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Tour de France bikes 2024: who’s riding what?

All the bikes and tech on display at the 2024 Tour De France

Paul Norman

The 2024 Tour de France starts on 29 June in Florence, making a loop through Cesenatico, home of 1998 winner Marco Pantani before heading to France.

This year’s route is unusual, looping anticlockwise past Paris before crossing the Pyrenees and finishing after 3,493km in Nice.

There are two time trials – 25.3km on stage 7 in Burgundy and the final 33.7km stage from Monaco to Nice, which will see the riders on their fast, specialist equipment. 

As usual, there’s some very flashy tech on show throughout the race and we can expect more to be announced in the run-up to the Grand Depart. This will probably include Trek’s new skinny-tubed Madone look-alike, the unreleased updated Pinarello Dogma F and the refreshed Canyon Aeroad .

More will certainly be unearthed by the sharp-eyed tech nerds at BikeRadar as the race proceeds.

Read on for a complete list of the bikes in this year’s Tour de France, along with the components they’re fitted with and our pick of some of the new bikes and tech to keep an eye out for.

Tour de France 2024 bike brands

The 2024 Tour de France peloton consists of 22 teams of eight, making 176 riders in total.

The 18 WorldTour squads receive an automatic invitation to compete, while four second-tier Pro Continental teams receive a wildcard invitation. Between them, 19 bike brands are represented. 

New brands this year are ENVE with its Melee, which costs over £10,000 in a consumer build with Ultegra. This is ridden by Team TotalEnergies.

Van Rysel's £9,000 RCR Pro bike – the most affordable in the pro peloton – is used by Decathlon-AG2R. 

A notable leaver is Lapierre, which had been a feature of top-level men’s cycling for 22 years. Its place as bike provider to the Groupama-FDJ team has been taken by Wilier, now one of three brands to sponsor two teams, along with Specialized and Canyon.

Lotto-Dstny has changed from Ridley to Orbea bikes this year.

Bike brands represented at the 2024 Tour de France:

• Bianchi: Arkéa-B&B Hotels
• Cannondale: EF Education-EasyPost
• Canyon: Alpecin-Deceuninck, Movistar Team
• Cervélo: Visma-Lease a Bike
• Colnago: UAE Team Emirates 
• Cube: Intermarché-Wanty
• Dare: Uno-X Mobility
• ENVE: Team TotalEnergies
• Factor: Israel-Premier Tech
• Giant: Team Jayco-AlUla
• Look: Cofidis
• Merida: Bahrain Victorious
• Pinarello: Ineos Grenadiers
• Orbea: Lotto-Dstny
• Scott: Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL
• Specialized: Bora-Hansgrohe, Soudal-QuickStep
• Trek: Lidl-Trek
• Van Rysel: Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale
• Wilier Triestina: Astana-Qazaqstan, Groupama-FDJ

What’s new in tech?

The all-rounder reigns.

While a few years ago, many teams had a separate aero bike for flat stages, then climbed on a lightweight bike when the road pointed uphill, most teams now have one bike for all stages. 

Lightweight bikes are now almost as aero as the aero bikes of a few years ago. In some cases, such as the Cannondale SuperSix, they're claimed to be more so.

With most pro bikes close to the 6.8kg UCI bike weight limit , there’s no reason to have a separate climbing bike, so one bike can now do it all.

No Campagnolo

Campagnolo has been a feature of the Tour for almost 100 years, but in the last few the number of teams using its groupsets has dwindled. Last year, there was one, this year there are none.  

That means all teams at the 2024 Tour de France will use Shimano Dura-Ace or the latest SRAM Red AXS groupset on their bikes. 

There are no wheels from Campagnolo or its Fulcrum companion brand either.  

Will Campagnolo return to the pro peloton? Time will tell, but for now, its momentum appears to be in gravel, with a new second-tier Ekar GT groupset joining the original Ekar in February.

1x will become even more important

The first outing of single-chainring only bikes on the race circuit a few years ago with Aqua Blue Sport ended unhappily, but 1x hasn’t died in the pro peloton.

Jonas Vingegaard rode a 1x bike on two road stages of last year’s Tour and there have been several other notable instances of riders using the tech – not least Primoz Roglič, when he won the penultimate-stage time trial at the 2023 Giro d’Italia to clinch the overall victory. 

Will 1x go mainstream at the Tour? For pro riders, a major issue is the potentially larger jumps between gear ratios than with a 2x setup.

The increasing number of sprockets available makes this less of a problem though, with 12-speed cassettes providing one- or two-tooth jumps between the most-used ratios.

