Libero Liberati
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| Complete name: Libero Liberati |
| Birth date: 20.Sep.1926 |
| Birth Place: Terni, Italy |
| Death date: 05.Mar.1962 |
| Death Place: Terni, Italy |
| Nationality: Italy |
| Gender: male |
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Notes:
Libero Liberati
1926 - 1962
This picture is located on Libero Liberati's grave, in the Cimitero Comunale di Terni, Italy.
Photo taken by Carlo Fertitta. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.
An Italian motorcycle legend, Libero Liberati was the winner of the 1957 500 cm3 World Motorcycle Championship, riding a Gilera. His fearless and aggressive riding style was immediately evident since his first race starts, thus becoming a popular rider in his country and abroad. During his career he achieved almost forty outright victories.
Born in Terni, central Italy, on 20 September 1926, as a teenager Libero Liberati served his apprenticeship as mechanic in a Terni garage owned by Giulio Allegretti, who later gave him his first racing motorcycle to compete as a teenager in his maiden race, a hillclimb near Perugia. But in 1939 came war and motor racing came to an abrupt halt.
  
Libero Liberati's monument, erected in 2012 in the Marmore Park near his hometown Terni, Italy.
Photos taken by Samuele Zanghieri. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.
When racing returned after the end of World War II, Libero Liberati started his careera as a professional rider, winning many races in Italy and Europe. Liberati made his debut in the World Motorcycle Championship as a privateer in 1950, riding a Moto Guzzi. In 1952 he was hired by Giuseppe Gilera to join the Moto Gilera factory team and the following year he scored championship points for the first time, finishing third in the Grand Prix des Nation at Monza, 500 cm3 class, behind his Gilera team mates Geoff Duke and Dickie Dale. Three years later he obtained his first victory on the same event, in the 350 cm3 class. He earned two consecutive National titles in the 500 cm3 class, in 1955 and 1956.
1957 proved to be his best season. As a Gilera works rider, Liberati won the 500 cm3 World Championship, scoring a total of four victories. In the German Grand Prix held on 19 May on a wet track at Hockenheim, he won both the 350 cm3 class race - despite he fell down on 17th lap - and a few hours later his first 500 cm3 class race. He did not participate in the subsequent Isle of Man Tourist Trophy, then finished second in the Dutch TT at Assen, behind John Surtees' MV Agusta. Later he collected three more consecutive victories, in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, Ulster Grand Prix at Dundrod and Grand Prix des Nation at Monza. He also finished second in points in the 350 cm3 class, level on points with team mate Bob McIntyre, behind Keith Campbell, the first Australian to win a World Championship, on a Moto Guzzi.
His victory in the 1957 Belgian Grand Prix was very controversial. After the end of the race, teams Norton and MV Agusta filed a claim of supposed irregularities and he was disqualified from his win at Spa-Francorchamp. Team Gilera appealed against the decision and Liberati's victory was confirmed only in January of 1958. On race day, due to mechanical trouble during warm-up, Liberati had changed bike with his team mate Bob Brown before the start of the race.
Unfortunately, by the end of 1957 season Liberati was left without a ride. Moto Gilera, in agreement with FB Mondial and Moto Guzzi, decided the withdrawal from the competitions, in consequence of the prohibition of every road race in Italy, after the tragedy of Guidizzolo during the 1957 Mille Miglia race, in which drivers Alfonso de Portago and Ed Nelson and nine spectators were killed. Liberati announced his retirement but two years later Moto Morini gave him the opportunity to return to race again, this time in the 250 cm3 class. He scored only a fourth place in the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim.
He then took part in some World Championship events, riding his private Gilera Saturno 500, but without any significant result. He was runner-up in the 1961 Italian Motorcycle Championship, 500 cm3 class, behind the winning Bianchi of Ernesto Brambilla. And when Gilera decided to come back to Grand Prix racing in 1962, Liberati then aged 35, started to prepare himself for the racing season, with the hope of being hired once again by the works team. Sadly, he lost his life in a road accident which happened around 14h00 on Monday, 05 March 1962.
 
A plaque, honoring Libero Liberati was placed by the Moto-Club Terni at the site of accident, in the village of Cervara near the Vocabolo Valle side street.
Photos taken by Samuele Zanghieri. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.
Liberati was coming back home in Terni at moderate speed, after a private training session with his Gilera Saturno 500, going north along the Provincial road SP209 "Valnerina". Riding on a wet road, at 13h40 he lost control of his bike due to gearbox trouble, a few kilometers from home, on the approach to the fast bend at the intersection between via Cervara and the side street Vocabolo Valle, province of Terni. His motorcycle skidded on the tramway rails which crossed the road and he fell down. He slid on the asphalt, crashing head-on into a rock.
Greviously injured on head, he was taken by a private car to Terni hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly after admission, victim of a fracture at the base of the skull. Libero Liberati lived with his wife and their two sons of 14 and 6 years, in the village of Marmore, province of Terni.
 
Libero Liberati's grave in the Cimitero Comunale di Terni, Italy, and his memorial placed by the A.N.A.A.I. (Associazione Nazionale Atleti Azzurri d'Italia).
Photos taken by Carlo Fertitta. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.
The "Libero Liberati Stadium" in Terni, is named after him. A plaque, honoring him was placed by the Moto-Club Terni at the exact site of accident, after his death. And a marble monument was erected in 2012 at the Marmore Park near Terni, in his memory.
The stele reads:
A Libero Liberati
Campione del Mondo di Motociclismo
Per avere imposto
con la sua passione
il suo ardimento, la sua classe
all'ammirazione universale degli sportivi
il prestigio del nome di Terni e d'Italia
risonoscenti e onorati
i suoi concittadini di Marmore"
(transl.: "A Libero Liberati, World Motorcycle Champion, for having imposed with his passion, his daring, his class to the universal admiration of sportsmen the prestige of the name of Terni and of Italy, resonant and honored, his fellow citizens of Marmore").
 
The entrance to the "Libero Liberati Stadium" in Terni and a murales dedicated to him on a wall of Terni steelworks where he had worked before becoming a motorcycle racing star.
Photos taken by Carlo Fertitta. Reproduced under kind permission, all rights reserved.
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Career Summary:
1955
500 cm3 Italian Motorcycle Championship
1956
500 cm3 Italian Motorcycle Championship
1957
500 cm3 World Motorcycle Championship |
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Sources:
- Book "I Giorni del Coraggio - Storia dei Motomondiali 1949-1969" by Ezio Pirazzini, Edizioni Calderini, Bologna 1975.
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Newspaper La Stampa (Torino, Italy), issue of Tuesday, 06 March 1962, page 6, article "Liberati, asso del motociclismo, morto in un incidente stradale", retrieved by website http://www.archiviolastampa.it/ .
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Website Moto GP, page http://www.motogp.com/en/riders/Libero+Liberati .
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Website Racing Memory by Vincent Glon, page http://racingmemo.free.fr/MOTO-GP-classements_57-500.htm .
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Website Umbria-Left, page http://www.umbrialeft.it/notizie/terni-intitolato-libero-liberati-parco-campacci-marmore .
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Message by Samuele Zanghieri, dated 31 August 2022.
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E-mail by Carlo Fertitta, dated 01 September 2023 (seven messages).
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