bartali grew up in a religious family in tuscany, and his belief earned him the nickname "gino the pious". he prayed before meals and resented when teammates swore. in contrast, coppi grew up in piedmont in the north and was not religious at all. bartali was proud that pope john xxiii had asked him to teach him to ride a bicycle. he made no secret that he supported the catholic-leaning christian democratic party but his personality ensured that he was forgiven by the rival communists. tim hilton wrote: "bartali was a genuinely religious man, making his devotions public and, in return, becoming the vatican's favourite sportsman – he was personally blessed by three popes. he would set up shrines in his hotel bedrooms when he rode the giro and the tour de france, and, on some mountains, children from summer camps sang canticles as he pedalled past, a priest conducting their infant worship."