Saeco was the name of an Italian road bicycle racing team, sponsored by the company with the same name. They rode on Cannondale bicycles.
The company did not prolong the sponsorship for 2005, and the team was merged with the team, forming , sponsored by Caffita.
Team history In the 1990s the team was famous for Mario Cipollini's sprint train and his antics. One of their most memorable moments was Cipollini's 4 consecutive stage wins in the 1999 Tour de France. The image of Mario Cipollini approaching the TV camera right after a win to say, "Cannondale makes the best bikes!" propelled Cannondale's popularity among road racers.
The Saeco team is known for their pranks and antics. Cipollini's antics are legendary, including showing up to the stage start at the Tour de France dressed in a Julius Caesar-inspired toga complete with an olive wreath, riding on a carriage pulled by his teammates on bicycles. More recently, the entire Saeco team raced a stage of the 2003 Tour de France wearing a Legalize my Cannondale chaingang cycling kit to protest the UCI's lower bound on bike weight which means that their six13 prototype team bikes were underweight and required the installation of additional weight.
Major wins
1996 Road Race Championships, Mario Cipollini Coppa Colli Briantei Internazionale, Carlo Marino Bianchi Volta a Portugal em Bicicleta, Massimiliano Lelli Overall Tirreno - Adriatico, Francesco Casagrande Stage 4, Francesco Casagrande Overall Vuelta Ciclista al Pais Vasco, Francesco Casagrande Stage 2, Francesco Casagrande Stage 5b, Francesco Casagrande Stage 2 Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana, Mario Cipollini Stage 5a Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana Stage 3 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 5a Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 6 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Points Classification Mario Cipollini Stage 1, Silvio Martinello Stage 4, Mario Cipollini Stage 8, Mario Cipollini Stage 11, Mario Cipollini Stage 18, Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini
1997 Overall Giro d'Italia, Ivan Gotti Stage 1, Mario Cipollini Stage 2, Mario Cipollini Stage 4, Mario Cipollini Stage 10, Mario Cipollini Stage 14, Ivan Gotti Stage 22, Mario Cipollini Overall Tirreno - Adriatico, Roberto Petito Overall Giro di Romagna et Coppa Placci, Francesco Casagrande Stage 1 Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana, Mario Cipollini Stage 5a Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana, Gian Matteo Fagnini Stage 2 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 3 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 1 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini
1998 Overall Giro del Trentino, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 2, Paolo Salvodelli GP Costa degli Etruschi Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Giro d'Italia Mario Cipollini Stage 7 Giro d'Italia Mario Cipollini Stage 8 Giro d'Italia Mario Cipollini Stage 10 Giro d'Italia Mario Cipollini Stage 20 Giro d'Italia Gian Matteo Fagnini Stage 22 Giro d'Italia Gian Matteo Fagnini Stage 1a Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Mario Cipollini Stage 3 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Mario Cipollini Stage 4 Volta Ciclista a Catalunya Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Tour de France Mario Cipollini Stage 6 Tour de France Mario Cipollini
1999 Road Race Championships, Armin Meier Road Race Championships, Salvatore Commesso Peperbus Profspektakel Zwolle, Mario Cipollini Trofeo Manacor Mario Cipollini La Poly Normande, Laurent Dufaux Overall Giro del Trentino, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 1, Paolo Salvodelli Trofeo Laigueglia, Paolo Salvodelli Trofeo Luis Puig, Mario Cipollini Stage 3 Tirreno–Adriatico, Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Giro d'Italia, Mario Cipollini Stage 10 Giro d'Italia, Mario Cipollini Stage 12 Giro d'Italia, Mario Cipollini Stage 14 Giro d'Italia, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 17 Giro d'Italia, Mario Cipollini Stage 1 Volta a Catalunya, Mario Cipollini Stage 2 Volta a Catalunya, Mario Cipollini Stage 4 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini Stage 5 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini Stage 6 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini Stage 7 Tour de France, Mario Cipollini Stage 13 Tour de France, Salvatore Commesso
