Aprilia Founder Dies

IVANO BEGGIO, FOUNDER OF THE MANUFACTURER FROM NOALE, PASSED AWAY OVERNIGHT

Ivano Beggio, the founder of Italian motorcycle brand Aprilia, passed away during the night at the age of 73 it has been announced.

Born in 1944, Beggio began his passion for two wheels in his father’s Aprilia handmade bicycle factory, innovating and diversifying production, with the introduction of motorcycles and scooters.

In 1975, he established a small team for the production of racing motorcycles which, thanks to technical-productive innovation, soon made a name for itself, so much that it won the Italian motocross championship in the 125 and 250 cc classes in 1977.

From 1980, Aprilia began to mass produce small engine motorcycles (50 and 125 cc), then launching highly successful, aesthetically and technologically innovative models on the market for urban mobility: in 1991, the Scarabeo, the first high-wheel scooter on the European market; in 1992, the first two-stroke scooter and motorcycle with a catalytic muffler; in 1993, the first scooter with a registration plate; in 1998 it entered the large engine capacity motorcycle sector with the RSV Mille.

In World Championship GP Motorcycle Racing, where it made its début in 1985 in the 250 class, Aprilia took world class champions to success the likes of Max Biaggi, Marco Simoncelli, Valentino Rossi, Casey Stoner, Alvaro Bautista, Loris Capirossi, Marco Melandri, Manuel Poggiali and Alessandro Gramigni.

With 294 Grand Prix races won in World Championship GP Motorcycle Racing from 1987 to the present, Aprilia holds the record for the most wins of any European manufacturer in the history of maximum motorcycle competition.

Max Biaggi, who began his career with Ivano Beggio and Aprilia in 1992 had high praise for Beggio’s impact on the racing fraternity.

“Ivano Beggio was part of my life as an athlete – a sort of father in racing to me, he said. He gave me his trust and a competitive bike when, after winning the European championship, also on Aprilia, I was little more than a boy. His was a brave choice, but also intelligent. And these are the two aspects that I remember most clearly about Ivano Beggio – knowing how to place a lot of passion at the service of his skills in order to always find the strength and energy for an extra step. This was also instrumental in achieving my many wins with Aprilia.”