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Soudal-QuickStep to celebrate 150 years of Castelli with special Giro jersey
Castelli and Soudal-QuickStep have launched a special edition jersey that the team will wear throughout the upcoming Giro d'Italia, designed to commemorate the Italian brand's 150th anniversary.
The new kit takes on a "vintage cream" colourway dotted logos and motifs that reference key landmarks and innovations in Castelli's history, including Jacques Anquetil's speed suit developed for his invalidated 1967 hour record, the first use of Lycra shorts in 1977, and the development of now-standard features and apparel such as Lycra shorts, ergonomic chamois, aero jerseys and road speed suits.
Soudal-QuickStep has yet to confirm the Giro lineup that will show off this new kit, but Paul Magnier is expected to lead the team for sprint stages, with former Italian national champion and Giro stage winner Filippo Zana their main man for the climbs.
EF's Harry Sweeny undergoes knee surgery
EF Pro Cycling's Harry Sweeny has had surgery to remove an inflamed plica in his left knee, the team confirmed Monday.
The injury first surfaced at Milano-Sanremo and kept Sweeny off the bike since. "It's been quite off and on," he said. "I wasn't able to race. I've been able to do a few days of good training, but then it would come back." He added it had been nearly ten years since he dealt with a genuine injury, making the spell a difficult one mentally as well as physically.
The team's head doctor, Jon Greenwell, said an MRI scan confirmed the cause and that other management options had been exhausted before surgery was recommended.
Sweeny is expected to be off the bike for one to two weeks, with the aim of returning to training in time for the back end of the team's Tour de France camp.
Van der Poel may target Mountain Bike Worlds
In an interview with Spanish newspaper As, Mathieu van der Poel floated a strong possibility he'll try for a rainbow jersey at this fall's Mountain Bike World Championships. A start is not yet confirmed, but Van der Poel said that of objectives for the year, "If I can choose only one, that's it."
The Dutchman just finished his crucial Spring Classics campaign, where he came away with wins in Omloop Nieuwsblad and the E3 Classic but missed a Monument victory for the first time since 2021. His next race start is not until the Tour de France in July. Mountain Bike World Championships is August 26-30 in Val di Sole, Italy.
His motivation to target a mountain bike world title is to complete a career sweep of rainbow jerseys in road (he has one), cyclocross (eight and counting), and mountain bike, which he's never done. "No one has ever won in all disciplines, so it would be a historic victory," he said. And that's true – for men. But Pauline Ferrand-Prévot has won world titles on the road and in cyclocross and mountain bike (plus Olympic gold in MTB), while her Visma-Lease a Bike teammate Marianne Vos has rainbow jerseys on the road (3), track (2), and in cyclocross (8) and gravel.
Rapha reissues 'roadmap' for reforming pro cycling
Rapha CEO Fran Millar noted that the UCI has issued its own call for reform and development ideas, but was scathing about the progress – or rather lack of it – the sport has shown in the seven years since the initial Rapha report. "The problems identified in the Rapha Roadmap seven years ago are the same problems the UCI's own consultation letter acknowledged in February 2026," Millar said in a foreword accompanying the report. Millar, the former CEO of Ineos Grenadiers, pulled few punches about where the blame lay. Arguing that the sport's financial bottom line doesn't match its popularity, she wrote, "the sport also has an ineffectual governance system that often seems to prioritise self-preservation over growth."
The new roadmap, which is an updated version of the original written by The Outer Line newsletter writers Steve Maxwell and Joe Harris, also incorporates elements of an independent critique and plan recently published by pro rider (and Escape contributor) Joe Laverick on his Substack. Millar implored the UCI to put its recommendations to use, but as with any reform project in the sport, the key to progress may lie less with the sport's governing body than other powerful stakeholders like Tour de France promoter ASO.
Pogačar firmly in control at Romandie after taking stage 2 sprint
Apparently the only thing Tadej Pogačar can't do is prologue time trials. The Slovenian withstood all challenges on a lumpy, punchy stage 2 at the Tour de Romandie to take a second consecutive stage victory from a reduced bunch and tighten his hold on the overall lead.
An early breakaway was no real threat as Pogačar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG team and Ineos Grenadiers kept a relatively short leash on the quartet out front. And into the uphill finish, Pogačar himself showed little sign of trouble in matching accelerations from riders like prologue winner Dorian Godon (Ineos). With time bonuses, Pogačar extends his overall lead to 17 seconds over Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe's Florian Lipowitz and 26 seconds to Lenny Martinez (Bahrain Victorious). Friday's 176.6 km stage around Orbe features one significant climb but the summit is 34 km from the finish and there's a lengthy downhill before a flat final 11 km to the line.
