TIMELINE: Amore & Vita’s roots can be traced back to 1948, when patriarch Lorenzo Fanini founded his first cycling team. This first professional team was led by Lorenzo’s youngest son, Ivano Fanini, and cycling legend Gino Bartali, as the team sports director. Cycling runs in the Fanini’s veins since those early days; to become part of the sport’s heritage and legacy was in the family’s destiny an
d DNA. 65 years of competitive cycling and 30 years of professional cycling make this Amore & Vita the oldest professional team in the world, and a leading force in the UCI Continental category. Initially, the team carried the name Fanini on its racing jersey. After meeting Pope Saint John Paul II in 1989 --in conjunction with the wish to have a more profound significance to the team--Ivano decided to become the bearer of a higher message: to allow LOVE to reflect in all our daily actions. This new, noble, mission transcended the sport of cycling, as it carried the Fanini’s commitment to “always to protect-and-choose life.”
AMORE & VITA literally means LOVE & LIFE, hence, love for life. Throughout its long history the name of Amore & Vita, all around the world, has been associated with its multiple, prestigious, victories and its numerous, legendary, champions. Countless of professional cyclist who belong to the history of the sport, both Italians and foreigners, have been launched by Ivano Fanini. In return, most of them have enriched the Team’s value, by bringing results, expertise, and experience, as athletes first, and mentors or manager later in life. The team is renowned as “the ultimate talent scout in professional cycling,” in fact, champions like Michele Bartoli, Andrea Tafi, Rolf Sorensen, Franco Chioccioli, Pierino Gavazzi, Gianbattista Baronchelli, Byarne Riis, Tommy Prim, Glenn Magnusson, Ivan Quaranta, Pzemyslav Niemiec, Aleksandr Kuchinsky, Andrus Aug, Jonas Ljungblad, Kjell Carlstrom, Andrew Talansky, just to name a few, were discovered and launched by Ivano Fanini; moreover, the greatest sprinter of all times, former World Champion, cycling legend Mario Cipollini started his career with Fanini, and later wrote some of the most incredible pages in cycling’s history.. Today, the Team is led by president-general manager Cristian Fanini. Cristian, the founder’s nephew, is renowned and popular in the cycling community all around the world. Since its foundation, more than 5000 cyclists have proudly worn the team’s jersey, with honor and dedication. Success has been consistent throughout the team’s history:
• 7000 national and international victories.
• 12 World Championship titles
• 1 European title
• 15 Giro D’Italia stage victories
• 60 national victories
• 36 Italian National Championships
• 1 Giro D’Italia Women’s title, with Michela Fanini. For all our athletes, partners, and associates, racing and working with Amore & Vita is a statement of passion for cycling; to join the Amore & Vita’s family means to become part of its legacy and, ultimately, the cycling’s history. It takes virtue to have a vision, and it takes commitment to follow it through; moreover, it takes courage, determination and perseverance to run a cycling team for more than 65 years. For a pioneer and visionary, like Ivano Fanini---who led the Team during the most difficult times---it took total commitment and resilience: by choosing to fight for a drug-free sport, Ivano chose the “highroad” of his own moral values. In order to ensure a future for the sport of cycling and its athletes, Amore & Vita became the symbol of a new, drug-free, cycling. The years that followed Ivano’s stance against doping caused the team to be “black listed” by the main stream cycling community. This on-going battle, though rough at times, has been-and still is worth to be fought: true success is achieved through hardship and sacrifice, as demonstrated by Amore & Vita’s commitment to its core mission of Love and Life. Throughout its history, the team used its popularity to raise awareness on controversial subjects such as the fight against abortion, rejection of any form of discrimination, respect and protection of the environment, stance for peace, health education, for equality and, more broadly, the promotion of a society where all people support and respect each other. Through Love for Life, Ivano Fanini paved the way for those who will share his lifelong fight for clean cycling. As Ivano’s successor, Cristian Fanini main goal is to embrace Amore & Vita’s mission: to win races without compromising with the team’s highest moral values. Cristian is fully committed to the cause of cycling, to which’s history Amore & Vita has contributed consistently, with passion, vision, and honor, since 1948. All of our athletes and staff are aware of Amore & Vita ‘s mission in pursuit of a clean sports. The team and its