CyclistAre Decathlon-CMA CGM cyclings new superteam in waiting?In professional cycling, the superteam handle has been gifted to several teams in recent years, among them UAE Team Emirates XRG, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, Visma-Lease a Bike and Ineos Grenadiers teams that boast star-studded lineups filled with stage-winning potential, GC big guns and a staff room packed with the cyclings brightest boffins.Reaching such status isnt easy, yet a certain French team seems to be nearing that rarified air. Over the past two seasons, Decathlon-CMA CGM have found themselves inside the top ten of the UCI rankings, with a real boost in both performance and results. In 2024, they secured their first Grand Tour podium finish since 2017, and the team have managed to triple their year-end victory tallies between 2024 and 2025 when compared to the five years prior.That can be attributed to a handful of things: a restructuring of the roster, a wealth of young talent from the development system and, of course, improved finances. In an age where reaching the sports top strata seems increasingly unattainable, with required budgets creeping above 50 million, Decathlon-CMA CGM seem to have ticked all the boxes for an emerging superteam. Some work is still to be done, but 2026 seems like the year we start to mention the French team alongside those of Tadej Pogaar, Jonas Vingegaard and Remco Evenepoel.Bolstered GC leadershipDario Belingheri/Getty ImagesGC results provide some of the biggest returns on investment in pro cycling. The four superteams weve already mentioned have all won Grand Tours in recent years, enjoying the extra exposure, UCI points and financial security that come with it.After the loss of both Romain Bardet and Ben OConnor over the past five years, Decathlon-CMA CGM have had to rethink their GC strategy. However, after some years of rebuilding, it seems as though the team is in its healthiest GC state for some time.Felix Gall is the most proven GC leader in the team now, having finished inside the top five at last years Tour de France. The Austrian will be bidding for another top five result at this years Giro dItalia, and he has a real chance of getting the job done. Although hes a long way away from being a Tour de France podium contender, hes a reliable rider who could score podium finishes in stage races and lesser-contested Grand Tours.The teams latest GC signing Matthew Riccitello adds another string to the teams stage racing bow. An impressive showing at the 2023 Tour de lAvenir won by Isaac del Toro saw the American first announce himself, and he left an even bigger impression at last years Vuelta a Espaa, where he picked up a fifth place overall and the white jersey. After his move from Israel-Premier Tech, the American has already hit the ground running at Decathlon in 2026 with a GC win on his team debut at the Tour de la Provence, beating Ineoss well-proven Carlos Rodrguez in the process. Like Gall, Riccitello is more of a thoroughbred climber, but his climbing legs are good enough to secure stage race podiums and future top ten bids at Grand Tours. At the age of just 23, his best years are yet to come.The team boast a modest set of support riders. Aurlien Paret-Peintre has slipped from leader to loyal domestique, with Giro stage winner Nicolas Prodhomme and future stars Lo Bisiaux and Johannes Staune-Mittet providing further domestique options. While its not quite on the level of UAE or Visma, Decathlon have clearly improved their climbing strength. That much was evident at last years Tour de France, when the team supported Gall in his flight up the top ten during the final Alpine stages of the race. Now that they host several leaders in their own right, the next step is for the team to combine their forces to create a UAE-esque mountain train.The star of tomorrowXavier PereyronThe team have a real ace up their sleeves in Paul Seixas. The Frenchman enjoyed a breakout year in 2025 despite being the youngest rider in the WorldTour. At the Dauphin he became the youngest rider since the Second World War to score a top ten finish at a WorldTour stage race. He went on to win a bronze medal for France at the European Championships later in the season before a hard-fought top ten finish at Il Lombardia, his first Monument.In 2026, the 19-year-old will race a more rigorous programme, which