Riis says Netcompany-Ineos would be a 'dream team' for Vingegaard
Tour de France winner and former team manager Bjarne Riis says the new partnership between Netcompany and Ineos, announced formally this week, creates a new superpower in the sport. Potentially, it's one that Jonas Vingegaard should take a closer look at. "Right now it would be a dream team for Jonas," Riis told BT. "The best team he could join if he wants to challenge Pogačar. I'm not saying he'll make the switch, but he has to consider it."
Riis was blunt about Visma-Lease a Bike's prospects: "The last few years they've mostly let go of important domestiques for Jonas. If they had the muscle Ineos is about to have, they could have challenged Pogačar."
Netcompany CEO André Rogaczewski told journalists at the new-look team's launch in London on Tuesday that the ambition is to win the Tour de France within five years. Ineos, formerly Team Sky, have won the race seven times.
Pogačar back to winning ways at Romandie
Our long national nightmare of Tadej Pogačar's losing streak is over. After the Slovenian superstar finished sixth in the opening prologue at the Tour de Romandie – somewhat incredibly his first ever pro attempt at the ultra-short time trial discipline – he rebounded to win the first road stage Wednesday from a four-rider break and restore order.
After an early break went clear on the largely flat stage, Pogačar's UAE Team Emirates-XRG squad controlled the proceedings ably, setting up its leader's inevitable attack on the day's lone real climb, the category one Ovronnaz ascent (8.9 km at 9.8% average). Unlike in many races, Pogačar had company in the form Bahrain Victorious' Lenny Martinez. Florian Lipowitz (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) and Jefferson Cepeda of Movistar bridged across and then Jorgen Nordhagen of Visma-Lease a Bike before Cepeda lost the pace, leaving a group of four.
Despite some dysfunctional dynamics, the lead quartet held the advantage on the final flat run to the line in Martigny, where Pogačar ably dispatched his rivals in the sprint. Lidl-Trek's Albert Withen Philipsen brought a small chase group of 12 home 21 seconds later but the rest of the field straggled in 1:51 or more in arrears. Pogačar now holds a seven-second lead to Lipowitz, with Martinez in third, 16 seconds down. Thursday's stage 2, from Rue to Vicherens, is mostly lumpy and could see a breakaway go clear, although Pogačar has said nearly every day in the race presents opportunities for him.
Carapaz is latest hopeful to bow out of Giro d'Italia
The 2026 Giro d'Italia hasn't even started but the hits to its lineup keep coming. EF Education-EasyPost's Richard Carapaz is the latest team leader to withdraw from the event before its May 8 start in Bulgaria. The former winner of the Giro is still working to recover from surgery in early April for a perineal cyst. At the time, Carapaz expressed optimism that the procedure wouldn't impede his buildup to the Giro, but recovery was slower than hoped.
"Finding myself in this situation is frustrating because you put a lot of desire and time into it, but in the end I have to prioritize my health now and move forward," he said in a news release from his team. It's the latest blow to the GC contenders' lineup for the Giro; in the last week alone, UAE Team Emirates-XRG's João Almeida and Soudal-Quick Step's Mikel Landa have withdrawn from plans to start. And for EF it's the second withdrawal of a team leader for a key racing bloc in the month of April, after Ben Healy was forced out of the Ardennes Classics with a fractured sacrum. Carapaz says he will now refocus on July's Tour de France.
Illness forces Onley out of Tour de Romandie
Ineos Grenadiers won some and lost some at Tuesday's opening prologue stage of the Tour de Romandie. Dorian Godon took a surprise win in the short individual time trial, but team leader Oscar Onley was well down in 79th place, conceding 35 seconds in an event that was just 3.2 km long (Godon's winning time was 3:35).
Now we know why. The Scottish climber dropped out midway through stage one, reportedly suffering from illness, according to his team. It's another setback for Onley, who finished fourth overall in his opening race, the Volta ao Algarve, and then helped his team to a win in the team time trial at Paris-Nice and rose as high as third overall before he had to drop out due to illness. Onley's next race is not until June's Tour Auvergne-Rhone Alpes (formerly the Critérium du Dauphiné).
