Eataly, an ambassador of Italian food and ‘made in Italy’, has joined the Giro d’Italia as top sponsor of the Maglia Bianca; the white jersey, worn by the best young rider in the race.
The 107th Giro d’Italia runs from May 4-26, 2024, with Regione Piemonte hosting the Grande Partenza (Grand Départ) of the Giro d’Italia for the fourth time.
Andrea Cipolloni, Group CEO of Eataly, said “Eataly has always brought Italy to the world through high quality food. This is why we see it as a great opportunity to create a partnership with the most famous Italian sports event in the world.
“Being on the jersey dedicated to the winner of the young riders classification is a further reason for great satisfaction because the Maglia Bianca is a prize, and at the same time a wish, for a page still to be written.”
Urbano Cairo, President of Giro d’Italia organiser RCS MediaGroup, said “We welcome Eataly among our partners, an international brand that is a symbol of Made in Italy, just like the Giro d’Italia.
“Eataly has always brought the excellence of Italian food and wine to the world, emphasising the quality of Italian products, their authenticity and the special characteristics that make the Italian food industry the number one sector worldwide.
“The Maglia Bianca is the symbol of youth, and it has been worn over the years by promising riders who have become great champions on prestigious scenes. We are confident that this partnership will bring great visibility and great results to both parties.”
In addition to its presence as top sponsor on the Maglia Bianca, Eataly brings the Giro to all its points of sale, displaying the Maglia and giving further prominence to one of the sporting events most deeply rooted in our culture.
On the evening of May 4, 2024, after the finish of the first stage of the Giro d’Italia, Eataly Torino Lingotto will host the Bike Business Forum event where the company will talk about the bike economy and Italian outreach in the world. While at the end of the Giro, on May 27, Eataly Roma Ostiense will host the presentation of the winners of the four jerseys.
- The Maglia Bianca for the best young rider is the most recently established jersey: it saw the light of day in 1969, as a ranking for neo-professionals.
- In 1973 and 1974, the leader was marked with an armband, while the Maglia Bianca has been the symbol of youth supremacy since 1976.
- Italian athletes have won the best young rider classification 17 times. Colombia stands in second place with six wins.
- The first foreign athlete to win the Maglia Bianca was Sweden’s Tommy Prim, in 1980.
- The last Italian rider to win the Maglia Bianca was Fabio Aru in 2015.
- Four riders have succeeded in winning both the Maglia Bianca and the Maglia Rosa: Evgueni Berzin in 1994; Nairo Quintana in 2014; Tao Geoghegan Hart in 2020; Egan Bernal in 2021.
- In the 2020 edition, Tao Geoghegan Hart was the first Briton to win the Maglia Bianca.
- Two years ago (2022) Juan Pedro Lopez was the first Spaniard to win the Maglia Bianca.
- Last year (2023) Joao Almeida, who had already worn the Maglia Rosa for 15 stages at the 2020 Giro, was the first Portuguese to win this classification at the Giro.
