Mapei (cycling team)

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From 1993 to 2002, an international cycling team ( UCI code: MAP ) under the leadership of Belgian Patrick Lefevere operated under the name of the Italian chemical product manufacturer MAPEI .

Mapei is considered to be the most successful team of the 1990s. A total of eight times in nine years the team finished the cycling season in first place in the UCI world rankings (1994–2000, 2002). In addition, the team won the team championship of the cycling world cup five times .

The team with classic hunters like Johan Museeuw and Michele Bartoli was particularly successful in the classic one-day races in spring. Mapei was almost unbeatable, especially at Paris – Roubaix , where the team won five times in six years. Three times (1996, 1998 and 1999) Mapei even took the first three places in Roubaix. Mapei drivers have won the road world championship four times in their respective national teams .

Mapei was less dominant in the big country tours . The only really successful stage race specialist in Mapei's history was Tony Rominger , who won the Vuelta a España for the team in 1994 and the Giro d'Italia in 1995 . In the Tour de France , Mapei always only played a minor role.

The team was formed in 1993 by taking over the troubled Italian team Eldor-Viner . In 1994 the Ream was merged with CLAS-Cajasur around Rominger, after the Radaustatter von Clas, Colnago , established contact with Mapei after a main sponsor had left. In 1995 there was another merger with Patrick Lefeveres Belgian team GB-MG around Musseuw. Accordingly, the name of the team changed several times due to various co- sponsors . The team went under the following names: Mapei (1993) Mapei-Clas (1994), Mapei-GB (1995-1997), Mapei-Bricobi (1998), Mapei-Quickstep (1999-2002). After the 2002 season, Mapei withdrew from sponsoring cycling because team owner Squinzi was disappointed with the doping problem in cycling. The successor to the Mapei team is the Belgian Quick Step team, founded in 2003 and led by team leader Lefevere, who took over some drivers from Mapei.

Successes (selection)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ William Fotheringham: Swiss precision . In: Procycling , German edition . May, 2020, p. 69 ff., (70 f., 73) .

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