It was September 2009 when in Cattolica on the saddle of his motorcycle Andrea Casadei, now 38 years old, saw his life change. A terrible accident with a pick-up, the severing of the femoral artery, the almost severed left leg subsequently amputated at the Rimini hospital.
The uphill road of a rehabilitation and prosthetic journey led him, thanks to a friend, to the bicycle.
2013 is the turning point thanks to the meeting with the handbike champion Giovanni Achenza, the Equa team and the positive test in Melegnano to join the Pavia team. “I was afraid of having ‘thrown’ into something bigger than me but I set to work with my head down”.
Andrea relies solely on coaches and nutritionists, learns the fundamentals of competitive cycling, makes changes to the bike by mounting a carbon fiber casing to be able to “load” even with the amputated leg.
And after a winter of work, the results arrive from the debut at the “Due Giorni del Mare” to the absolute Italian Championships in which he wins the first race and qualifies as Italian champion on the road. Andrea wears a rainbow and is summoned by the Paralympic Cycling National Team, he competes with athletes from all over the globe.
During a training session in view of the Italian championships, fate had another accident in store for him, with a facial fracture, subsequent surgery and hooks in his mouth.
How can a rock stem the sea? Andrea is an impetuous wave and returns to pedaling on the rollers to recover the previous physical form. Winter is still a propitious season. The reward has the appearance of gold in the absolute Italian time trial and second place on the road. “I continue to grow as an athlete and cyclist, the dream is to participate in a Paralympic Games”.