2000 Overall Tour de Romandie, Paolo Salvodelli Prologue Stage 3 Giro del Trentino, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 18 Tour de France, Salvatore Commesso
2001 Criterium Bavikhoeve, Mario Cipollini GP Costa degli Etruschi, Fabio Sacchi Trofeo Laigueglia, Mirko Celestino Points Classification, Volta a Portugal, Salvatore Commesso Rund um die Hainleite, Christian Wegmann Tour of Austria, Cadel Evans Brixia Tour, Cadel Evans Tre Valli Varesine, Mirko Celestino Milano-Torino, Mirko Celestino Stage 2 Tour Down Under, Fabio Sacchi Stage 3 Tour Down Under, Alessio Galletti Stage 1 Tirreno - Adriatico, Biagio Conte Prologue Tour de Romandie, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 2 Tour de Romandie, Paolo Salvodelli Stage 5 Tour de Romandie, Mario Cipollini Stage 1 Bayern-Rundfahrt, Jörg Ludewig Giro d'Italia Azzurri d'Italia classification Mario Cipollini Stage 6, Mario Cipollini Stage 9, Mario Cipollini Stage 19, Mario Cipollini Stage 21, Mario Cipollini Stage 2a Rothaus Regio-Tour International, Biagio Conte Stage 5 Rothaus Regio-Tour International, Biagio Conte
2002 Road Race Championships, Salvatore Commesso Giro d'Oro, Damiano Cunego Giro del Medio Brenta, Damiano Cunego Giro del Veneto, Danilo Di Luca Trophy City 'Castelfidardo, Danilo Di Luca GP Ind.Com.Art of Castelfidardo, Fabio Bags Criterium d'Abruzzo, Salvatore Commesso Stage 11, Giro d'Italia, Gilberto Simoni Trophy Laigueglia, Danilo Di Luca Overall Tour of Austria, Gerrit Glomser Stage 4, Gerrit Glomser Trofeo Matteotti, Salvatore Commesso Overall Brixia Tour, Igor Astarloa Stage 2a, Igor Astarloa Stage 2b, Mirko Celestine Stage 4 Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana, Danilo Di Luca Stage 3 Tirreno - Adriatico, Danilo Di Luca Stage 5 Tirreno - Adriatico, Danilo Di Luca Stage 4 Bayern-Rundfahrt, Christian Wegmann Stage 2 Vuelta a España, Danilo Di Luca
2003 World Road Championship, Igor Astarloa Overall Giro d'Italia, Gilberto Simoni Points Classification , Gilberto Simoni Azzurri d'Italia classification, Gilberto Simoni Stage 12, Gilberto Simoni Stage 14, Gilberto Simoni Stage19, Gilberto Simoni Overall Giro del Trentino, Gilberto Simoni Stage 2, Gilberto Simoni Giro dell'Appennino, Gilberto Simoni Overall, Tour of Qinghai Lake, Damiano Cunego Stage 7 US Pro Championship, Stefano Zanini Milano-Torino, Mirko Celestino Coppa Placci, Danilo Di Luca Trofeo Città´ di Castelfidardom, Alessio Galletti Settimana Ciclistica Internazionale, Mirko Celestino La Flèche Wallonne, Igor Astarloa GP Industria & Artigianato- Larciano, Juan Manuel Fuentes Overall Tour of Austria, Gerrit Glomser Stage 2, Gerrit Glomser Stage 3, Gerrit Glomser GP Llodio, Juan Manuel Fuentes Tre Valli Varesine, Danilo Di Luca Giro di Romagna et Coppa Placci, Fabio Sacchi Stage 2 Tour Down Under, Fabio Sacchi Stage 4 Tour of Qatar, Ivan Quaranta Stage 3 Volta a la Comunidad Valenciana, Igor Astarloa Stage 6 Tirreno - Adriatico, Danilo Di Luca Stage 4 Deutschland Tour, Ivan Quaranta Stage 14 Tour de France, Gilberto Simoni Stage 1 Brixia Tour, Ivan Quaranta Stage 1 Rothaus Regio-Tour International, Nicola Gavazzi
2004 Overall Giro d'Italia, Damiano Cunego Stage 2, Damiano Cunego Stage 3, Gilberto Simoni Stage 7, Damiano Cunego Stage 16, Damiano Cunego Stage 18, Damiano Cunego Giro di Lombardia Overall, Giro del Trentino, Damiano Cunego Stage 1, Damiano Cunego Stage 2, Damiano Cunego Giro dell'Appennino, Damiano Cunego Giro del Trentino, Damiano Cunego GP Industria & Artigianato, Damiano Cunego Gran Premio Nobili Rubinetterie, Damiano Cunego Memorial Marco Pantani, Damiano Cunego Giro del Veneto, Gilberto Simoni Raiffeisen GP, Andreas Matzbacher Cup Placci, Leonardo Bertagnolli Trophy Etna, Leonardo Bertagnolli GP Ind.Com.Art of Castelfidardo, Damiano Cunego GP Industria & Crafts-Larciano, Damiano Cunego Trofeo Matteotti, Danilo Di Luca Overall Brixia Tour, Danilo Di Luca Coppa Agostoni, Leonardo Bertagnolli GP Nobili Rubinetterie, Damiano Cunego Overall Tour of Lombardy, Damiano Cunego Stage 1 Bayern-Rundfahrt, Antonio Bucciero Stage 4 Tour of Austria, Gerrit Glomser
National and world champions 1996 Road Race Mario Cipollini
1999 Road Race Salvatore Commesso Road Race Armin Meier
2002 Road Race Salvatore Commesso
2003 World Road Race Igor Astarloa
External links
Team Results on procyclingstats.com, sortable by year Team history on cyclingranking.com