Now, a new 13-speed SRAM Red XPLR groupset has been spotted on gravel bikes ridden at Unbound. Having 13 ratios to choose from could help to increase acceptance of 1x setups in the Tour, with their simplicity, aero benefits and lower weight making them attractive.

Riders will take risks with tyre choices

As with disc brakes, it’s taken a while for the pros to see the benefits of tubeless tyres . But almost all teams have now swapped to these from glued-on tubular.

While inopportune flats were a fact of life with tubs, the sealant in tubeless tyres provides some protection to help keep you riding. Wheel and bike changes with thru-axles have become much slicker too.

That looks to have led some riders to swap to lightweight time trial tyres in place of their sponsors’ standard road tyres at the 2023 Tour. At the expense of reduced puncture resistance, most time trial tyres are lighter and faster-rolling than their road equivalents. We expect more riders to follow suit this year.

Tour de France 2024 bikes

All 18 WorldTour teams ride the Tour de France and every one of them gets the pick of the best bikes from their sponsors’ ranges. That includes all teams using 12-speed wireless/semi-wireless electronic groupsets on their road bikes and a choice of top-spec carbon wheels.

The invited Pro Continental teams (Israel-Premier Tech, Lotto-Dstny, TotalEnergies, Uno-X Mobility) too are on top-spec bikes and equipment – there’s no second-best here.

Alpecin-Deceuninck (ADC)

• Bikes: Canyon Aeroad CFR / Speedmax CFR Disc (TT)
• Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace
• Wheels: Shimano
• Finishing kit: Canyon, Shimano, Vittoria, Selle Italia, Elite, Wahoo

Arkéa-B&B Hotels (ARK)

• Bikes: Bianchi Specialissima RC / Oltre RC / Aquila (TT)
• Wheels: Vision
• Finishing kit: Bianchi, Continental, Selle Italia, Elite, Wahoo

Astana-Qazaqstan (AST)

• Bikes: Wilier Triestina Filante SLR / 0 SLR / Turbine (TT)
• Finishing kit: Wilier, Look, Vittoria, Prologo, Tacx, Garmin

Bahrain Victorious (TBV)

• Bikes: Merida Scultura Disc Team / Reacto Disc Team / Time Warp (TT)
• Wheels: Vision Metron
• Finishing kit: FSA/Vision, Continental, Prologo, Elite, Garmin

Bora-Hansgrohe (BOH)

• Bikes: Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8 / Shiv (TT)
• Groupset: SRAM Red AXS
• Wheels: Roval
• Finishing kit: Roval, Specialized, Hammerhead

Cofidis (COF)

• Bikes: Look 795 Blade RS / 796 Monoblade RS (TT)
• Wheels: Corima
• Finishing kit: Look, SRM, Michelin, Selle Italia, Elite, Wahoo

Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale Team (DAT)

• Bikes: Van Rysel RCR Pro / XCR (TT)
• Wheels: Swiss Side Hadron 2 Ultimate
• Finishing kit: Deda, Look, Continental, Fizik, Elite, Wahoo

EF Education-EasyPost (EFE)

• Bikes: Cannondale SuperSix EVO LAB71 / SuperSlice (TT)
• Finishing kit: FSA/Vision, Wahoo Speedplay, Vittoria, Prologo, Elite, Wahoo

Groupama-FDJ (GFC)

• Bikes: Wilier Filante SLR / 0 SLR / Turbine (TT)
• Wheels: Shimano Dura-Ace
• Finishing kit: Wilier, Continental, Prologo, Elite, Garmin

Ineos Grenadiers (IGD)

• Bikes: Pinarello Dogma F / Bolide (TT)
• Wheels: Shimano Dura-Ace / Princeton CarbonWorks
• Finishing kit: MOST, Continental, Prologo, Elite, Garmin

Intermarché-Wanty (IWA)

• Bikes: Cube Litening C:68X Pro / Aerium (TT)
• Wheels: Newmen Advanced SL
• Finishing kit: Cube, Look, Continental, Prologo, Elite, CeramicSpeed, Bryton

Israel-Premier Tech (IPT)

• Bikes: Factor Ostro VAM / Hanzo (TT)
• Groupset: Shimano Dura-Ace/FSA chainset
• Wheels: Black Inc
• Finishing kit: Black Inc, Rotor, Continental, Selle Italia, CeramicSpeed, SwissStop, Elite, Hammerhead

Lidl-Trek (LTK)

• Bikes: Trek Émonda SLR / Madone SLR / Speed Concept (TT)
• Wheels: Bontrager Aeolus
• Finishing kit: Bontrager, Time, Pirelli, Wahoo

