{"id":240485,"date":"2026-09-26T10:27:24","date_gmt":"2026-09-26T08:27:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.museonicolis.com\/premio-premio-asi-per-il-motorismo-storico-2026-automotoclub-storico-italiano\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T15:23:28","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T13:23:28","slug":"premio-premio-asi-per-il-motorismo-storico-2026-automotoclub-storico-italiano","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.museonicolis.com\/en\/premio-premio-asi-per-il-motorismo-storico-2026-automotoclub-storico-italiano\/","title":{"rendered":"Premio Nazionale ASI 2026 a Luciano Nicolis"},"content":{"rendered":"

Luciano Nicolis receives the 2026 ASI National Award from the Italian Historic Automobile Club in Misano<\/h2>\n

Watch the VIDEO\u00a0<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

Villafranca di Verona, 28 September 2026 \u2013 Luciano Nicolis<\/strong>, founder of the Museum Nicolis in Villafranca di Verona, has been awarded the 2026 ASI National Award for Historic Motoring<\/strong> by the Italian Historic Automobile Club (Automotoclub Storico Italiano, ASI). The prestigious national award was presented at the Misano World Circuit<\/strong> by Alberto Scuro<\/strong>, President of ASI and FIVA<\/strong>, to Luciano\u2019s children, Silvia and Thomas Nicolis<\/strong>, during ASI Fest 2026<\/strong>, the event celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Italian Historic Automobile Club<\/strong>. The award pays tribute to Luciano Nicolis and his extraordinary passion for historic motoring, which led him to dedicate his life to recovering, preserving and sharing unique records of the history of mobility. An entrepreneur and collector<\/strong>, Luciano Nicolis transformed a lifelong passion into a genuine cultural project, culminating in the opening of the Museum Nicolis<\/strong> in 2000. Today, the Museum is recognised among the world\u2019s 100 most important collections. Its ten collections encompass cars, motorcycles, bicycles and countless examples of human ingenuity, documenting the evolution of technology and society.
\n\u201cWith the 2026 ASI National Award for Historic Motoring<\/strong>, we pay tribute to the memory of Luciano Nicolis<\/strong>, a pioneer and an iconic figure in the field<\/strong>, who dedicated his life to researching, recovering and promoting extraordinary records of the history of mobility. His foresight lay in understanding that preserving a historic vehicle means safeguarding a part of our country\u2019s history<\/strong> and passing it on to future generations. This conviction also inspired the creation of the Museum Nicolis<\/strong>, which has become a benchmark for mobility culture. Luciano Nicolis helped transform collecting into a shared commitment to protecting and enhancing our heritage<\/strong>\u201d says Alberto Scuro, President of ASI and FIVA<\/strong>.
\nThe award takes on even greater significance in the year marking ASI\u2019s 60th anniversary<\/strong>, with Italian motoring heritage at the heart of the celebrations<\/strong>. This history has been shaped not only by vehicles, but also by entrepreneurial families, coachbuilders, engineers and designers who have contributed to the evolution of mobility. It is a history that Luciano Nicolis sought to preserve and share by founding the Museum Nicolis, a place where technology, business, design and culture<\/strong> come together to tell the story of society\u2019s evolution.
\n\u201cReceiving this award in honour of my father is a source of profound emotion and pride for me. Luciano devoted his life to work, family and a genuine passion for everything that embodied history and humanity\u2019s ability to create. The Museum was born out of his desire to share, not simply to collect. Knowing that ASI now recognises the value of his vision means seeing that passion still alive in the people who visit the Museum and discover his story,\u201d comments Silvia Nicolis, President of the Museum Nicolis<\/strong>.
\n\u201cThis award is a tremendous source of pride for our family and recognises our father\u2019s foresight. He understood long before others that preserving motoring heritage was not merely a collecting passion, but a cultural responsibility. The same principle guides our approach to business: recognising the value of what we have in our hands, taking care of it and giving it a new lease of life,\u201d comments Thomas Nicolis, President of the Lamacart Group<\/strong>.
\nThe 2026 ASI National Award<\/strong> forms part of ASI Fest, which brought together the various facets of historic motoring in Misano from 25 to 27 September to celebrate sixty years of the Italian Historic Automobile Club\u2019s work to protect and promote this heritage. For the Nicolis Museum, the award represents further recognition of its founder\u2019s cultural legacy and of a vision that continues to guide its activities today.<\/p>\n

