The prestigious rainbow jersey has been awarded to UCI World Champions since 1927.
And while usually only the best cyclists in the world are in possession of this precious piece of clothing, three Belgian schoolchildren also recently became proud owners of the rainbow jersey. But a rainbow jersey with a difference… each of them received a limited-edition jersey bearing their very own design.
Indeed, the three creative students are the winners of a design competition organised by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) and its partner Santini Cycling.
As a reminder, in September last year, cycling fans, artists and graphic designers of all ages were invited to submit a design reflecting their vision of how the iconic jersey of UCI World Champion could evolve. Apart from respecting the jersey’s signature rainbow stripes in their traditional sequence – blue, red, black, yellow and green – participants were free to unleash their creativity.
In total, 245 designs were received, and judged by a jury comprising UCI Director General Amina Lanaya, UCI Brand and Design Manager Fabio Zeppetella, CEO of Santini Cycling Monica Santini, Santini Marketing Director Paola Santini, professional cyclist Elisa Balsamo and retired professional cyclist Mark Cavendish.
Inspired by the project, a teacher in Bruges, Belgium, Thomas Tavernier, got his entire class to participate in the competition as part of a wider project on bikes.
And they came up trumps, with students from the same class winning first, second and third place.
Santini then produced two examples of each of the three winning designs, one of which was framed for the teacher, and the second presented to its creator. Both Mr Tavernier and the three students were invited to the 2025 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Liévin, France (31 January and 2 February) to receive their prize jerseys from UCI President David Lappartient and Amina Lanaya.
While Mathieu Van der Poel and Fem van Empel were awarded the traditional rainbow jersey of Elite cyclo-cross UCI World Champion, the three young Belgian artists left Liévin with their own, unique, versions of one of the most iconic jerseys in the world and memories of a lifetime.
UCI Director General Amina Lanaya said: “The rainbow jersey holds a very special place in cycling’s history, having been awarded to our sport’s greatest athletes for as far back as we can remember. This design competition showed just how inspirational the jersey is, not only to the athletes themselves but to fans of all ages and backgrounds. It was a great pleasure to meet the young winners in Liévin, present them with their winning jerseys, and enable them to experience first-hand the excitement of a UCI World Championships.”
Santini Marketing Director Paola Santini said: "When we invited everyone to design their own version of the rainbow jersey, we never expected to receive so many incredible creations. The rainbow jersey is an iconic symbol in cycling and reimagining it in a new way is no easy task. But we underestimated the boundless creativity of children! These young artists have truly outdone themselves. Congratulations to the finalists and the winner!”