Bianchi Specialissima Vintage Road Bike 1972

Regarding vintage bicycles, there are few colours as iconic as the famous "Bianchi Celeste". Forever associated with the epic victories of Fausto Coppi and Felice Gimondi, the Bianchi paintwork has become a legend of cycling history.

L'Eroica events are always packed with celeste bicycles; they are some of the most desirable bicycles in the world of vintage cycling. Their popularity at events like these goes to illustrate the prestige of Bianchi and the desirability of some of their finest models. If you have seen pictures of professional racers from the 1950s, riding a Bianchi bike - then you have most likely seen a Bianchi Campione del Mondo.

It was Bianchi's top model back then. But in the second half of the 1950s and subsequently, in the early 1970s, new components were introduced to the market and races were more and more held on the even surface of new tarmac roads. Suddenly the call for slight changes in bike design was there. And it was answered by Bianchi with a real top-class bicycle: the Bianchi Specialissima.

It basically was an evolution of the Campione del Mondo. The frame was ever so little shorter but the basic design remained the same with Bianchi's integrated headset and plated lugs. The version of the Bianchi Specialissima that we are presenting here was built in 1972 and this was the last time they were built in this style with the integrated headsets. Our version also features the best parts you could get at that time which was the then-new first-generation Campagnolo Nuovo Record.