Horological Tributes for Four Great Sportsmen

Horology and sports often go hand in hand, these four in particular, pay tribute to the achievements of four great sportsmen. 

The IWC Ingenieur Chronograph Edition “Nico Rosberg” combines Nico Rosberg’s favourite metal, titanium, with a black rubber strap. A liberal amount of neon yellow is used for the hands as a tribute to the driver’s signature yellow helmet. At 45mm, the chronograph also sports IWC’s double-pawl winding system. This release is limited to 250 watches.

Hublot chose to mark the achievements of the fastest man on Earth by launching two limited-edition versions of the Big Bang Unico Usain Bolt in signature gold and black. Both come with a skeletonised dial and a green-tipped lightning bolt chronograph hand.

Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher presented a near-impossible challenge for Audemars Piguet: create a mechanical wristwatch that can measure and record an extended series of consecutive lap times. Five years of development later, the Royal Oak Latimer Michael Schumacher was revealed. Only 221 pieces were made, marking each race in which Schumacher took points.

Richard Mille’s RM 35-02 Rafael Nadal was announced during the run-up to the French Open tennis championships. The bright red RM 35-02 is the first automatic watch in the Rafael Nadal collection. The case’s coating is made from quartz and offers high resistance to weight ratio, is non-allergenic and UV safe. The watch is said to withstand accelerations of up to 5,000 g.