including an incident where he pressed a gun to her forehead.
Cipollini is best known for his loud racing kits, worn in the nearly two decades of his professional cycling career that stretched from the late eighties into the mid-aughts. He was also known as a womanizer, despite marrying Landucci in 1993. The couple divorced in 2005. In 2017, the allegations of abuse and stalking began to come to light and the trial began. In June of 2022, Letizia Cai, the public prosecutor assigned the case, asked for a two and half years of prison sentence for Cipollini.
As VeloNews notes, it’s still unclear whether or not the 55-year-old will serve any prison time, or if he’ll receive a house arrest or probation status. The 85,000 Euro fine will be divided, with Landucci receiving 80,000 Euros and Giusti receiving 5,000. Cipolinni’s lawyer has said that they plan to appeal the verdict.
Gazetta.it quoted Landucci as saying: “I am pleased with this sentence and this victory... It was a very difficult path, the defense part really hurt me very, very badly... After seven long years a nightmare has ended. For me it was a complicated life, with a figure of a character about whom I have nothing to say on the sporting side, but unfortunately he had strong difficulties in our relationship that have definitely damaged me... I have two daughters, and I think they are the injured party.” (Quote translated from Italian)
—This piece will be updated as more details emerge
