Did the Great Italian Cyclist Gino Bartali Actually Save Jews During the Holocaust?
An exhibition at the Italian American Museum in New York recently celebrated Gino Bartali, whose fame as a cycling champion has been amplified in recent years by his alleged participation in the rescue of Jews during World War II. Films and a theater play accompanied Yad Vashem’s recognition of Bartali as a righteous gentile in 2013.
Bartali never claimed to have been a rescuer nor did any of the organizers of the Italian rescue networks mention him. Historians have kept silent on the matter: none of the scholars in the field have so far endorsed it.