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Gallery: Happy 50th birthday, Mario Cipollini!

Mario Cipollini celebrates his birthday March 22, so we put together a gallery of our favorite "Lion King" moments.

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Cipollini — Wednesday is the 50th birthday of none other than the legendary Mario Cipollini, one of cycling’s most prolific sprinters and one of it’s most grandiose personalities. To celebrate, we pulled together a little gallery of Cipo highlights, beginning with this Milano-Sanremo victory in 2003. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipo wasn’t all about the sprints. Here is at the Tour of Flanders in 2003, wearing the rainbow jersey he earned the previous fall in Zolder. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini is many things, but boring is not one of them. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini won the 2002 Milano-Sanremo as well, wearing the iconic Acqua Sapone zebra kit. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Lucky trophy. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipo’s style on display at the Tour of Flanders. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini won Gent-Wevelgem in 2002, one of the last pure sprinters to do so. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — When the Lion King wears a tiger suit is he the world’s fastest liger? Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini won an incredible 42 stages of the Giro d’Italia, including this one to Munster in 2002. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Sometimes it’s hot out there on the open road. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini won stage 7 of the 2002 Vuelta a Espana. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini won his world championship in Zolder in 2002. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Sprint-friendly world championships only come around every few years, and Cipollini took advantage in 2002. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — The pinkest pink jersey of all time? Perhaps. Cipollini rocked up in this kit for his final Giro prologue. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Rock’s not dead, or at least it wasn’t when this photo was taken at the Tour of California. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Cipollini watching the Giro in 2015. Photo: © Tim De Waele

Cipollini — Happy birthday, Cipo. Photo: © Tim De Waele

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