Santini SMS

Last updated
Santini Cycling
Santini SMS logo.svg
Product typeCycling clothing
OwnerSantini spa
CountryItaly
Introduced1965
MarketsWorldwide
Website www.santinicycling.com

Santini Cycling is a cycling clothes brand of the Italian clothing production company Santini Maglificio Sportivo. Established in 1965 in Bergamo, Santini was born from Pietro Santini's deep passion for cycling. Proudly made in Italy, each garment is the result of dedicated work by a team of cycling enthusiast designers.

Contents

History

Pink jersey for the leader in the Giro d'Italia Maglia rosa.jpg
Pink jersey for the leader in the Giro d'Italia

Santini Cycling is an icon in the cycling apparel industry, with a history that spans years of dedication to the art of producing technical clothing for cyclists worldwide. Santini's story began in 1965 when Pietro Santini founded the company under the name Santini Maglificio Sportivo.

After the initial years, where production was dedicated to general wool garments, the company moved towards sportswear, and cycling apparel, in particular. This happened thanks to Pietro Santini’s deep passion for cycling as a sport and the strong friendship with Felice Gimondi.

The 1970s

The 1970s marked a significant shift for Santini Cycling. During this era, the company began to experiment with innovative materials like Lycra for cycling shorts, gradually replacing the traditional wool with synthetics. An even more significant breakthrough was the introduction of synthetic, anti-bacterial paddings, gradually replacing the traditional chamois.

1977 is the year of the first international cycling team sponsored by Santini, named Peugeot/Esso-Michelin. The beginning of sponsorships Peugeot/Esso-Michelin was the first real international team sponsorship for Santini and was a huge leap forward for the company in terms of distribution and brand visibility.

Another important invention was the introduction of the use of Polyamide in the manufacture of jerseys to increase their aerodynamic effect. And in 1979 Santini started producing coloured shorts: before that time this garment was traditionally black.

The 1980s

At the beginning of the 1980’s the sublimatic printing process was invented and Santini was one of the first producers to introduce it in the world of professional cycling. As cycling teams needed a way to include more sponsor logos on their apparel, the traditional embroidery process proved both time-consuming and impractical.

1984 sees the launch of the Iconic Team La Vie Claire jersey. The team La Vie Claire colours were based on the artwork of Piet Mondrian, giving them a unique appearance in the peloton. The design is considered one of the most memorable jersey designs in cycling history. Manufactured by Santini, it is still very popular with cycling fans all over the World.

Santini became the official supplier of the UCI World Championship in 1988 and started producing the World Cup jerseys for all the various events. More teams and more races meant greater visibility for cycling as a sport, this led to new partnerships with high profile sponsors that demanded accurate brand representation. New skills and technology which enabled a faster way to produce cycling apparel was fully embraced by Santini to cope with this demand, firmly placing the company at the forefront of the industry.

The 1990s

The ‘90s saw the introduction of new highly breathable and windproof membrane technologies. Santini was the first to introduce Gore Windstopper fabrics into cycle clothing. The soft-shell Windstopper fabric was ideally suited to cycling, providing a rider with a highly breathable and stretchable fabric, offering wind protection, warmth and thanks to a DWR coating, a high level of water resistance too.

1992 saw Italian cyclist Gianni Bugno triumph at the World Road Championships in Benidorm, Spain, wearing a Santini jersey, successfully defending his world title. It was a period when cyclists began to see significant advantages from using technologically advanced materials.

1993 marked the first year in which Santini became the official technical sponsor of the Giro d’Italia and supplier of the Maglia Rosa, an association that lasted until 2017, with every Maglia Rosa proudly made in Italy.

In 1998 Santini became the official supplier to the Mercatone-Uno team. Marco Pantani would achieve greatness by winning both the Giro and Tour back-to-back that year becoming the first Italian rider to win the Tour since the great Felice Gimondi.

The years when Pantani raced for Mercatone-Uno generated a huge level of national sporting pride, pushing Italian bike racing to the forefront of the world stage again, cementing his place as one of the greatest Italian sportsmen that ever lived.

The 2000s

The collaboration with Australian cycling began in 2000 and continues to this day. Santini devoted considerable resources to research and development of advanced fabrics and manufacturing technologies to create high-performance cycling apparel.