members are the bearer of an internal code of conduct, based on honesty, respect, and zero tolerance for doping. These are the pillars on which Amore & vita has built its quest for a clean sport. Following in the footsteps of Lorenzo Fanini, we invest a great deal of time, energies and resources in supporting satellite teams, our pipeline of talent. Through our under-23 and junior teams we are fully committed to the wellbeing of our young athletes-a critical resource for the future of cycling. We give passionate and talented cyclists the chance to learn and develop the skill-set required to achieve the highest goals in cycling. Amore & Vita Group includes 6 teams of different categories, from junior-level to professional/UCI Continental. True to Amore & Vita’s mission, we strive to pass on our passion on and our values, while simultaneously teaching “the craft” of professional cycling; moreover, through education and mentoring, Amore & Vita prepares its young athletes to deal with the challenges of life. In order to achieve these goals, while ensuring a consistent pipeline of talent for our professional team, we hand pick our technical staff consisting of team managers, coaches, and support personnel; technical proficiency, experience, and work ethics are key elements of this selection process. Excellent performance is a byproduct of the process itself. Additionally, in order to achieve the above mentioned goals, our staff promotes a healthy environment in which teamwork and enthusiasm are paramount.
“In this team, unity is what matters the most. teamwork is definitely the principle on which we base our work. Today cycling has become an unforgiving business, yet, what makes this team special is the familiar atmosphere within its staff and athletes. Each of us puts the outmost professionalism in our work and we are fully committed as a group in everything we do: always ready to give our best. The results of a single athlete is the success of the whole Team, and its passionate approach to cycling”. Perino Gavazzi – Winner of 3 Italian Championships, Milan – SanRemo and A&V Sports Director . Unlike other teams the Fanini family has always supported Amore & Vita both morally and materially, because they believed in this sport and wanted to pursue the family’s vision. However little could have been obtained without the loyal support of companies that have chosen to endorse and invest in Amore & Vita. Many sponsors came from our own Tuscany, more as a testament of passion rather than a marketing or financial operation. Other companies entered this sport on their tiptoes mostly out of curiosity---and with shyness---to later become passionate followers of the sport. Some of these learned to love cycling thanks to Amore & Vita, and later committed to long-lasting sponsorship agreements. The list of sponsors continues to grow, but, among many brands that supported Amore & Vita since its inception, we must remember with gratitude a sponsor which has been with our team for 16 years: the world famous Salumificio Fratelli Beretta. Since the 80s, the team has earned international popularity, a condition that eventually led foreign multinationals such as Pepsi, McDonald’s, Coca-Cola, and Seven-up, to join the list of Amore & Vita’s historical sponsors. At the national level, tier-1 Italian companies, like Parmalat, Conad, Canova Case, Mediolanum, Imetec, Galatron, Wuber, have consistently provided our team with the resources necessary to continue our mission. Additionally, throughout the years, Amore & Vita has received the generous support of great national and religious leaders, among them the Pope, the Governor of Lombardy, Roberto Formigoni, and former Italian Prime Minister Mr. The strong connection with our sponsors is based on reciprocal support and a shared vision. While our partners can benefit from the association with the name Amore & Vita and its positive, unique, message, our ability to represent and promote our sponsors around the world is what makes us a marketing tool of absolute value. By associating with Amore & Vita our partners choose passion, prestige, and unique approach to the sport of cycling. Our “way of life” as a professional cycling team and brand set us apart from any other team in the world: a 30 year-long story of success shared by all our partners. Because Team Amore & Vita has been in cycling for more than 65 years, and in Pro Cycling for 30 years, earning the reputation of the oldest professional team current in activity. Amore & Vita leads the UCI Continental category because of results and legacy. No other team as won as much as Amore & Vita; no other team is equally committed the to clean cycling. Additionally, the team and management, in 65 years, have discovered and launched more talent than any other cycling team in the history of the sport.
