Gaetano Belloni

Gaetano Belloni (26 August 1892 – 9 January 1980) was an Italian professional road racing cyclist. The highlights of his career were his overall win in the 1920 Giro d'Italia, the two victories in Milan–San Remo (1917 and 1920), and the three victories in the Giro di Lombardia (1915, 1918 and 1928).
Belloni was born at Pizzighettone, near Cremona, and made his debut in the road cycling world in the wake of his elder brother Amleto. As an amateur, in 1914 he won the "Small" Giro di Lombardia and the Coppa del Re, as well as the Italian championship.
Having avoided to be called to the front, Belloni won surprisingly, the overall Giro di Lombardia in 1915 (a feat he repeated in 1918 and 1928) and the Milan–San Remo of 1917.
In 1920 he obtained his greatest victory, the Giro d'Italia. In the 1920s Belloni constantly rivalled with his friend Costante Girardengo, being almost always defeated and gaining for this reason the nickname of "Eterno secondo" ("Eternal second").
He won a total of 43 races as a professional, including 12 stages at Giro d'Italia.
Major results
1914
1st National Road Championships, Road Race (Amateurs)
1st Piccolo Giro di Lombardia
1st Coppa del Re
1915
1st Giro di Lombardia
1916
1st Milano–Bellagio–Varese
1917
1st Overall Giro della Provincia Milano (with Alfredo Sivocci)
1st Stage 1
1st Milan–San Remo
1st Milano–Bellagio–Varese
2nd Milano–La Spezia
1918
1st Giro di Lombardia
1st Milano–Modena
1st Milano–Torino
1st Torino-Arquata (with Lauro Bordin, Costante Girardengo & Luigi-Natale Lucotti)
2nd Milan–San Remo
3rd Milano–Bellagio–Varese
1919
2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
1st Stage 5
2nd Overall Roma–Trento–Trieste
2nd Giro di Lombardia
2nd Giro del Piemonte
2nd Roma–Trente–Trieste
3rd Giro della Provincia Milano
1920
1st Overall Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 2, 3 & 7
1st Overall Giro della Provincia Milano (with Giuseppe Azzini)
1st Stage 1
1st Milan–San Remo
2nd National Road Championships, Road Race
2nd Milano–Torino
3rd Giro di Lombardia
3rd Giro del Piemonte
1921
1st Overall Giro della Provincia Milano
1st Stage 1
2nd Overall Giro d'Italia
1st Stages 5, 9 & 10
1st Milano–Modena
2nd Giro di Lombardia
2nd Roma–Napoli–Roma
8th Milan–San Remo
1922
1st Overall Giro della Provincia Milano (with Giovanni Brunero)
1st Stage 1
1st Six Days of New York City
1st Stages 1 & 3 Giro d'Italia
2nd Giro della Romagna
2nd Tour du lac Léman
1923
2nd Milan–San Remo
2nd Milano–Torino
1924
2nd Milan–San Remo
2nd Giro del Veneto
2nd Giro dell'Emilia
1925
1st Giro del Piemonte
1st Milano–Modena
1st Stages 5 & 12 Giro d'Italia
2nd Roma–Napoli–Roma
3rd National Road Championships, Road Race
1926
1st Grosser Strassenpreis von Hannover
1st Rund um die Hainleite
1st Groβer Sachsenpreis
2nd Berlin–Cottbus–Berlin
2nd Rund um Frankfurt
2nd Six Days of New York City
3rd Rund um Köln
4th Milan–San Remo
1927
1st Rund um Köln
2nd Quer durch Thüringen
2nd Thüringen-Rundfahrt
2nd Berlin–Cottbus–Berlin
3rd Stuttgart Criterium
1928
1st Giro di Lombardia
2nd Six Days of New York City
3rd Groβer Sachsenpreis
1929
1st Roma–Napoli–Roma
1st Six Days of Chicago
1st Stage 1 Giro d'Italia
3rd Six Days of New York City
1930
1st Six Days of New York City
1935
3rd Six Days of New York City
Results timelines
External links
Museum of cycling bio (in Italian)
1892 births
1980 deaths
Italian male cyclists
Giro d'Italia winners
Cyclists from the Province of Cremona