started in glittering fashion at the Volta ao Algarve this week, where he defeated legitimate Grand Tour contenders Juan Ayuso, Joo Almeida and Oscar Onley on the first summit finish. From there, he will head to a string of WorldTour races and Classics, though a Grand Tour start is still unconfirmed for the Frenchman. While this season might come too early in his career to see his talent translate to big GC results, many expect the Seixas to follow a similar trajectory to Pogaar, who reached his first Grand Tour podium just before his 20th birthday.France is hungry for their next Grand Tour winner, and Seixas looks the most promising candidate for that mantle in decades. The team are aware of this, with talk last year centred on a five-year plan to win the Tour de France with the Lyonnais rider. Last July, team CEO Dominique Seriyes said the team want to prepare for a great future with Seixas for 2028 or 2030. He also affirmed that the team will sign more big talents and raise the budget. Related Posts What is happening at Visma-Lease a Bike? Pro Log: Isaac del Toro is a sprinter; Austin Butler is Lance Armstrong; Demi Vollering is inevitable The Broom Wagon: Does this sound familiar? 'The harder it is, the better': Interview with Paul Seixas, the next great French hope Sprinter recruitment Con Chronis/Getty ImagesIn the pursuit of superteam status, Decathlon-CMA CGM have been desperately trying to improve in the domain of sprinting. This was well documented in the third and final series of Tour de France: Unchained, in which Dominique Seriyes outlined the need to win sprints and internationalise their setup.After some experiments with Sam Bennett, the team have swapped the Irishman for young Dutch sprinter Olav Kooij. A proven force in the fast finishes, Kooij has picked up three Giro stages during his career. Kooij was often underutilised during his time at Visma, despite being one of the top five sprinters in the peloton. He would often find himself sidelined in favour of the GC ambitions of Vingegaard, which kept him away from the Tour de France for several years. This year though, hes finally set to make his Tour debut, and has a real chance of picking up a stage win or two.Decathlon have recruited an A-list leadout train during the winter to support him. This includes Cees Bol, former leadout man for Mark Cavendish and a Paris-Nice stage winner, former key Visma cog Ties Benoot, and Daan Hoole, a former lieutenant for Jonathan Milan and Mads Pedersen at Lidl-Trek. With this leadout, the team offers one of the strongest sprint cores on paper in the WorldTour. In an age where sprint trains have reduced in size and quality, Decathlon-CMA CGMs squad could prove lethal in the final 10km of a flat stage. Weve already had early indications of this at the Tour Down Under and the UAE Tour too.Its not just down to Kooij either. Tobias Lund Andresen, a transfer from the stagnating Picnic-PostNL, has already got his 2026 season off to a flying start in Australia. The Dane, who is just 23 of age, picked up his first WorldTour stage at the Tour Down Under, then backed it up by winning the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race. Given his young age, we can expect him to rise up the sprinting ranks and provide a strong secondary option for the team when Kooij is out of service.Bolstered staffTim de Waele/Getty ImagesIn recent years, commentators and analysts have focussed increasing attention on the staff behind the big pro teams. In the case of Visma-Lease a Bike in the early 2020s and Team Sky in the 2010s, these players made a huge difference as they brought a new philosophy to the team. Remember, its the staff who direct the riders and dictate the team tactics ahead of a days racing.Alongside the bulk-up in sprint support on the road, Decathlons staff room has been bolstered by some big names in the sprinting world. Mark Renshaw comes on board after spending several years as part of Cavendishs XDS-Astana project. The Australian was the worlds best leadout man in his day, and by the look of it, he seems to be one of the most effective sprint coaches, having propelled several B-list sprinters to top success at Astana.Similarly, Heinrich Haussler enters the ring. A Grand Tour stage winner during his racing career, the Australian is a competent sprinter and Classics rider. Often he overperformed in races, which