Also a three-time winner over the pavé of Paris–Roubaix and the cobbled Hilligen of Tour of Flanders, Cancellara rejected comparisons between the races, believing the "white roads" of the Strade "deserved appreciation in their own right".

[10] The concept was to recreate cycling's so-called "heroic era" from the first half of the 20th century, when most bike races were ridden on dirt or unpaved roads.

Organizer RCS asked local cycling icons Fiorenzo Magni and Paolo Bettini to promote the maiden event.

[12] Monte dei Paschi, the world's oldest still-existing bank with its headquarters in Siena, served as the race's title sponsor for the first four years.

[17] Low temperatures and heavy rainfall had made the gravel roads exceptionally muddy and decimated the peloton in the early stages of the race.

Belgian Tiesj Benoot claimed his first professional victory, after he bridged a gap to the race leaders and left them behind on the penultimate gravel sector of Colle Pinzuto.

[23][2] The finish is on Siena's Piazza del Campo, after a steep and narrow climb on the roughly-paved Via Santa Caterina leading into the center of the medieval city.

They are usually country lanes and farm tracks, called strade bianche or sterrati in Italian, twisting through the hills and vineyards of the Chianti region.

Race organizers were inspired by the two most famous northern classics, uniting the peculiarities of the Tour of Flanders with its bergs (short stretches of steep hills), and Paris–Roubaix with its gruelling cobblestone sections.

[28] It has been called Italy's answer to Flanders' famous one-day races, as reflected by the promotional slogan of the 2015 edition: La Classica del Nord più a sud d'Europa (Europe's most southern Northern Classic).

"[29] Likewise, Italian sprinter Daniele Bennati was equally enthusiastic about the race, stating: "It was a sensation of turning back in time.