In 2002 Santini became technical clothing partner of the iconic Mapei-Quickstep team. The design of the jersey became legendary, and it is still nowadays a true icon of cycling recognized by all cycling fans all over the world.

In 2007 the team Lampre-Fondital was one of the strongest team in the peloton winning 31 World Tour races. The jersey design, thanks to a combination of flashy blue and pink colours, became quickly famous and it is still nowadays a milestone of cycling.

The 2010s

2015 marked Santini’s fiftieth anniversary. Fifty years of manufacturing some of the world’s most famous cycling jerseys; with a heritage bounded undeniably to the very history of the sport of road racing. This authenticity and proud legacy led the company this same year to become the official clothing partner of Eroica, the international, world famous vintage cycling event. This collaboration saw Santini reprising original production methods to design an entire line of vintage replica wool cycling garments; some of which were based on precise items manufactured decades before.

Successful collaborations with high-profile cycling teams like Trek-Segafredo led to the introduction of apparel that could provide protection in adverse weather conditions. One result of this research was the introduction of anti-abrasion Impact shorts, used by the Trek-Segafredo team at the Tour de France. These shorts represented a significant leap in cycling apparel innovation.

The 2020s

2019 saw Santini partner with the Ironman Group, the world’s leading triathlon and multi-sport series organization. Santini became the official supplier of all technical apparel to all Ironman events; plus, in collaboration developed a series of co-branded capsule collections showcasing some of the worlds most advanced triathlon apparel.

In 2021, Santini Cycling established a prestigious partnership with the Tour de France and the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. As part of this collaboration, the jerseys worn by classification leaders in these iconic races proudly bear the Santini name. Santini also sponsors other significant cycling events like Paris-Roubaix, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Fleche Wallone, Paris Tour, and important stage races such as Paris-Nice and Criterium du Dauphiné. On these occasions, Santini creates special collections to celebrate the values and importance of these races.

New headquarters

In 2021, Santini invested in a new headquarters in the heart of the city of Bergamo. Santini renovated an old factory, creating a genuine campus where the office building and the production facility are surrounded by over 10,000 square meters of park.

Teams

Santini cycling is and was also the cycling clothes sponsor of a number of cycling teams including:

See also

Notes

    Related Research Articles

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Felice Gimondi</span> Italian cyclist (1942–2019)

    Felice Gimondi was an Italian professional racing cyclist. With his 1968 victory at the Vuelta a España, only three years after becoming a professional cyclist, Gimondi, nicknamed "The Phoenix", was the second cyclist to win all three Grand Tours of road cycling: Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, and Vuelta a España (1968). He is one of only seven cyclists to have done so.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Jersey (clothing)</span> Knitted pullover

    Traditionally, a jersey is an item of knitted clothing, generally made of wool or cotton, with sleeves, worn as a pullover, as it does not open at the front, unlike a cardigan. It is usually close-fitting and machine knitted in contrast to a guernsey that is more often hand knit with a thicker yarn. The word is usually used interchangeably with sweater.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1998 Tour de France</span> Cycling race

    The 1998 Tour de France was the 85th edition of the Tour de France, one of cycling's Grand Tours. The 3,875 km (2,408 mi) race was composed of 21 stages and a prologue. It started on 11 July in Ireland before taking an anti-clockwise route through France to finish in Paris on 2 August. Marco Pantani of Mercatone Uno–Bianchi won the overall general classification, with Team Telekom's Jan Ullrich, the defending champion, and Cofidis rider Bobby Julich finishing on the podium in second and third respectively.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">1995 Tour de France</span> Cycling race

    The 1995 Tour de France was the 82nd Tour de France, taking place from 1 to 23 July. It was Miguel Induráin's fifth and final victory in the Tour. On the fifteenth stage Italian rider Fabio Casartelli died after an accident on the Col de Portet d'Aspet.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Mapei (cycling team)</span> Italian cycling team (1993–2002)

    Mapei was an Italian-based road bicycle racing team active from 1993 to 2002, named after sponsoring firm Mapei.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniele Bennati</span> Italian road bicycle racer

    Daniele Bennati is an Italian former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2002 and 2019 for the Acqua & Sapone–Cantina Tollo, De Nardi–Colpack, Phonak, Lampre–Fondital, Liquigas–Doimo, RadioShack–Nissan, Tinkoff and Movistar Team squads.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Sportswear</span> Equipment and attire for physical activity

    Sportswear or activewear is athletic clothing, including footwear, worn for sports activity or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons.