Aasebø recovering after emergency surgery to treat brain bleed following Roubaix crash
Kamilla Aasebø (Uno-X Mobility) is back in her native Norway continuing to recover at a hospital in Oslo after undergoing a succesful emergency surgery to treat bleeding in her brain following a Paris-Roubaix crash.
The 19-year-old went down on the Orchies cobbles and broke her jaw and elbow in addition to suffering a brain bleed. Doctors did not initially expect her to require surgery, but the bleeding worsened and she ultimately underwent a procedure to treat the problem. She wrote on Instagram on Tuesday that she only remembers five of the ten days she spent in the Lille hospital where she was treated for the injury.
"The crash itself was not especially dramatic. I was simply very unlucky with the outcome," she wrote. "But once it became that serious, I’ve also been very lucky with how well things have gone." [Instagram]
Pidcock eyes Eschborn-Frankfurt 'to rebuild rhythm and continue his progression'
Pinarello-Q36.5 said on Tuesday that Tom Pidcock will make his first ever start at Eschborn-Frankfurt this coming weekend in an effort "to rebuild rhythm and continue his progression."
The 26-year-old Brit saw his spring plans disrupted by a crash at the Volta a Catalunya. He returned to racing with a stage win but no GC challenge at the Tour of the Alps, and then endured a frustrating day out at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, where he was hampered by a mechanical before a decisive moment.
With the Tour de France as his next major goal, "the emphasis is on accumulating race kilometers and continuing to re-establish competitive condition after recent setbacks" as he lines up for a sprinter-friendly race like Eschborn-Frankfurt.
Romandie organizer talks absent WorldTeams: 'You have to share the calendar a bit'
Although stars like Tadej Pogačar, Primož Roglič, and Florian Lipowitz are all in attendance at the Tour de Romandie this year, a whopping four WorldTeams opted to skip the race, with Uno-X Mobility, Lotto-Intermarché, Decathlon-CMA CGM, and Alpecin-Premier Tech all taking advantage of UCI rules allowing top-division teams to miss one top-division race each year. Despite the "blow" to his start list, race organizer Richard Chassot expressed some understanding of the teams' decision in a conversation with Wielerflits.
"There are many races taking place on the different continents, so I do understand the teams to some extent," Chassot said, noting that Classics-oriented teams were always unlikely to attend and that Decathlon had explained to organizers that only the sprint-focused squad was available to race a Tour de Romandie bereft of sprint opportunities.
"It’s a mixed feeling," Chassot said. "I don’t mind so much if a few teams don’t show up, but as I said, right now it really is a lot. In principle, for safety reasons, it’s not even that bad to have a peloton of 130 riders. There are a lot of crashes in the peloton these days and things are getting faster and faster. So I don’t necessarily need a peloton of 200 riders at the start. And you have to share the calendar a bit, that’s logical." [Wielerflits]
Godon takes a convincing prologue win at the Tour de Romandie
On the day that his Ineos Grenadiers team announced the impending arrival of co-sponsor Netcompany, Dorian Godon stormed to a clear win in the prologue at the Tour de Romandie.
The French national road champion, a marquee offseason signing for Ineos, rode the 3.2 km course in 3:35. Despite the short distance, that was a full six seconds faster than runner-up Jakob Söderqvist (Lidl-Trek), who was faster than third-placed Ivo Oliveira (UAE Team Emirates-XRG), also six seconds back, by the narrowest of margins.
Overall favorite Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) was sixth on the day, seven seconds behind Godon, with other GC hopefuls Primož Roglič and Florian Lipowitz of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe at eight seconds and 10 seconds back, respectively.
Iván Ramiro Sosa gets his first win since 2022
It's been a big week for Colombian pros far removed from their last wins. Four days after Nairo Quintana (Movistar) took his first victory since 2022, Kern Pharma's Iván Ramiro Sosa got his own first win since the same year at the Tour of Turkey.
The 28-year-old Colombian was once a highly coveted prospect who inspired the Ineos organization to beat out the Trek team for his signature in a messy transfer saga, and he spent three years with Ineos and then three more with Movistar before signing with Kern Pharma last year. He attacked on the final climb of stage 3 in Turkey to win by nine seconds over his nearest rival, and he now leads the GC with five stages to go.
Crash with Itzulia doctor's car left Landa with a fractured pelvis
Mikel Landa will not race the upcoming Giro d'Italia as originally planned as he recovers from an injury sustained earlier this month at the Itzulia Basque Country. The Soudal-Quick-Step rider was hit by the driver of the medical car on stage 2 and later abandoned his home stage race; the driver was disqualified from the event.
