Long before he conquered the Giro d’Italia, Gianni Motta first showcased his talent in competitions such as the Giro della Provincia di Como, making this jersey a tangible link to the earlier days of his legendary career.

Jerseys from a champion’s amateur and early professional years are among the hardest pieces of cycling memorabilia to find. At the time these riders wore them, no one knew what they would become. The kit was simply race clothing, worn hard, handed down, or thrown out at the end of a season. Nothing was set aside for posterity because there was no reason to think it mattered. By the time a rider earned his reputation, the jerseys from his beginnings were almost always gone. What survives tends to survive by accident, and that is what makes a documented early-career piece like this one so unusual.

Gianni Motta was one of Italy’s finest stage racers of the 1960s, a gifted climber with the versatility to excel in both stage races and the sport’s greatest one-day classics. After winning the Giro della Provincia di Como as an amateur in 1961 and 1962, he turned professional with Molteni in 1964 and immediately announced himself by winning Il Lombardia. His greatest triumph came in 1966, when he won the Giro d’Italia, capturing both the overall and inaugural points classifications while defeating fellow Italian Italo Zilioli and the French defending Tour de France champion Jacques Anquetil. Motta also finished third in the 1965 Tour de France, won the Tour de Suisse (1967), the Tour de Romandie twice (1966 and 1971), and claimed numerous prestigious Italian classics, establishing himself as one of the leading riders of his generation.

First held in 1949, the Giro Ciclistico della Provincia di Como is one of the longest-running competitions in Italian youth cycling. Created by Guido Bruno, it was won in its inaugural year by Lino Colombo of S.C. Crennese and has continued without interruption since its founding. Rather than being a single continuous stage race, the Giro is a season-long series of road races, sometimes including a prologue or individual time trial, with points awarded toward the final overall classification. Although rooted in the Province of Como, later editions have also included races in neighboring provinces such as Lecco, Sondrio, Varese, and Bergamo. Its roll of honor includes riders who later became leading professionals, among them Gianni Motta, winner in both 1961 and 1962; Gianni Bugno; Giacomo Nizzolo; and Andrea Piccolo. Felice Gimondi also won the final classification in 1960, when he was riding for U.S. Sedrinese, several years before his victories in the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, and Vuelta a España.

This jersey includes the original label from Bar Augusto: “Gianni Motta, Giro della Provincia di Como ’61-’62,”

This jersey was acquired directly from the Augusto Gotti family and was part of the collection in the legendary Bar Augusto in Villa d’Alme, Italy. Bar Augusto was a key host to professional and amateur cycling teams from the 1960s through the 1980s.

All jerseys are sold unframed. Framed images are display ideas only.

Size: N/A

Chest: 41 inches / 104 cm  (20 ½  inches / 52 cm measured armpit to armpit)

Length: 25 in / 63.5 cm

Maker: N/A

This jersey is one of a kind. Please look carefully at the photos to determine the condition.

This item is listed on multiple platforms, and availability is subject to prior sale elsewhere. If this piece has sold elsewhere, you will be refunded in full.