History of an Iconic Breitling Chronograph
Breitling Sprint ref. 2212 / Credit: Joseph Bonnie
Today, Breitling is renowned for their tool watches, a history that goes back to their founding in 1884 and the release of their first wrist chronograph in 1915. But, much like other brands like Heuer and Rolex, they too were entrenched in the competition to build sports chronographs in the 1960s and ‘70s. As such, along with its better-known pieces like the Navitimer, Breitling also developed a chronograph called the ‘Sprint’.
The Breitling Sprint was released in the late 1960s as a double register sports chronograph meant to compete below the Navitimer and even the Top Time. The 2212 stands out in particular for its dial design, with subdials that are sometimes compared to a surfboard shape. Seemingly done to increase visibility while also adhering the 1960s design styles. The case shape is another alluring aspect of the design, which stood out in general from the rest of the Breitling collection at the time and is very similar to that of the Breitling Top Time ‘Racing’ ref. 2211, also released in the same period. The Breitling Top Time was notable for appearing in James Bond’s Thunderball in 1965.
Breitling Spring / Credit: Analog/Shift
The Breitling Sprint, on the other hand, was somewhat large, with most references using a manual winding Valjoux Caliber 7733. The Caliber 7733 was originally derived from the Venus 188 in 1969 and had a 45-hour power reserve. It was a redesign of the direct descendant of the Venus 188, the Caliber 7730. The Venus 188, instead, was first manufactured in 1948.
Ultimately, the Breitling Sprint seems to be largely overshadowed by the Breitling Top Time ‘Racing’ and the Top Time line as a whole (along with other vintage Breitlings), whose design is very similar but whose story is more popular, arguably due to the Bond connection. The Sprint is an interesting piece, but with the great selection of chronographs that were developed in the 1960s, including automatic ones towards the end of the decade, it doesn’t stand out as much as it could.
By: Andres Ibarguen