Landa said on Monday that he had been "experiencing some discomfort" since the incident but only now have examinations uncovered a small fracture to his pelvis, which will keep him from racing the Giro.
[Updated] Pogačar slapped with 5,000 CHF fine for 'incorrect placement of publicity' on world champ's jersey
Not long after winning his fourth Liège-Bastogne-Liège, and a fifth visit to the podium in five appearances so far this season, Tadej Pogačar was slapped with a massive €5,000 fine in the post-race jury report.
"Tadej Pogačar (UAD) gets a fine of 5000 CHF for incorrect placement of publicity on the world champion jersey during the award ceremony," reads the jury report.
There are strict rules as far as kit modifications are concerned, but with no visible temporary changes, and no discernible differences in logo placement compared to his previous podium visits this season, Pogačar's exact infraction – or that of his kit designer – remains unclear. But one thing's for sure, five thousand Swiss francs is at the higher end of the fines handed out by the UCI and race juries.
Update, late Sunday evening: Pogačar's team later told La Gazzetta dello Sport that the fine had been overturned, but no further explanation was given as to what the race jury had taken issue with.
Two days after taking his first win in four years on stage 2 of the 2.1-ranked Vuelta Asturias, veteran Nairo Quintana sealed overall victory in the final day, fending off an aggressive Adrià Pericas, the 19-year-old hoping to secure a third-consecutive title for UAE Team Emirates-XRG.
First across the line in Oviedo was 25-year-old Mexican Edgar David Cadena who took back-to-back stage wins and the points classification. Quintana was joined on the GC podium by young Spaniard Pericas, and Movistar teammate Diego Pescador. The older Colombian was the oldest rider on the podium by 15 years.
Final GC top 5
Nairo Quintana (Movistar)
Adrià Pericas (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) +0:25
Diego Pescador (Movistar) +1:33
Txomin Juaristi (Euskaltel-Euskadi) +1:34
Samuel Fernández (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) +1:39
Alaphilippe ruled out of Liège for medical reasons
Julian Alaphilippe has been withdrawn from upcoming races including Sunday's Liège-Bastogne-Liège for undisclosed or unclear health reasons having struggled in his favoured Ardennes Classics – he was unable to finish either Amstel Gold or La Flèche Wallonne which he's won three times.
"Julian Alaphilippe will unfortunately miss both Liège-Bastogne-Liège and Eshborn-Frankfurt due to medical reasons," his team Tudor Pro Cycling announced in an Instagram story 24 hours before Liège, where the two-time world champion has finished runner-up twice. "As a result, he will not be competing in the upcoming events in order to prioritize his health and ensure a full return to racing."
With these two races scrubbed, the Frenchman's next scheduled appearance is the Tour de France where he'd be expected to play a key role in Tudor's second outing at the premier Grand Tour.
Pellizzari secures his first ever stage race win at the Tour of the Alps
Giulio Pellizzari (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) continues to bolster his GC credentials ahead of the Giro d'Italia, taking Friday's stage 5 and securing the overall title at the Tour of the Alps. The 22-year-old Italian went clear near the summit of the day's final climb and held on alone to win 30 seconds ahead of Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) and Michael Storer (Tudor).
Bernal and his Ineos teammate Thymen Arensman rounded out the GC podium with Pellizzari, whose overall victory was his first ever in a pro stage race.
Quintana takes his first victory in four years at the Vuelta Asturias
Set to retire at the end of the season, Nairo Quintana (Movistar) soloed to his first win in over four years on stage 2 of the Vuelta Asturias, where he now leads the race by 31 seconds. The 36-year-old Colombian, a two-time Grand Tour winner, last took a victory while racing for Arkéa-Samsic in 2022 at the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var.
Later that season, he was suspended for tramadol use and only came back to the upper echelons of the sport in 2024 when he returned to Movistar, the team where he had first emerged as a star. Earlier this year, Quintana announced that this would be his final season as a pro racer.
On Friday's second stage of the Vuelta Asturias, Quintana attacked alongside Adrià Pericas of UAE Team Emirates-XRG with just under 40 km to go. The duo was caught by a small group of chasers before attacking again, and then Quintana went clear on his own to take the victory.
