# Vittorio Adorni

Vittorio Adorni (14 November 1937 – 24 December 2022) was an Italian professional road racing cyclist.

## Early life and amateur career

Adorni was born in San Lazzaro di Parma on 14 November 1937. He was a talented amateur and showed early talent at riding alone. He began racing in 1955 and won the national amateur pursuit championship in 1959. Skill at riding fast alone won him the world professional road championship nine years later.
Adorni won the Trofeo de Gasperiin 1960 and turned professional during 1961 after winning the Coppa San Geo.

## Professional career

Adorni won two races in his first full year as a professional in 1961, riding for Philco and winning stages of the Giro d'Italia and the Tour of Sardinia. Adorni was more a domestique than a leader but he nevertheless won the 1965 Giro and the 1968 world road race championship. The championship was on the car race circuit at Imola, Italy. He broke clear with 93 km still to ride. He finished 10 minutes ahead of the field, helped in the peloton by his Italian teammates and also by Eddy Merckx, his normal teammate, who did not take up the chase.
The Cycling Hall of Fame, an American organisation, said:
   "In 1968, Adorni taught Eddy Merckx of Belgium how to properly eat and rest during a Grand Tour. Merckx used this knowledge to not only win his first grand tour, the Giro d'Italia, but also the mountains and points jerseys as well, the first time ever this was done in a grand tour. Adorni finished second to Merckx in that race."

## Retirement

Adorni rode as a professional from 1961 to 1970. He retired to work in insurance and then became directeur sportif of the Salvarani team until 1973. He became president of the Italian riders' association and a commentator for the television company, RAI. In 2001 he joined the management committee of the governing body, the Union Cycliste Internationale. The French magazine Vélo said: When he was nominated, no small number of observers asked 'Why him? Isn't he just Hein Verbruggen's puppet?'
The former Italian champion was chosen for his personality [était simplement victime de sa personnalité]. As a rider, he was respected by everyone. He was a gentleman. When Hein Verbruggen dug in, Adorni was a patient mediator, a natural negotiator. Thanks to him, the crisis with the organisers of the three grands tours didn't turn into a huge fiasco and he was able to maintain contacts. The world body was responsible for the Pro Tour; Adorni became its conscience.
Adorni worked in skiing, in public relations for the Winter Olympics at Innsbruck in 1976. He also worked in public relations at the summer Games in Montréal in 1976. From 1996 until 2004 he was President of Panathlon International. In 2000, he was a recipient of the Silver Olympic Order.
Adorni died in Parma on 24 December 2022, at the age of 85.

## Major results

Sources:

### Track
#### 1958

    1st National Track Championship, Individual Pursuit

### Road
#### 1960

    2nd Giornata della Bicicletta

#### 1961

    1st Coppa San Geo
    3rd San Daniele Po
    10th Giro della Romagna
    10th Giro dell'Emilia

#### 1962

    1st Stage 4 Giro di Sardegna
    2nd Milano–Torino
    4th Giro dell'Emilia
    5th Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stage 15
    5th Trofeo Baracchi
    6th Grand Prix des Nations
    7th Trofeo Matteotti

#### 1963

    1st Maggiora
    1st Tour des Quatre-Cantons
    2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stages 1 & 16
       Held after Stage 18
    3rd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
    4th Coppa Agostoni
    5th Milan–San Remo
    7th Trofeo Baracchi
    8th Overall Giro di Sardegna
       1st Stages 5 & 6
    10th Tre Valli Varesine

#### 1964

    1st Overall Giro di Sardegna
    2nd Road race, UCI Road World Championships
    2nd Trofeo Baracchi
    2nd Antwerpen - Ougrée
    3rd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
    3rd Corsa Coppi
    4th Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stages 1 & 14
    7th Trofeo Laigueglia
    7th Coppa Placci
    10th Overall Tour de France

#### 1965

    1st Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stages 6, 13 & 19
    1st Overall Tour de Romandie
       1st Stages 1b & 3b
    1st Trofeo Città di Borgomanero
    1st GP Lugano
    2nd Milan–San Remo
    2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège
    5th Milano–Torino
    6th Giro di Lombardia
    7th Paris–Roubaix
    8th Trofeo Laigueglia
    8th Corsa Coppi

#### 1966

    1st Overall Tour of Belgium
       1st Stage 4
    1st Stage 1 Giro di Sardegna
    3rd Overall Paris–Nice
    6th Giro di Toscana
    6th Giro dell'Emilia
    7th Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stage 13
       Held after Stages 13 & 14
    9th Tour of Flanders

#### 1967

    1st Overall Tour de Romandie
    1st Coppa Bernocchi
    2nd Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria
    2nd Giro di Campania
    2nd GP Forli
    3rd Milano–Torino
    4th Overall Giro d'Italia
       1st Stage 20
    5th Overall Giro di Sardegna
    5th Liège–Bastogne–Liège
    8th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
    10th Milano–Vignola

#### 1968

    1st Road race UCI Road World Championships
    1st Stage 1 Tirreno–Adriatico
    2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
    3rd GP Forli
    5th Overall Vuelta a España
    5th Trofeo Laigueglia
    8th Overall À travers Lausanne

#### 1969

    1st National Road Race Championship
    1st Overall Tour de Suisse
       1st Stages 5 & 9
    1st Stage 22 Giro d'Italia
    1st Giro della Provincia di Reggio Calabria
    1st GP Alghero
    1st Stage 5b Tirreno–Adriatico
    2nd Overall Tour de Romandie
       1st Stages 2 & 3b

#### 1970

    1st Stage 3 Tour de Romandie
    4th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico
    10th Overall Giro d'Italia

### Grand Tour general classification results timeline

| Grand Tour | 1961 | 1962 | 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 |
| Vuelta a España | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | — | — |
| Giro d'Italia | 28 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 10 |
| Tour de France | — | DNF | — | 10 | DNF | — | — | — | — | — |
Legend :
| — | Did not compete |
| DNF | Did not finish |

## Honour

* Italy: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (27 December 2012)