REASONS FOR THE AWARD<\/strong>
\nThe 2026 ASI National Award<\/strong> for Historic Motoring<\/strong> is posthumously bestowed upon Luciano Nicolis, a pioneer and iconic figure in the field<\/strong>, and a visionary custodian of an extraordinary technical, cultural and human legacy<\/strong>. Luciano Nicolis dedicated his life to researching, recovering, preserving and promoting cars, motorcycles, bicycles, means of transport and other records of the history of mobility, rescuing them from oblivion and safeguarding them for future generations. His remarkable foresight enabled him to understand that preserving a historic vehicle meant more than simply conserving an object: it meant safeguarding a part of our country\u2019s history<\/strong>, including the ingenuity, labour, industry, customs, creativity and social transformations that these vehicles accompanied and documented. This vision also gave rise to the Museum Nicolis<\/strong>, which has become one of Italy\u2019s most prestigious institutions dedicated to mobility culture and a point of reference for enthusiasts, scholars and visitors from around the world. In the year that the Italian Historic Automobile Club celebrates the 60th anniversary of its foundation<\/strong>, the award takes on an even more special significance. Remembering Luciano Nicolis means paying tribute to one of the fathers and pioneers of Italian historic motoring, a man whose work and vision helped transform collecting from an individual passion into a shared commitment to the protection and promotion of cultural heritage.
\nTo Luciano Nicolis, pioneer of Italian historic motoring, for preserving the past and passing it on to the future.<\/strong><\/p>\n

LUCIANO NICOLIS \u2013 BIOGRAPHY<\/strong>
\nLuciano Nicolis (San Massimo, Verona, 19 January 1933 \u2013 Villafranca di Verona, 21 April 2012) was an entrepreneur, collector and founder of the Museum Nicolis, which opened in Villafranca of Verona in 2000. With the Museum, he fulfilled what he loved to call his \u201clifelong dream<\/strong>\u201d, a vision that had taken shape when he was still a boy. Shortly after the Second World War, while still very young, he began working in paper recovery on behalf of his father, Francesco. Riding his bicycle through neighbouring towns, he searched for materials that could be collected and reused.
\nOver time, this experience led to the creation of Lamacart<\/strong>, now an industrial group operating in the recovery and enhancement of paper. Luciano recalled those early years:
\n\u201cI remember those days fondly now, but when I was little, I was ashamed of them. When I was in my third year of middle school, after classes, I would ride my bicycle to Mantua in the afternoons to load sacks of paper. The war had ended only recently, and at the age of 14 I would pedal off in search of my fortune, looking for empty cement sacks discarded by bricklayers. I would load as many as 300 and return home pushing my bicycle, carrying 60 kilos of sweat. They paid well, and my father was happy. My fascination with mechanics and cars had completely captivated me. I wanted to bring my dreams to life and fulfil my hopes. Whenever I saw a car go by, I would think: one day, I too will have a beautiful car\u2026 perhaps two\u2026 perhaps three\u2026<\/em>\u201d
\nThat passion would accompany Luciano Nicolis throughout his life. Driven by curiosity, intuition and an extraordinary sensitivity to the memories embodied in objects, he searched throughout Italy and around the world for rare and precious artefacts, often rescuing them before they were lost forever. Over the years, he assembled thousands of examples of human ingenuity: cars, motorcycles and bicycles, as well as cameras, typewriters, musical instruments and numerous other objects that tell the story of technological and social progress. In 2000, he decided to transform his private collection into a heritage to be shared with the public and opened the Museum Nicolis. This decision embodied his philosophy: to recover, preserve and restore value<\/strong>. To materials, through his business activities; to memory, through the Museum<\/strong>. Today, this vision, together with his passion for work and his ability to recognise the value of things long before they became historical artefacts, represents Luciano Nicolis\u2019s cultural and entrepreneurial legacy.<\/p>\n

NOTE: The sculptural award depicts the iconic vehicle of the Museum Nicolis: the 1938 Lancia Astura Mille Miglia<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n\r\n\r\n \r\n