Granai della Memoria

Felice Bertola, born in 1944, was the most successful pallapugno player in history. He won 13 championships in the Italian Serie A, the major league of the country. Born in Gottasecca in Bormida valley, he began playing pallapugno as a boy. He reached the peak of his career in 1975, when in front of over 5000 spectators he won the championship against his ultimate rival, Massimo Berruti, in Cuneo. He won the championship in 1963, '64, '65, '66, '67, '69, '70, '71, and '72, then in 1975, in '77, '79, '84 and '86, at age 42. He continued playing until 1995 as a spalla. In 2006 was one of the torchbearers for the Winter Olympic Games in Turin.