Rapha, nice but a bit pricey?

He exemplifies suffering for cycling.

RAPHA VALUES
At Rapha our employees are typified by four key values we look for when hiring:
Love the Sport – Make it part of your life.
Inspire Others – Lead by example.
Suffer – Good enough isn’t.
Think for Yourself – Be proactive, always

If they're really Mottram's values, then perhaps Pantani is his personal Jesus?

Even the most cutthroat companies I've worked for didn't actually put 'suffering' as one of their values. It's pretty bizarre.

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yes but why pantani?

dont other pro cyclists suffer?

Pantani is cool and shows panache.
Not sure an Indurain inspired jersey would sell as well.

Also what are name and image rights like for dead people? (Genuine question)

Another Italian sufferer who did coke!

Suffer – Good enough isn’t.

bit cringe inducing.

He wore a durag but was bald and didn’t have waves to show for it, that’s suffering.

Ginger too, like all the local strong riders. A niche in the market to be exploited.

I guess a comparable character might be Maradona? One person capable of turning an entire event around - despite all opposition pitched against them - through their unique physiology and skill? And that one persons performance also being erratic and unpredictable creates entertaining racing?

I’m no football fan, and certainly not a fan of the man himself, but the Maradona documentary is a brilliant film and made me understand why he’s almost a religious figure* to some. Would happily watch again.

Put me down for a jersey, Medium.

*has anyone been to that pizza restaurant in Florence dedicated to him/Napoli, VHS videos of him playing, jerseys on the wall? Good pizza, also recommend.

• and they both liked a diamond ear stud or two.
  

Excellent points, well made.

I'd have imagined Rapha blocked the use of word 'Pantani' in Rapha Custom.

I was just looking for a useful ref. to send round for the employee handbook which references different riders within the context of the company Values. Loads of white men, but not Pantani directly which was surprising. He’s only named in a list of icons - and there is a quote from Lance.

In looking for the employee handbook I came across an interview with the now ex-head of HR in which they take the credit for an initiative I began and presented to them/HR colleagues. Says it all really when HR pass off your ideas to promote their careers 😂

Ooh, sounds as if you need an HR monitor so you can be alerted when that happens.

Looks like they're now a Chief People Officer, what a terrifying prospect.

Anyone with chief in their title is probably a chief.

Isn't it also that Pantani's just a more appealing flawed hero from a narrative point of view? He looked like he was suffering, and struggled for his wins, rather than just dominating. The tragic end means it's easier to forgive his flaws compared to someone like Armstrong, who dominated whilst also being an aggressive arsehole.

The softball league won’t organise itself!

now ex-head of HR in which they take the credit for an initiative I began and presented to them/HR colleagues. Says it all really when HR pass off your ideas to promote their careers 😂

People & Culture please.

This reminded me of the influx of angry emails when the Pantani jersey was released (we had a template as an answer to save us time a while staying on-brand)...

The tragic end means it's easier to forgive his flaws .

You could argue he's the only one who actually paid a real price for his transgressions.

Not sure if they were transgressions that needed 'paying for'. On brand though, nice but a bit pricey.

I don't disagree. I just wanted to highlight that unlike some he didn't get a book deal, a TV contract or a Girona-based clothing brand at the end.

Yeah @Chopsicle, Maradona is the best footballer of all time. He took the game somewhere spiritual. Messi is certainly close, a cigarette paper away, but Maradona had a swagger to go with it. Like he graced the game by deciding to turn up. People love that and sport/entertainment is about that.

Incendiary football chat >>>>>

A bit? It's not even a value.

It's Yoda speak for unpaid overtime.

Anyway, I think people are missing an obvious point about Pantani. He exemplifies suffering because he died. The tragic hero trope. It also means that he will always be a seen as a young-ish cyclist, and not e.g. an aging pundit/alcoholic.