Italian Milan-San Remo winner Michele Dancelli has died aged 83, sparking a wave of emotion and memories of a rider who always lived as a rebel and a maverick, refuting the disciplined lifestyle of professional cycling.
Dancelli ended a 17-year spell without an Italian winner at Milan-San Remo in 1970, attacking alone with 70km to go and crossing the finish in Via Roma in tears. He rode for Molteni, with a then young Ernesto Colnago hanging off the roof of the team car with a spare bike on his shoulder and team owner Piero Molteni even promising him one of the company's salami factories if he won.
