Welcome to Daily News, your roundup of news items from across the world of cycling. We keep this post updated throughout the week so that you can stay informed on all things bike racing, tech, industry, culture, advocacy, and more.
Here is what is making the headlines this week …
Tuesday, April 29, 2025
- Cycling in the City of London rises more than 50% in just three years
- Argon 18 updates Dark Matter with more tire clearance and frame storage
- Kent warns US bike production at risk after pausing Chinese imports
- Evenepoel speaks out against Belgian commentator
- Winner's Circle: Watson gets his first WorldTour victory
Cycling in the City of London rises more than 50% in just three years
Amid a concerted, decades-long effort to encourage cycling by adding bike lanes and other infrastructure, the City of London – the roughly one square mile district in the center of Greater London – has reported its largest-ever jump in ridership, according to its latest numbers. From 2022-2024, ridership rose from 89,000 people a day to 139,000, a 56% increase.
Cyclists now make up more than half of all traffic in the City of London during peak commuting hours, while air quality has improved and motor vehicle traffic has declined by a third. The milestone means the City has met three key targets six years ahead of schedule. While the City of London has a small geographic footprint and few residents, nearly 700,000 people work within its borders, and the ridership changes there are broadly indicative of changes in the Greater London area.
Argon 18 updates Dark Matter with more tire clearance and frame storage
Argon 18 has overhauled its Dark Matter gravel bike, increasing its tire clearance to 57 mm and refreshing the geometry. The frame now features in-frame storage, and in terms of geometry, has longer reach, longer chainstays, and slacker head angles.
There's support for both 1x and 2x drivetrains, suspension forks and dropper posts, and you get a T47 bottom bracket, bash guard, and extra mounting points on the fork. The Dark Matter comes in three builds starting from £3,500 / US$3,650 / €3,995 up to £6,500 / US$6,650 / €7,395. [Argon 18]
Kent warns US bike production at risk after pausing Chinese imports
Kent International, one of the largest bicycle suppliers to the US mass market, has stopped all imports of bikes and components from China, citing tariffs and duties of up to 175%. The company chairman, Arnold Kamler, told Bicycle Retailer and Industry News (BRAIN) that the company could be forced to stop production at its South Carolina factory if tariffs are not eased in the next month.
Kent supplies bikes to major US retailers, including Walmart and Target. Its South Carolina facility was opened in 2014 and assembles bikes and builds wheels using imported parts. [BRAIN]
Evenepoel speaks out against Belgian commentator
In a social media post, Remco Evenepoel expressed his frustration with Belgian television commentator Ruben Van Gucht after Van Gucht shared a rumor he had heard that Evenepoel financially supports the family of his wife Oumaïma Rayane.
"We have known each other since childhood. Long before there was any talk of money, fame, or anything. Her parents do not owe their prosperity to anyone. Certainly not to me," Evenepoel wrote on Instagram. "And then you, Ruben, come and tell me that I take care of them? Let me explain something to you: If anyone has helped, it is more likely to be our in-laws who have always done everything to support us and make us stronger. I don't know where you get your stories from, Ruben. Or is it difficult for you to believe that a Moroccan family has simply worked hard and is well-off? That says more about your limited worldview than about reality."
Winner's Circle: Watson gets his first WorldTour victory
Samuel Watson was a late call-up to the Ineos Grenadiers Tour de Romandie roster, but that did not stop him from storming to his first ever WorldTour victory in the prologue. The 23-year-old Brit narrowly bested Ivo Oliveira (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) by less than a second, with Iván Romeo (Movistar) taking third in the 3.4 km time trial.
Over at the Tour of Turkey, XDS-Astana continued a trend of racking up UCI points as Lev Gonov sprinted to victory on stage 3 ahead of Lander Loockx (Unibet Tietema Rockets) and race leader Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck).
Monday, April 28, 2025
- New 'Red Bull KM' will offer bonus seconds at the Giro d'Italia
- Pogačar: 'I don't think I can do this every spring'
- Rooijakkers able to laugh about cyclist on course at Liège
- British Paralympian Ruddock reported missing
- Winner's Circle: Del Grosso sprints to victory on stage 2 of the Tour of Turkey
New 'Red Bull KM' will offer bonus seconds at the Giro d'Italia
Red Bull already sponsors a team and several individual riders, and now the Austrian energy drink company is set to lend its branding to intermediate sprints at the upcoming Giro d'Italia. Organizer RCS and Red Bull have announced that 19 of the 21 stages of the race will feature a Red Bull-sponsored sprint point offering bonus seconds.
The "Red Bull KM" will start and finish with some all-important brand visibility for Red Bull, and six, four, and two bonus seconds will be awarded to the first three riders across the line at the end of the thousand-meter stretch. As with any intermediate sprint, many of the Red Bull KMs are probably going to be contested by breakaway riders, but there could be at least a few days where the bunch is involved and thus the general classification battle potentially impacted.
All of the mass-start stages in the Italian Grand Tour will feature the sponsor-supported chance for bonus seconds, leaving just the two time trial stages (2 and 10) free of Red Bull KM battles.
Pogačar: 'I don't think I can do this every spring'
After a Liège-Bastogne-Liège victory that tied him for third most Monument wins all time, Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) acknowledged that taking on such a full Classics slate each year might not be sustainable.
"You always look in December at what your program will be: Where you can rest, where you can go on vacation, so that you don't burn yourself out," Pogačar said in a post-race press conference, as Wielerflits reports. "It will be difficult for me to do what I did this spring again. I don't think I can do this every spring." [Wielerflits]
Rooijakkers able to laugh about cyclist on course at Liège
An amateur in UAE Team Emirates kit rode onto the Liège-Bastogne-Liège course and pedaled alongside riders in Sunday's women's race, drawing confusion from the riders and the ire of commentators and viewers before a roadside marshal managed to halt his progress.
Fortunately, he did not cause any major incidents or have any significant impact on the race, and Pauliena Rooijakkers (Fenix-Deceuninck) was able to laugh about it afterwards when interviewed by Sporza. "I thought it might have been Tadej Pogacar," she joked, before noting that "it was very strange. I don't know what the intention was." [Sporza]
British Paralympian Ruddock reported missing
The BBC reports that British Paralympian Sam Ruddock, who has competed in cycling and athletics events, has been reported missing in Las Vegas, Nevada. The 35-year-old had been visiting with the intention of attending WrestleMania. A friend last heard from him on April 16, and he also posted an Instagram story that day.
According to reports, he did not check out of the hostel where he was staying but left his belongings in the room. [BBC]
Winner's Circle: Del Grosso sprints to victory on stage 2 of the Tour of Turkey
Under-23 cyclocross world champ and emerging road talent Tibor Del Grosso (Alpecin-Deceuninck) won stage 2 of the Tour of Turkey on Monday. The 21-year-old Dutchman proved fastest in an uphill sprint in Kalkan, besting Giovanni Lonardi (Polti-VisitMalta) and Lander Loockx (Unibet Tietema Rockets) to win the stage and take the race lead.
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