Star Forest Drive

On July 16, 1976, in the quiet surroundings of the Rumbeke star forest, Giovanni (the son of cyclist Jean-Pierre Monseré who died five years earlier in Lille during a fairground race) was cycling with his cousin Tony. When he turned onto the Sterrebosdreef, seven-year-old Giovanni was struck by an oncoming vehicle. The boy, who was wearing a champion's jersey given to him by Freddy Maertens, was thrown several meters away. Giovanni was rushed to the hospital in Roeselare, but little help could be given due to the many internal injuries; it was a matter of anxiously waiting how the situation would evolve. Around three o'clock the following night, Giovanni would lose his life. Giovanni is buried together with his father in Beveren.

Pascal Brackman