Eroica Montalcino: heroic cycling in a UNESCO world heritage landscape
L’Eroica is an idea born in 1997 from the vision of Giancarlo Brocci, driven by a genuine love for the bicycle. But its roots go much deeper—into the history, culture, and soul of an Italy that has often told its story through cycling.
We are inspired by an old-school kind of cycling, rich in values we want to bring back to the forefront: the cycling that wrote unforgettable pages of history and literature, influenced Italian culture, inspired music, and moved generations. We aim to rediscover and share the true origins of an extraordinary sport, deeply rooted in the people, capable of reviving the beauty of effort and the thrill of a challenge.
The heroic cycling of Bartali and Coppi teaches us what truly matters: sacrifice, the battle against one’s own limits, thirst, hunger, exhaustion—all faced with courage. It’s a kind of cycling that breeds respect, that unites even in the fiercest competition, creating bonds between loyal rivals.
“We want to help people rediscover the beauty of fatigue and the thrill of conquest.”
Giancarlo Brocci, founder of L’Eroica
This is the cycling we believe in: one that shapes athletes who become new role models, inspiring ways of life.
L’Eroica is also a concrete commitment to protecting the land: it works to safeguard Tuscany’s gravel roads—unique treasures of beauty and memory.
From this romantic and bold vision, the event in Gaiole in Chianti was born. It was 1997, and 92 riders lined up at the start—“hunters of feelings and emotions,” as Giancarlo Brocci called them. Since then, that dream on two wheels has never stopped. And in Montalcino, as every year, it comes back to life, celebrating the splendor of a unique natural and cultural heritage.
Eroica Montalcino, the classic late-May ride, is much more than a cycling event: it’s a tribute to the authentic values of cycling and an homage to a landscape the entire world envies. Riders traverse the hills of Val d’Orcia, the Crete Senesi, and the Val d’Arbia—extraordinary lands recognized by UNESCO in 2004 as a World Heritage Site for their historical, cultural, and scenic value.
