Reggio Emilia, July 24, 2026 – “An unjust, premature, and violent death” – with these words don Davide Poletti, defined the passing at just 41 years old of Alessandro Magnani, who died last July 14, after a day of agony, following the accident that occurred in the countryside of Bassa Reggiana with the bicycle of Paolo Belli. An accident for which a file has been opened to ascertain responsibility for what happened and which sees the well-known singer and TV presenter from Carpi, registered in the register of suspects, as a necessary act to carry out investigations into the case, for the hypothesis of vehicular homicide.
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The phrase was pronounced by the priest during the boy’s funeral, which was held this afternoon in the Church of the Immaculate Conception on via Bismantova in Reggio Emilia, in an atmosphere of deep emotion and collective grief.
The emotion of his boys and the symbols of his passions
A crowd welcomed the coffin with posters full of photos of happy moments, t-shirts in suffrage worn by his closest friends and his Academy volleyball students Progetto Intesa in tears, along with his parents and the entire community of the neighborhood where Magnani, known to all as “Magnaus,” had lived for years, before moving to Canolo di Correggio (RE), working as a catechist and organizing volleyball tournaments for the parish youth.
On the coffin, the Napoli jersey and white-blue flowers
On the coffin lay the jersey of Napoli Calcio and the flowers were strictly white and blue, in memory of his great passion for the Neapolitan team, to which he had also added that for Reggiana Calcio. In a basket, placed by friends next to the coffin, there was also a Teste Quadre scarf, next to the inevitable volleyball, a t-shirt with all the signatures of his colleagues and athletes, a remote-controlled car, as well as many CDs by 883, his favorite music group.
Don Poletti’s homily and the last act of love: organ donation
In his homily, the priest cited the parable of the good sower, defining Magnani as “a good seed that has given and will give good fruits. A boy who, wherever he went, knew how to create a small fraternity around himself.”
The young man, who lost his father six years ago, was an only child, and the priest addressed his mother Lina and closest relatives, who had arrived from the Neapolitan capital: “I cannot even imagine the burden of your grief; we want to be close to you, to support you in the Lord. Everyone will remember Alessandro’s smile and the attentive gaze he had for his mother. We thank him for his goodness, carried to the very end, with the donation of organs, which will now allow a new life to those who receive them.” And, specifically to Aido, the family asked for donations in his memory.
The emotional remembrance by friends and athletes to the notes of Max Pezzali
Many memories were then dedicated to him at the close of the mass; the mother of one of his athletes said: “For my daughter, he was a great point of reference, he left many seeds in the young people he met along his short path.”
Emanuele di Silvestro, parish animator and his best friend, added: “He wasn’t a person capable of loving halfway. He was sensitive, intelligent, and kind. He believed in people and bonds, in sharing and friendship. He was Neapolitan to the core, – he added, smiling through tears – we will miss the New Year’s Eves together, with his inevitable fireworks. One thing he taught me above all: that good should not be held back, but cultivated.”
A representative of his volleyball team added: “We will go on without fear, as you always told us. I promise we will.”
As the coffin left the church square, his dearest friends bid him farewell with Max Pezzali’s songs, which all those present gradually sang along to, culminating in a large and touching final farewell applause.
Magnani’s body has now been transferred to the Coviolo cemetery, awaiting cremation and subsequent burial.
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