    The Lampre group is an Italian-based company that specialises in pre-coated steel production. In addition to the main company the group also contains Lamital and Lamifer, as well as a Portuguese subsidiary called Lampre Portugal.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">MG Maglificio (cycling team)</span>

    MG Maglificio was an Italian professional road cycling team in the 1990s. The team started racing in 1992, under the management of Belgians Roger De Vlaeminck and Patrick Lefevere and Italians Enrico Paoloni and Paolo Abetoni. After a one-year co-sponsorship with Riso Scotti in 1998, MG Maglificio withdrew from cycling as a sponsor.

    Mercatone Uno–Scanavino is a former professional cycling team which was based in San Marino and then in Italy. Throughout the 1990s it was one of the strongest Italian cycling teams in the peloton. The team was sponsored by a chain of supermarkets in Italy.

    The 1993 Giro d'Italia,, was the 76th edition of the race. It started off in Porto Azzurro on 23 May with a split stage, with the first leg being a mass-start stage and the latter an individual time trial. The race ended on 13 June with a stage that stretched 166 km (103.1 mi) from Biella to Milan. Twenty teams entered the race, which was won by Miguel Induráin of the Banesto team. Second and third respectively were the Latvian Piotr Ugrumov and the Italian rider, Claudio Chiappucci. Indurain's victory in the 1993 Giro was his first step in completing the Giro – Tour double – winning the Giro d'Italia and Tour de France in one calendar year – becoming the first rider to repeat this feat in consecutive years.

    The 1994 Giro d'Italia was the 77th edition of the race. The Giro started off in Bologna on 22 May with a short 86 km (53.4 mi) stage. The race came to a close on 12 June with a flat stage that stretched 198 km (123.0 mi) from Turin to Milan. Seventeen teams entered the race, which was won by Evgeni Berzin of the Gewiss–Ballan team. Second and third respectively were the Italian Marco Pantani and the Spanish rider, Miguel Induráin.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Carrera (cycling team)</span> Italian road bicycle racing team

    Carrera was an Italian-based road bicycle racing team active from 1984 to 1996, named after sponsoring Italian jeans manufacturer Carrera. The team was successful in the Giro d'Italia and the Tour de France with three overall wins and several wins in the Points classification and Mountain Classifications.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Diego Ulissi</span> Italian road bicycle racer

    Diego Ulissi is an Italian road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam UAE Team Emirates.

    F.I.V. Edoardo Bianchi S.p.A., commonly known as Bianchi is the world's oldest bicycle manufacturing company in existence, having pioneered the use of equal-sized wheels with pneumatic rubber tires. The company was founded in Italy in 1885 and in addition to bicycles it produced motorcycles from 1897 to 1967. In 1955 the joint-venture Autobianchi was created together with Fiat and Pirelli for the manufacturing of cars – Autobianchi was subsequently sold to Fiat in 1969.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Russell Athletic (brand)</span> American clothing manufacturer

    Russell Athletic is an American clothing manufacturer based in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Currently a subsidiary of global company Fruit of the Loom, Russell Athletic was the main brand of Russell Brands, LLC. until its acquisition in 2006.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Monton Sports</span> Chinese sports equipment company

    Monton Sports is a Chinese sports equipment manufacturing company headquartered in Guangdong. The company, focused on road bicycle racing products, has additional offices in Taichung, Madrid, Pahang, North Carolina, Bangkok, and Slovakia.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Castelli (brand)</span>

    Castelli is an Italian brand of sports clothing and accessories based in Fonzaso in Veneto. Castelli is a company specializing in cycling and triathlon clothing. Castelli brand products are characterized by a logo representing a white scorpion inside a red circle.

    <span class="mw-page-title-main">Cycling kit</span> Equipment and attire worn by sportive cyclists

    In competitive cycling, the kit is the standard equipment and attire worn specifically by athletes participating in the sport. The outfits differ from the clothes worn in other forms of cycling, such as commuting and recreational cycling. Competitive kit uses technical and performance materials and features to improve efficiency and comfort. The UCI specify the kit and the design the riders use.

    References

    1. "Hans Vonk".
    2. "UV DTF Printer".