translated to the staff room once he joined Bahrain Victorious post-retirement. Between them, Renshaw and Haussler have already pioneered the team to some sprinting success in Australia.In the GC realm, Luke Roberts is another name to have jumped on board this year. Another Australian, Roberts worked as a sports director at Picnic-PostNL in their glory years, helping to steer the likes of Tom Dumoulin and Jai Hindley to Grand Tour podiums. The 49-year-old was one of the most well regarded staff members during that time, so his experience should come in handy in supporting young riders like Riccitello and Seixas.The money bagsVan RyselIts no secret that to reach superteam status, you need big cash. According to reports from the Italian press, UAE Team Emirates XRG work with a budget of around 60 million. Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe are said to have expenses of up to 50 million, with Visma and Ineos close behind, near the 40 million mark.Deacthlon-CMA CGMs budget has already increased significantly since the French retailing giant came on board. With the addition of CMA CGM as a co-sponsor, the teams budget reportedly rose by 10 million during the off-season, taking the squads budget to a total of 40 million. If this is true, this boost elevates Seixass team into the top five wealthiest WorldTour teams.And the teams backers undeniably have the resources to potentially allow even more to be spent. French sport retailer Decathlons presence is worldwide, with yearly profits of around 800 million. Given the brand wants to push its in-house Van Rysel bikes and clothing range, its important to get the exposure that comes with a top WorldTour team. Just look at Colnago, the bike supplier of UAE, which has been given a shot in the arm profit-wise from its association with Pogaar, with reports suggesting a tripling in turnover since the Slovenians first Tour victory in 2020.As for CMA CGM, the teams new co-sponsor, the Marseille-based firm also has bucketloads of cash. A shipping and logistics company with a presence in the French media, the company boasts yearly revenue in the billions. CMA GCM are moving into sports marketing more often now as well, having acted as the shirt sponsor for French football team Olympique de Marseille. As sponsors go, the pair arent short of cash, so we could expect the team to expect some further cash injections in the years to come, especially if theres a chance of producing Frances next yellow jersey winner.A hopeful futureXavier PereyronIt might seem outlandish to call Decathlon-CMA CGM a superteam currently, but it seems clear that that is the target the team is aiming for.Decathlon seem to be following a similar narrative to that of UAE Team Emirates XRG during the late 2010s and early 2020s, when they started to sign up young talent and marquee riders outside of their usual Italian talent pool. Just like UAE, Decathlon are well underway in internationalising and welcoming riders and staff from across the globe. This boost in personnel has translated into real results, which should pave the way for another top five finish in the UCI rankings.Alongside this globalisation and change of results fortune, big bucks will propel Decathlon-CMA CGM towards the level of UAE Team Emirates XRG and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe. In the traditional cycling market of France, the squads improving fortunes make for a strong narrative to lure in future investors.If they were to win the Tour de France with Seixas, the teams momentum could become formidable. As we saw with UAE following Pogaars first Tour triumph, success in cyclings biggest race brings with it the status and cash to bring in top-class support riders. As such, if Seixas were to become the first Frenchman to win the Tour since Bernard Hinault in 1985, it could be the final piece of the puzzle that cements Decathlon-CMA CGMs superteam status. What do you think?Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.The post Are Decathlon-CMA CGM cyclings new superteam in waiting? appeared first on Cyclist.

Stage 4 of the UAE Tour delivered another bunch sprint, albeit one that was harder to reach due to the breakaway that held its own throughout the stage and threatened to take the stage win. Everyone at Lidl-Trek had to work to get the win, including its GC rider Derek Gee; but Jonathan Milan deliver...

