Madonna del Ghisallo

The Madonna del Ghisallo is the small chapel above Lake Como which sits alongside the route of the Giro di Lombardia.

A local priest, Father Ermelindo Vigano, proposed that Madonna del Ghisallo (the apparition) be declared the patroness of cyclists. This was confirmed by Pope Pius XII. The shrine of Madonna del Ghisallo contains a small cycling museum with photos and artifacts from the sport.

At the finish of the Giro, we stood in the rain waiting for 33 minutes for the last two riders to complete the course.  The rest of the media contingent had left, either for the warmth of the bar or the press conference with the winner.  The second last rider was in his last race as a professional and the last rider was in his first World Tour race.  We were very happy to interview both.

Once we finished the interviews, we ran back to the car to find the famous chapel on the hill.  With only a rudimentary map to guide us, we found the chapel at dusk after we drove up the climb from Bellagio on Lake Como in the twilight.  Below are some of the images.  The chapel is part cycling curiosity, part museum and part place of worship.  It is magnificent.  Where else can you see such a concentration of cycling history of biblical proportions?

Also in Blog