October 2, 2023, edited by Marta Khalifa
This story begins at the starting gates, the ones from which we have seen Martina launch herself time and again. It begins in the moment before the descent, when agitation and cheering grow in equal measure.
“Breathe in, 1-2-3-4-5, breathe out, 5-4-3-2-1. A friend taught it to me,” Martina says, “and I do it every time I get to the gate. The background noise disappears, my heart slows down, and in my head I see only the track.”
Come to think of it, downhill is one of those sports that requires the ability, uncommon and by no means taken for granted, to stay in the here and now, because there are very few chances to turn a bad day around.
It is no coincidence that we start here, with “gate feeling,” because what for many seems like a starting point, for those who look closer and deeper, is a finish line: the road that leads to the gates, in fact, is a long journey, made of preparation, study, personal growth.
“I started riding a bike at 6 years old. At 17, I quit, the way you quit a job you no longer like and are fed up with. I had given so much to biking, cross-country to be exact, and I felt it was time to turn the page.” But as with all the best love stories, made of ups and downs, this one too was only destined to change. “I started again by chance, and I did it with downhill.”
“There’s a different vibe in the world of gravity, I don’t know how to explain it,” she tells us with a huge smile. “It’s a completely different way of experiencing biking. For us, fun is central. The competition is with yourself, and the faster you go, the more adrenaline enters your bloodstream, the less you can do without it. It’s addictive.” We immediately understand that we are dealing with a different kind of pursuit compared to that of other athletes. Some do it for the love of the effort, some for the sense of power, of freedom, of completeness. In this case, it is the pursuit of fun. Yes, downhill is pure fun.
But like all achievements, this one too must be earned with sweat.
Preparation begins in the gym because good physical fitness helps withstand the strain. It continues with laps at the pump track, road biking in the winter months, and bike parks.
What many think is a simple “descent” is the result of hours of work, not only physical, but also mental. Because downhill also requires a lot of courage. You have to face the fear of falling, of going fast, and you have to be mature enough to manage your emotions: “It’s an intense physical effort, albeit brief, so you have to be clear-headed. Emotions lead to mistakes and therefore to lost seconds. That’s also why an important part of preparing for races is the track walk. We memorize the course, the rocks, the position of the roots. We don’t just go fast; we know exactly how to move on those tracks.”
She confides in us that after a bad fall at the beginning of the season, she struggled to express herself in races, even though she won one podium after another. It was only at the Italian championships that she felt the fear had disappeared and that the desire to have fun was overwhelming. She talks about it as if that sudden change of mind had been random, but we know all too well that it is the result of consistency, of knowing your body, of preparing it to start again.
We ask Martina if she has ever thought about quitting, but we know the answer is no. How can you leave something you like so much? Her passion is visceral, and it shows in how she manages to make everything work despite a thousand commitments and a very young daughter. It shows in how she talks about race weekends, in how she experiences biking, not just as a sport, but as a lifestyle.
And it shows even better at the starting gates, in those seconds of breathing, where the heartbeats slow down, the voices disappear, and you are left alone with your passion: Martina and her descents.