He dedicated the win to fellow Colombian Cristian Camilo Muñoz, who passed away on Friday after developing an infection following a crash at the Tour du Jura.
Former UAE rider Cristian Camilo Muñoz dies of infection after crash
Cristian Camilo Muñoz, a member of the Nu Colombia Continental team who rode with UAE Team Emirates from 2019 to 2021, has died after developing an infection following a crash at the Tour du Jura on Saturday.
The crash left him with a knee injury that required stitches, and the 30-year-old Colombian was sent home from the hospital, joining his team in Spain for the Vuelta Asturias.
"Once the team arrived in Oviedo, Spain, Cristian was re-evaluated at a clinic, where the medical staff detected a difficult-to-treat infection that required further specialized care," Nu Colombia said in a press release. "In the last few hours, his clinical condition worsened, and despite all the efforts of the medical team, Cristian passed away on Friday morning."
Zipp resurrects the 202
Aerodynamics might be the name of the game in performance road, but the persistent presence of lightweight gear suggests that for some riders, climbing is still the metric they care about most. Zipp addressed that group directly with the reborn 202 NSW wheelset, the lightest it's ever made.
Last seen in 2018, the 202 has been updated as a modern, wider (but not too wide) hookless rim with a claimed weight of 1,090 grams per pair. Even as some other brands have opted for carbon spokes, Zipp goes under 1,100 grams while sticking with steel: Alpina's Hyperlite bladed, 20 of the little suckers in a 2x lacing pattern to be specific. Hubs are Zipp's ZR1 SL with ceramic bearings and a freehub with 66 points of engagement and in versions for Shimano HG or SRAM XDR cassettes and with Centerlock rotor compatibility only.
Rim depth is 35 mm – enough for a skosh of aero without adding extra weight. Internal width is 23 mm, making the rim optimized for 28-32 mm tires. There is a system weight limit, of 115 kg/235 lb total. Zipp says any TSS-compatible tire will work with the wheels.
Here's where we insert our obligatory note about tubeless straight side (TSS), aka hookless, rims for road use: Maximum pressure for any tubeless tire on a hookless rim is 72.5 psi. While Zipp, like most wheel brands, tests its rims to blowoff pressures that exceed this limit, pay very close attention to pressures in your system. Make sure you have an accurate gauge, check pressure before every ride, and inspect wheels and tires regularly for damage, especially if you've pinch-flatted.
Price? Retail is US$1,900 / €1,700 / £1,520 front and US$2,300 / €2,100 / £1,875 rear. They're available immediately, like all good product releases.
Hirschi suffers broken collarbone in Flèche Wallonne crash
On the heels of a disappointing 2025 season and a slow start to 2026, things got even worse for Marc Hirschi on Wednesday. The 27-year-old Swiss puncheur suffered a fractured left clavicle in a crash at La Flèche Wallonne.
In the same race that saw him take a breakthrough win back in 2020, Hirschi went down with a little less than 30 km to go and then abandoned. His Tudor Pro Cycling team said that he will now undergo surgery.
Broken wrist for U23 world champ Finn
Reigning under-23 world road champion Lorenzo Finn, on a temporary call-up from Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe's development team to ride with the WorldTour squad at the Tour of the Alps this week, broke his wrist in a crash on Wednesday
The 19-year-old Italian went down in a huge pileup that impacted dozens of riders and even led to a brief neutralization in the early goings of the stage 3. He did not continue, and Red Bull later announced that he had suffered a wrist fracture.
Pidcock reiterates that he is 'not in the best shape' after Tour of the Alps stage 3 win
Just as he downplayed his form after his runner-up ride on stage 1 of the Tour of the Alps, Tom Pidcock said after winning Wendesday's stage 3 that he is "really not in the best shape."
The Tour of the Alps marked a return to racing for the 26-year-old Brit after a crash at the Volta a Catalunya, and he said that the opening stage was "the worst day ever on the bike" even though he rode to second. The following stage saw him drop out of GC contention, but he was back near the front on stage 3, where he outkicked Tommaso Dati (UKYO) and Egan Bernal (Ineos Grenadiers) to get the win.
While that result might have been a confidence booster ahead of Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Pidcock reiterated that he continues to feel below his best.
"I come here, I'm suffering – it's completely the opposite of before my crash," he said. "Mentally, it's super challenging."
