Lapo is a thoroughbred with a horrible story behind him: he was being exploited for clandestine horse racing in Sicily, which is known to take place in mafia circles. He was rescued and seized by the police in 2013 following a television report by Striscia La Notizia, who then came to document his arrival at the rescue centre. As soon as we saw him get out of the truck, our hearts clenched. Lapo bore the obvious signs of the mistreatment he was subjected to: a swollen front and back leg, scars on various parts of his body, signs of focalisation (a brutal system to accelerate the healing of tendon inflammations) and an impressive state of malnutrition. He walked badly because of the pains, he had marks and wounds even on his gums, due to mouthpieces (bites) modified to hurt even more in the mouth. He was reduced to a zombie but, despite everything, he had a great will to live. In fact, a few weeks later Lapo was already as if reborn: his transformation in physique and expression was such that today, if we compare his current images with those of then, one can hardly believe that he is the same horse.