1998 - The season that made Marco Pantani one of cycling's greatest legends

Marco Pantani is remembered by a legion of fans as one of the greatest climbers in cycling history. If the comparison is limited to the mountains, few names can dispute his place among the best of all time. However, his figure was always shrouded in controversy: he was part of a generation hit by doping and his own death continues to be surrounded by unknowns and theories that feed the black legend that accompanied the 'Pirate'.

The 1998 season began for Pantani in Spain, with performances that did not anticipate what was to come: 68th in the Trofeo Luis Puig, 11th in the Clásica de Almería and 3rd in the Vuelta a Murcia, where he also won a stage victory.

In the spring classics he only took the start in the Milano - Sanremo, although he was unable to complete it. His sights were set on the big objectives of the year, and in preparation for the Giro he took part in both the Itzulia Basque Country and the Giro del Trentino. In the latter he finished a solid fourth, only beaten by Paolo Salvoldelli, Dario Frigo and Francesco Casagrande, 27 seconds behind the winner and just one second off the podium.

The 1998 Giro d'Italia was Pantani's consecration. In the Corsa Rosa he took two stage victories, finished second three times, third once and fourth once. His consistency and superiority in the mountains allowed him to win the mountains classification and be crowned overall champion, defeating rivals such as Pavel Tonkov, Giuseppe Guerini, Oscar Camenzind and Daniel Clavero. It was his first Grand Tour, the highlight of his career up to that point.

Without a competitive break between the two events, Pantani directly linked the Giro with the Tour de France. There he once again showed himself to be the great climber of the moment. He won two stages, accumulated five podiums and achieved a historic triumph against riders such as Jan Ullrich, Bobby Julich, Christophe Rinero or Michael Boogerd. His victory in Paris completed a Giro-Tour double that was only within the reach of cycling's great legends.

Just two days after being crowned in Paris, Pantani showed that his ambition had no pause by winning the two short time trials at A Travers Lausanne, held on the same day. He would later take ninth place in the Breitling Grand Prix, before rounding off his mammoth campaign with victories in the Circuit de l'Aube and the Rominger Classic, two high-level races that certified the dimension of an unrepeatable year.

The 1998 season is still considered by far the best of his entire career. A year in which Marco Pantani reached the pinnacle of world cycling and which, despite the permanent shadow of controversy, continues to nurture his status as a myth.