Muriel Furrer's parents will not seek legal redress following investigation
After the Zurich public prosecutor's office closed its investigation into the death of Muriel Furrer, the 18-year-old Swiss rider who died from injuries sustained in a crash during the junior women's road race at Zurich Worlds in 2024, Furrer's parents have told The Athletic that they will not take any further legal action.
The investigation confirmed that Furrer went undiscovered for almost an hour and a half after crashing into an area of dense undergrowth before she was taken to the hospital, where she later died. Prosecutors determined that "no third-party involvement in the cyclist's fall could be established, nor could any criminally relevant breach of duty be found in connection with course safety or emergency assistance after the accident," and the case was closed.
“We must accept this outcome,” Furrer's parents said. “We have found a way to live with the grief and the immeasurable loss and suffering.” [The Athletic]
Riese and Müller will leave the US market in July
German e-bike and cargo bike brand Riese and Müller announced this week that it intends to leave the US market this summer to re-focus on its core European business. The brand said in a press release that the decision came after an extensive assessment. "Key factors include the persistently challenging and increasingly volatile market conditions in the United States," it noted. Last August, the brand had to suspend shipments to the US due to tariffs on the metal content of bicycles.
The move will likely be most felt in the bakfiets, or frontloader cargo bike segment. Riese and Müller makes four different models, the Load, Transporter, Packster and Carrie, and was one of the most readily available brands in the space. Urban Arrow and Yuba are two main options left, although others ranging from Trek's Fetch+ and Bunch Bikes' three-wheeled trikes are also available.
The company said that orders for its bikes can still be placed through July 31. For owners of existing bikes, the brand said it will continue to work with existing dealers for support, "including the provision of spare parts for Riese & Müller e-bikes and cargo bikes. Even after sales end, dealers will retain access to components, technical documentation, and support services. All existing warranty obligations will remain in full effect and will continue to be fulfilled." [Riese and Müller]
Pellizzari takes first win of 2026 in build-up to Giro
Giulio Pellizzari won stage 2 of the Tour of the Alps in a GC group sprint, outpacing Thymen Arensman and breakaway survivor Mattia Gaffuri in a selection that boasted no less than three Red Bull-Bora Hansgrohe riders, the others being U23 world champion Lorenzo Finn and the late-bridging Aleksandr Vlasov.
Ineos Grenadiers was also well-represented in the finale at Val Martello, with Egan Bernal finishing fourth in the lead group, and Embret Svestad-Bårdseng playing a role in setting up the move lower down the climb. Reigning Tour of the Alps champ Michael Storer had been able to follow the early accelerations, but he ultimately succumbed to the superior pace and finished 10th 19 seconds down.
With his second pro win, 22-year-old Pellizzari also took over the race lead from stage 1 winner Tommaso Dati, building a four-second advantage over Arensman thanks to his winning bonus seconds. Pellizzari is one of many Giro d'Italia-bound riders racing the Tour of the Alps, the young Italian preparing to share leadership with former winner Jai Hindley at his home Grand Tour.
Jorgenson provides update post-Amstel crash: 'mission bionic arm successful'
Matteo Jorgenson has provided an update after breaking his collarbone in a crash at the Amstel Gold Race, ruling him out of the remaining Ardennes Classics where he was due to be Visma-Lease a Bike's clear leader.
"Mission bionic arm successful," Jorgenson wrote on his Instagram story over a photo of him posing outside an Amsterdam hospital. "Thank you for all the messages! I feel the love. Shit happens and that's what makes life beautiful. Onwards!"
Visma-Lease a Bike unveils Tour de France kit, with final colour decision turned over to fans
Visma-Lease a Bike has unveiled the new design for its Tour de France team kit, a yearly necessity since the team's livery turned yellow. The new look is inspired by the work of architect Antoni Gaudí and "the spirit of Barcelona" where the men's Grand Départ takes place this July.
While the side panels, sleeve cuffs and collar retain the team's trademark bright yellow, the main body of the jersey features architectural sketches including archways, geometric shapes, and most notably, the honeycomb motif that has become associated with Visma-Lease a Bike. The team's announcement explains: "For Gaudí, strength was not about how something looked, but how it worked. The honeycomb embodies that idea perfectly, a collection of small elements forming a strong and highly efficient whole."
As always, Visma-Lease a Bike has left room for fan engagement, with the now-familiar opportunity to add a name to the design by pre-ordering the kit. This year, there's also a vote ongoing (until Thursday 23rd April) to decide the base colour of the jersey, choosing between black and a faded yellow that could just about be described as parchment.
