The pink jersey ("Maglia rosa"), whose color was chosen as it was the
same as the color of the "Gazzetta dello Sport" pages, was introduced in the
19th Giro d'Italia (1931), as a symbol of overall leadership in the race. The
first wearer was Learco Guerra, winner of the opening stage from Milan to
Mantua.
In 1913 the individual race was replaced by a team competition. During both
World Wars the contest was not held.
The Giro 1922 was arguably the strangest ever, first of all as it was raced
on alternate days (one day in the saddle followed by a rest day, followed by
another day on the bike, followed by a new rest day, followed by …). But also
as the race outcome was actually determined in the opening stage (Milan to
Padua), when Legnano's Giovanni Brunero was caught doing an irregular wheel
change. All other teams wanted him to be thrown out of the race, but the jury
opted for a 25-minute time penalty. Which must have been small thing at the
time, such that the other squads (Maino and Bianchi) pulled out of the race.
And with some real (???) opposition coming from teammate Bartolomeo Aymo only,
team leader Brunero comfortably brought home the win.
Alfredo Binda's dominance of the peloton in the late 20s, resulting in four
overall and countless stage wins, was so blatant that in 1930 the man got PAID
FOR NOT TAKING PART IN THE RACE. Binda was actually given the same amount of
money reserved to the overall winner and, while his rivals were battling it
out in Italy, the first "Campionissimo" of Italian cycling was spending
his time taking part in criteriums all over Europe, thus making even more
money.
The first foreign winner was Switzerland's Hugo Koblet, who took the
overall honors in the 1950 edition, consequently putting an end to Italy's
streak of 32 consecutive victories. The last holder of the Maglia Rosa after
crossing the line of the final stage was Pavel Tonkov, the man from the
Russian Republic of Udmurtia who won the overall in the 1996 event, followed
by ten years of all-Italian triumphs (six of which went to riders from the
Lombardia region).
All riders whose nationality is not mentioned are Italians.
GIRO CICLISTICO D'ITALIA
OVERALL WINNERS
1909: GANNA Luigi
1910: GALETTI Carlo
1911: GALETTI Carlo
1912: Team Competition: ATALA
1913: ORIANI Carlo
1914: CALZOLARI Alfonso
1919: GIRARDENGO Costante
1920: BELLONI Gaetano
1921: BRUNERO Giovanni
1922: BRUNERO Giovanni
1923: GIRARDENGO Costante
1924: ENRICI Giuseppe
1925: BINDA Alfredo
1926: BRUNERO Giovanni
1927: BINDA Alfredo
1928: BINDA Alfredo
1929: BINDA Alfredo
1930: MARCHISIO Luigi
1931: CAMUSSO Francesco
1932: PESENTI Antonio
1933: BINDA Alfredo
1934: GUERRA Learco
1935: BERGAMASCHI Vasco
1936: BARTALI Gino
1937: BARTALI Gino
1938: VALETTI Giovanni
1939: VALETTI Giovanni
1940: BARTALI Gino
1946: BERGAMASCHI Vasco
1947: COPPI Fausto
1948: MAGNI Fiorenzo
1949: COPPI Fausto
1950: KOBLET Hugo (Switzerland)
1951: MAGNI Fiorenzo
1952: COPPI Fausto
1953: COPPI Fausto
1954: CLERICI Carlo (Switzerland)
1955: MAGNI Fiorenzo
1956: GAUL Charly (Luxembourg)
1957: NENCINI Gastone
1958: BALDINI Ercole
1959: GAUL Charly (Luxembourg)
1960: ANQUETIL Jacques (France)
1961: PAMBIANCO Arnaldo
1962: BALMAMION Franco
1963: BALMAMION Franco
1964: ANQUETIL Jacques (France)
1965: ADORNI Vittorio
1966: MOTTA Gianni
1967: GIMONDI Felice
1968: MERCKX Eddy (Belgium)
1969: GIMONDI Felice
1970: MERCKX Eddy (Belgium)
1971: PETTERSON Gösta (Sweden)
1972: MERCKX Eddy (Belgium)
1973: MERCKX Eddy (Belgium)
1974: MERCKX Eddy (Belgium)
1975: BERTOGLIO Fausto
1976: GIMONDI Felice
1977: POLLENTIER Michel (Belgium)
1978: DE MUYNCK Johan (Belgium)
1979: SARONNI Giuseppe
1980: HINAULT Bernard (France)
1981: BATTAGLIN Giovanni
1982: HINAULT Bernard (France)
1983: SARONNI Giuseppe
1984: MOSER Francesco
1985: HINAULT Bernard (France)
1986: VISENTINI Roberto
1987: ROCHE Stephen (Ireland)
1988: HAMPSTEN Andrew (U.S.A.)
1989: FIGNON Laurent (France)
1990: BUGNO Gianni
1991: CHIOCCIOLI Franco
1992: INDURAIN Miguel (Spain)
1993: INDURAIN Miguel (Spain)
1994: BERZIN Eugeni (Russia)
1995: ROMINGER Tony (Switzerland)
1996: TONKOV Pavel (Russia)
1997: GOTTI Ivan
1998: PANTANI Marco
1999: GOTTI Ivan
2000: GARZELLI Stefano
2001: SIMONI Gilberto
2002: SAVOLDELLI Paolo
2003: SIMONI Gilberto
2004: CUNEGO Damiano
2005: SAVOLDELLI Paolo
2006: BASSO Ivan
2006: DI LUCA Danilo
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