Crotone coach cycling the length of Italy to keep promise

By AP
Published

CROTONE, Italy (AP) Crotone coach Davide Nicola will fulfill a promise made two months ago and ride his bike on a 1,300-kilometer (800-mile) trip home - nearly the entire length of boot-shaped Italy - to celebrate the Calabrian club avoiding relegation.

Nicola will depart Crotone's Ezio Scida stadium on Friday and plans to arrive in his hometown of Vigone outside Turin eight days later.

Nicola says ''it's not a race, it's about fulfilling a promise.''

Competing in Serie A for the first time in its 107-year history, Crotone finished 17th - one spot above the relegation zone. The club sat last at the season's halfway point.

Nicola is dedicating the race to his son, who died when he was hit by a bus while cycling at the age of 14.