Italian cyclist Marco Pantani, Tour de France and Giro d'Italia race winner in 1998, poses on June 12, 1998 in Milan, Italy. Pantani, 34, was found dead February 14, 2004 in his hotel room in Rimini, Italy. Pantani, 34, was found dead February 14, 2004 in his hotel room in Rimini, Italy. His death was ruled accidental – the result of a drug overdose – but his family has long contested those findings, suspecting foul play.