MAAP is a brand known for its collaborations. Typically, these collabs are with other cycling brands, or at least industry-adjacent brands.But, sometimes, it isnt, much like this current collaboration with Perks and Mini, aka P.A.M. And, it is actually MAAPs fourth time working with P.A.M. The Australian brand formed in 2000 by fashion designers Shauna Toohey and Misha Hollenbach. Since its origins, P.A.M. has pushed its boundaries, growing into an international brand focused on creativity across fashion, art, music, and beyondTo be honest, its a lot of current fashion stuff, and Im realizing that Im too old to understand it. But I do understand cycling, so here we go.MAAP X P.A.M. Collaboration: PAAM IV: Outer TerrestrialDubbed the PAAM IV: Outer Terrestrial collection, this is MAAPs fourth collaboration with P.A.M. This time, the design is a nod to outer space and astral light, inviting riders to push beyond the familiar until the earth morphs with alien vitality, and to be guided by the unknown.So, it kinda looks like galaxies and starlight and nebulae and other space stuff. P.A.M. brought its psy-activited style and aesthetic to the table, while MAAP brought their elite-level technical fabric. The combo is high-performance funky.The PAAM IV: Outer Terrestrial collection is a mix of performance cycling gear and off-the-bike casual clothing. It takes established and proven products from MAAP and gives them the outerspace P.A.M. twist.On the BikePro Air Jersey 3.0: This is an iconic piece of kit from MAAP at just 110g. Main Body: 89% recycled polyester, 11% elastane // Sleeves: 96% recycled polyester, 4% elastane // Side Panel: 94% recycled polyester, 6% elastane. P.A.M.s twist on the Pro Air Jersey 3.0 is a Violet Cosmos or Black and Glow Lime colorway.Team Bib Evo Cargo: Another ultra-light product from MAAP, weighing just 260g. The bibs are designed for warm riding conditions and are made from polyamide (80%) and elastane (20%). For the collab, they will use this classic bib, but with new graphics to reflect the MAAP x P.A.M. partnership.Air Mesh LS Tee: The Air Mesh LS Tee offers a more relaxed fit while still delivering high performance. Weighing just 130g, the tee is made from 94% polyester and 6% elastane and serves as a second skin of sorts. A pink-and-black nebula swirls on the shirt, with MAAP x P.A.M. logos incorporated.Wind Jacket: A new product for MAAP, developed as a result of the collaboration. While details arent yet released about it, they say the jacket serves as a protective layer in toxic Glow Lime to shield against atmospheric interference.Off the BikeMAAP and P.A.M. also created apparel for when youre done riding. From shorts and shirts to a hoodie, all carry the same cosmos theme in White/Violet and Black/Glow Lime colorways.They will also have hats, socks, bottles, and small bags (musettes?) in the PAAM IV: Outer Terrestrial lineup.See sizes, prices, and all the details at maap.cc or perksandmini.com.The post MAAP & Australian Cult Fashion Label P.A.M for an Out of This World PAAM IV Collab appeared first on Bikerumor.

A day with three different menus. The United Arab Emirates, the Algarve and Andalucia gave us almost eight hours of cycling, full of nuances,suspense and excitement right up to the final pedal strokes. Lets start in the Middle East. Todays stage at the UAE Tour was flat. Flat but tough. 2,360 met...

Jonathan Milan (Lidl Trek) won stage 4 of UAE Tour into Fujairah in a bunch sprint, taking victory from Ethan Vernon (NSN Cycling Team) led out by Irelands Ryan Mullen. The stage winners kid brother, Matteo Milan (Groupama-FDJ United), was 3rd on a day of no change in the overall. However, while Milan emerged []

The second stage of the 2026 Volta ao Algarve delivered the expected show on its final climb to Fia with Paul Seixas victorious ahead of Juan Ayuso and Joao Almeida. Heading into tomorrow's time trial, the trio sport a healthy advantage over their GC rivals with only Oscar Onley and Matthew Riccite...

Team GB's Anna Morris also among winners on day one in Manchester

Comment & Analysis: Yesterday, it was the bus drivers unions turn to call for mandatory high-vis for cyclists. But I just have to ask: Where do people think this stops? The data doesnt align with much of what some people are talking about. A catch-up for anybody not following: After a backlash, the Government backtracked on the idea of making helmets and high-vis a requirement for all cyclists, but they still seem to be considering such regulations for pedal-assisted bicycles, which are currently treated as bicycles under Irish and EU law. These devices are what the Department of Transport calls e-bikes, the type where the motor cuts out helping at 25km/h. Anyway, yesterday on Newstalk Breakfast, Thomas OConnor, assistant general secretary with the National Bus and Railworkers Union, starts to talk about a proliferation of faster e-bikes and scooters but listioning again, I get the feeling hes not talking about the e-bikes which are legally viewed as cyclists or e-scooters which are capped at 20km/h. These bicycle-shaped objects, where the motor does not cut out at 25km/h, and e-scooters, which can go faster than 20km/h, are devices that are, in the main, illegal. So, if the devices can be taken off the road today, thats the enforcement that should happen, not add a high-vis or helmet requirement to something that is being illegally