Melissa 'The Missile' Giove (born 1972) is an American professional downhill

mountain biker Mountain biking is a sport of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough terrain, usually using specially designed mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and pe ...

. Throughout her career she won 14

NORBA Norba, an ancient town of Latium (''Adjectum''), Italy. It is situated 1 mile northwest of the modern town of Norma, on the western edge of the Volscian Mountains or Monti Lepini. The town is perched above a precipitous cliff with a splendid v ...

downhill titles and 11 world cups. Giove's other accomplishments include three overall NORBA downhill crowns, two World Cup overalls, and the 1994 World Championship title.

Career

Giove was born in Manhattan, NY. She raced for Yeti Cycles, along with other racers: Myles Rockwell, Jimmy Deaton,

John Tomac John Tomac (born November 3, 1967 in Owosso, Michigan) is an American former professional cyclist who competed from 1985 to 2005. He was a versatile rider who competed in multiple disciplines including; BMX racing, cross-country, road racing, t ...

and Johnny O'Mara, managed by former owner of Yeti Cycles, John Parker, the Volvo-Cannondale USA cycling team. Giove raced wearing the desiccated body of her deceased pet

piranha A piranha or piraña (, , or ; or , ) is one of a number of freshwater fish in the family Serrasalmidae, or the subfamily Serrasalminae within the tetra family, Characidae in order Characiformes. These fish inhabit South American rivers, f ...

, Gonzo, around her neck, which would become a marketing campaign for Cannondale. 2015, Giove qualified 17th at the World Cup Downhill race at

Windham, New York Windham is a town in Greene County, New York, United States. The population was 1,703 at the 2010 census. The town was probably named for the town or county of Windham, Connecticut, as many of its earliest settlers came from that state as well a ...

+36.558 seconds off the pace of Rachael Atherton's 3:05.135. 2016, Giove was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. 2022, Giove is a main character in the book, ''Pressure: A Memoir'' by Eric Canori.

Legal troubles

1999, May. Giove, along with Amazon Inc. filed a lawsuit against Cannondale (AMAZON, INC. v. CANNONDALE CORP. DIRT CAMP, INC., Civil Action Nos. 99-cv-00571-EWN-PAC, 00-cv-02063-EWN-PAC (D. Colo. March 10, 2006) and Dirt Camp, Inc. for a 1999 Cannondale Product Catolog and sought $2 million dollars in damages. During the summer and early fall of 1998, while Giove was still a member of the team, Cannondale designed, published, and distributed its 1999 products catalog. The catalog included several photographs of Giove. Subsequently, Giove and Team Sports Mountain Inc.(TMSI) failed to renegotiate a contract, and the TSMI/Amazon contract expired on December 31, 1998. Cannondale continued to distribute the 1999 catalog containing Giove's photographs after the TSMI/Amazon contract expired. 2009, June. Giove was arrested in Wilton, New York on charges of conspiring to possess and distribute 384 pounds of marijuana found hidden in a car trailer during a routine traffic stop. The case netted over $12,515,738 assets seized in the conspiracy. 2012, November. Giove, pleaded guilty in the case and was sentenced to 5 years on probation and 6 months under house arrest.

References

"Missy Giove: "The Missile" That Had to Be Stopped". ''WeLoveCycling magazine''. 2017-07-14.“Missy Giove.” ''Marin Museum of Bicycling and Mountain Bike Hall of Fame'', mmbhof.org/missy-giove/.Allen, and Christina. “Missy Giove.”

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giove, Missy 1972 births Living people American female cyclists Downhill mountain bikers Lesbian sportswomen LGBT cyclists American LGBT sportspeople UCI Mountain Bike World Champions (women) American mountain bikers American sportspeople of Italian descent 21st-century American women Cyclists from New York (state)