Ballerini in a car accident earlier that year. He left this role in 2014 to work with Fernando Alonso on his new cycling team in preparation for its launch in 2015. Track racing Bettini followed the path of riders before the 1970s and took up six-day racing in the winter. He rode at Munich and Grenoble in 2006. "I didn't do it for the money", he said. "I had that already. I did it through my love of racing, to see what it's like to race on a track." The bankings proved trickier than the road, however, and his debut was described as "catastrophic" as he failed to get alongside his partner in the two-man relay race, the madison, and finished the first night "with fear in his face." Charly Mottet said: I saw him at the start of the evening and he worried me. Two hours later, I can tell you, he had won the respect of the others. He was making proper changes, he was taking part in the race and he was going better and better. The others couldn't believe their eyes [commencaient à ne plus voir le jour]. Personal life Bettini married Monica Orlandini, a literature teacher, in 2000. They moved into a farmhouse belonging to his wife's family, who have been olive farmers for four generations. They live in Riparbella, 10 km from Cecina, where Bettini was born. Career achievements Major results 1996 1st Stage 8 Giro Ciclistico d'Italia 3rd Road race, National Under-23 Road Championships 4th Road race, UCI Road World Under-23 Championships 9th Overall Grand Prix Guillaume Tell 1997 1st Stage 2 (TTT) Hofbrau Cup 8th Overall Tour de Langkawi 1998 1st Stage 4a Tour de Romandie 3rd Trofeo Laigueglia 3rd Gran Premio Bruno Beghelli 7th Overall Giro d'Italia 7th Overall Danmark Rundt 1st Mountains classification 7th Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria 8th Overall Tour Méditerranéen 8th Züri-Metzgete 8th Coppa Sabatini 1999 1st Overall Giro della Provincia di Lucca 1st Stage 1 1st Stage 4 Tirreno–Adriatico 2nd Milano–Torino 3rd Overall Settimana Internazionale di Coppi e Bartali 1st Stage 2 4th Züri-Metzgete 5th Liège–Bastogne–Liège 6th Overall Tour of Galicia 1st Stage 1 7th GP Ouest–France 7th Giro dell'Appennino 9th Giro di Lombardia 9th Grand Prix of Aargau Canton 2000 1st Overall Memorial Cecchi Gori 1st Stages 2 & 4 1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège 1st Trofeo Manacor 1st Stage 9 Tour de France 2nd Giro della