used. Theres a huge problem with much of the recent road safety debate: Vagueness and people muddying the waters. Again, to be clear: People using bicycle-shaped objects are not cyclists. They are not using bicycles. But in another type of vagueness, Newstalk Breakfast presenter and petrol head Anton Savage said: When you drill into the RSAs numbers in respect of road deaths, if you look at pedestrian deaths, I think something to the order of 98% of pedestrians who are killed were not wearing high-vis clothing at the time of their death. And I assume the same kind of number applies with cyclists.This seems to be from the RSA document Pedestrian Fatalities on Irish Roads: Examining 2008-2015, which contains the following:HI-VIS WEARING AFTER DARK (n = 96)98% were not wearing high-visibility clothing.But a minority of pedestrian deaths and serious injuries seem to be related to visibility I say and serious injuries because we should not just be concerned with deaths. But I say seem to because the RSA are dreaful at providing clear information, and there are cases where victim groups have had to shame them into stopping using misleading data. Among pedestrians killed after dark, many were killed in cases where visibility was good, and in others, there was an overriding other factor, such as the driver being drunk. This is partly why I think the RSA are afraid of its data being fully released: it could make it clear just how poorly the organisation handles data. While the RSA was heavily involved in illegally making the Public Services Card mandatory for driving lessons, a move that was against data protection law, the RSA was also in an unconnected, protracted battle where it basically used privacy as a reason to refuse to release crash data even to local authorities who are responsible for making roads safer.The claim that privacy concerns blocked the release of road-safety data was challenged by several privacy experts. This kind of thing is why many people would like to see the RSA abolished.But even without comprehensive data, theres enough to say that many people on foot are killed at night doing things that most people would expect them to be doing without wearing high-vis. For example, going out to dinner, crossing a road to a shop, crossing a road to get to your parked car, etc.Im saying this because when we talk about high-vis for pedestrians, a lot of people conjure up an image of people walking on dark country roads with no light or visibility aid. Just like they do with cyclists, when people are cycling are already required to have decent lights after dark.Its worth putting this in context: the RSA has spent at least 16 years in offices in Ballina, Co Mayo. These offices are in the urban area, and only a stones throw from the train station. But there are two gaps in the footpath to its offices. But to make matters worse, the pedestrian gates at the entrance to the business park where its HQ is located have been locked and welded shut all this time. Meanwhile, this is an unrealistic pledge that the orgination it getting 2nd class children and their parents to sign up to: Thats right, the RSA thinks children going out to play in estates or at the playground should be wearing high-vis.If you dont see the problem with this level of overuse of prescribing high-vis: As a quick explainer: Theres already victim-blaming for people cycling without high-vis and helmets, even in cases where visibility is good, and people did not suffer head injuries. Next up on this victim-blaming is quite likely children in their housing estates or walking and cycling anywhere. The main article image is from an RSA pack for Road safety education for pre-school children, which seems to suggest that high-vis is not needed generally, but just when its raining. The RSA is one confused mess.The actual data?A more recent RSA report on pedestrian deaths and serious injuries outlines that most collisions where there were serious injuries were in daylight. Serious injuries shown here differ somewhat from deaths alone. Again, the RSA is poor at providing full breakdowns.Note: Darkness does not mean poor light; somebody can still be hit on a really well-lit zebra crossing, and itll still be counted as the hours of darkness. The link to the data table does not include a breakdown of lighting conditions.Thanks to road safety campaigner Ciarn Ferrie, who started tracking active travel deaths, we can see that in collisions where pedestrians were killed in 2025, the majority occurred in daylight or with street light present (three unknowns excluded): While the lighting conditions of people who were killed when cycling were more clear-cut, with the vast majority being in daylight and the remainder in streetlight:Note: To draw proper conclusions, we should be looking at wider data than just one year, and we need to consider whether drivers had working lights, whether the bicycles involved had working lights, and whether there were other factors, such as the motorist looking at a screen. We could do this for, say, two years or so in the past, or whatever timeframe is needed to allow the legal system to do its work first. But the RSA seem to have no interest in much beyond providing wafer-thin amounts of data. This was supposed to be at least partly resolved by a strong level of reform at the RSA, including splitting up its functions, which the current Government has U-turned on.

