Vigorelli borrows its name from the velodrome in Milan. It was built in 1935 and hosted the hour record until 1967. The legendary place is unfortunately no longer in use, but the Cinelli Vigorelli is there to recall its fame. Nowadays the Velodrome is used as an American Football field.
Vigorelli Velodrome
The Vigorelli Velodrome has probably the richest history of all velodromes. Built in 1935, the Vigorelli was the heart of track cycling for the first 30 years. By 1962, four World Championships had taken place and 150 records were set at the velodrome. However, it owes most of its fame to the hour record which it hosted from 1935 to 1967. Twelve hour records were set by 1959. A remarkable thing about the Vigorelli is that the track lay two meters below ground level, therefore it seemed to the cyclists that the banking wasn't as steep as it actually was.
Antonio Maspes, king of Sur Place
The Vigorelli was the home track of one of the greatest track sprinters of all time, Antonio Maspes (1932 - 2000). Maspes was not only famous for his tactics on the track but also for his track stand or sur place, the balancing technique used prior to sprinting which our exhibition is named after. At the World Championship he held it for no less than 32 minutes. In honor of Maspes, the Vigorelli velodrome was later renamed 'Velodrome Maspes - Vigorelli'.
Find more information about the velodrome in this article: on chicken strip's flickr set.