Before the era of short-fit saddles, the super long and flat Fizik Arione stood out in the pro peloton, offering racers the ability to move around a lot on the bike to optimize their position for either power output or aerodynamics. Now the Italian saddle maker has reimagined a new Arione that is more versatile than ever, and packed with the latest tech. From a basic 99 version with steel rails, up to the 299 with 3D-printed padding and full carbon construction, all feature a unique new rail design with massive fore-aft adjustment.Fizik Arione reimagines the classic long, flat road saddle(Photos/Fizik)First debuted in 2003, the Arione was 30cm long to max out what was allowed in the UCIs measurement jig. With its extra-long & narrow flat top, racers loved being able to move around a lot on the saddle. Now, reimagined for an era of modern road & gravel cycling, the new Fizik Arione saddle is not quite as long as the original now a more reasonably long 284mm. Nor is it as narrow as my old 125mm Arion R1 was now offered in 135mm & 145mm widths that are a more ergonomic sit bone fit for most riders. What else is new?But besides a revived shape with a centimeter shorter nose, the big design change is a unique new rail construction for improved fore-aft adjustment.Once again, Arione pushes the UCI rules to the limit. Arione is equipped with a new revolutionary rail insertion that unlocks a more aero/aggressive position than its competitors. Instead of the rails curving back to meet the shell, thus creating limits to the adjustment. The new Arione has a vertical join to the saddle, which allows the user to move it as far forward as possible, thus allowing the saddle to be set to the limit necessary to achieve the ideal forward position to beat the wind.Tech details & optionsR1 Adaptive, R1 Light, R3 Adaptive, R3 & R5 (l-r)As always, the new Fizik Arione comes in a wide range of options to suit lot s of different riders, and varying budgets.long flat kite-shaped road bike saddlepressure-relief cutout in conventionally padded versions3D-printed zonal padding support in Adaptive models, with low-density pressure-relief central zone284mm long x 135mm or 145mm wideavailable with 3D-printed adaptive padding, lightweight EVA, or traditional polyurethane foam paddingcarbon reinforced nylon shell at all levels R1, R3 & R5 (no full carbon R0, at least not yet)available with R1 7x9mm carbon rails, R3 K:ium hollow titanium & R5 S-alloy steel railsall include direct mounts for a triathlon-style 15 Aeris Link water bottle cage, as well as other accessories in the futureFizik Arione Pricing, availability & optionsR5R3The revamped Fizik Arione road saddle is available in five models, each in both 135mm & 145mm widths. The Fizik Vento Arione R5 is the most affordable at $120 / 99 with steel rails and regular PU padding (229g & 237g claimed). Next up is the Arione R3 at $175 / 149 upgraded to titanium alloy rails to save a tiny bit of weight (223g & 228g claimed).Sharing the same ti rails, theres also a$290 / 259 Arione R3 Adaptive version that upgrades to variable-density 3D-printed TPU padding for extra comfort and even lighter weight (214g & 219g claimed).Then, at the top tier, there are two R1 versions with lightweight 7x9mm oval carbon rails. First is the $230 / 199 Fizik Vento Arione R1 Light with the ultralight injection-molded EVA foam padding that also forms the smooth top cover of the saddle, at a claimed 147g & 152g, making it the absolute lightest of the new Arione family.Or theres the even fancier Fizik Vento Arione R1Adaptive at $330 / 299 that prioritizes comfort with its 3D-printed padding at claimed weights of just 184g & 190g for the two widths.All 10 saddles are made in Italy and available now through regular Fizik dealers.Fizik.comThe post The Long, Flat Fizik Arione Road Saddle Is Back with Extra Adjustment & New 3D Tech appeared first on Bikerumor.

Team Red Bull - BORA - hansgrohe has undergone a turbulent development in last few seasons and it feels like Daniel Martnez was a bit spat out by the rapid recyclation of GC riders with the aim to find the chosen one who will win the team the desired Tour de France. However we shouldn't forget that...