Lotto-Dstny (LTD)

• Bikes: Orbea Orca Aero, Orca / Ordu (TT)
• Wheels: Oquo
• Finishing kit: Vision, Vittoria, Selle Italia, Tacx, Lizard Skins, Garmin

Movistar Team (MOV)

• Bikes: Canyon Aeroad CFR / Speedmax CF SLX (TT)
• Wheels: Zipp
• Finishing kit: Canyon, Time, Continental, Fizik, Lizard Skins, Garmin

Soudal-QuickStep (SOQ)

• Bikes: Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8 / Roubaix / Shiv (TT)
• Finishing kit: Roval, Specialized, CeramicSpeed, Tacx, Supercaz, Garmin

Team DSM-Firmenich PostNL (DFP)

• Bikes: Scott Foil RC / Plasma 5 (TT)
• Finishing kit: Syncros, Vittoria, Elite, Wahoo

Team Jayco-AlUla (JAY)

• Bikes: Giant Propel Advanced SL Disc / TCR Advanced SL Disc / Trinity Advanced Pro (TT)
• Wheels: Cadex 36, 42, 65
• Finishing kit: Cadex, Giant

Team Visma-Lease a Bike (TVL)

• Bikes: Cervélo R5 Disc / S5 / P5 (TT)
• Wheels: Reserve 52/63
• Finishing kit: Cervélo, Wahoo Speedplay, Vittoria, Fizik, Tacx, Garmin

TotalEnergies (TEN)

• Bikes: ENVE Melee / Specialized Shiv (TT)
• Wheels: ENVE
• Finishing kit: ENVE, Selle Italia, Continental, Tacx, Garmin

UAE Team Emirates (UAD)

• Bikes: Colnago V4Rs / TT1 (TT)
• Finishing kit: Colnago, Continental, Prologo, Elite, Wahoo

Uno-X Mobility (UXM)

• Bikes : Dare VSRu / TSRf (TT)
• Wheels: DT Swiss
• Finishing kit: Dare, Schwalbe, Pro, CeramicSpeed, Elite, Garmin

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Tour de France 2022 – Comprehensive team-by-team guide

All you need to know about the team lineups, from the contenders to the riders that could surprise

From AG2R Citroën through to UAE Team Emirates, this is a complete team-by-team guide of all 22 squads and 176 riders taking part in in the 2022 Tour de France , which starts in Copenhagen on Friday, July 1.

All 18 WorldTour teams and the best-ranked ProTeam, Alpecin-Fenix, are automatically invited to the Tour de France this year. Organisers ASO have also designated wildcards to three more French ProTeams: B&B Hotels-KTM, Arkéa-Samsic and TotalEnergies.

Pre-race objectives vary enormously for each Tour team and their respective eight-man rosters reflect that. Some, like Tadej Pogačar ’s UAE Team Emirates and Ineos Grenadiers, are looking for a top general classification result. Others, like Israel Premier-Tech and DSM, are more focused on stage victories. Yet others will be trying for bunch sprints, secondary classifications, time trials or just placing riders in as many breakaways as possible. And some, like Jumbo-Visma, have multiple goals that combine some or all of these possible targets.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that teams’ goals can vary enormously once the Tour is underway and unforeseen developments, like illnesses, abandons or major changes in the GC ranking, affect the race. But there is one factor in common: the Tour de France is the biggest bike race in the world and nobody wants to watch the sun set over the Champs-Elysées on the evening of July 24 without some kind of success in the previous three weeks to their name.

There are plenty of famous faces, in-form riders and new names to watch and discover. We have analysed every team, picking out their leaders and predicting each squad’s hopes and objectives.

For everything else you need to know, read our complete preview of the Tour de France 2022 and our guide on how to watch the race .

AG2R Citroën Team

Team leader: Ben O'Connor Objective: GC and stage wins Rider to watch: Bob Jungels

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The French team return for their 29th Tour de France and set out targeting a third podium finish in nine years through Ben O'Connor . The Australian was a pick-up punt at the end of the 2020 transfer market but has been a resounding success at AG2R, finishing fourth at last year's Tour and quickly becoming their focal point with a new three-year contract.

Expectations were raised but O'Connor, who has had an inconsistent career, showed it was no flash in the pan and has only strengthened his status in the build-up to this Tour. At the Dauphiné, he was the clear 'best of the rest' behind the Jumbo-Visma duo of Primož Roglič and Jonas Vingegaard. With Tadej Pogačar and Ineos Grenadiers also to enter the equation, the podium is a tall order but not out of the question. 

AG2R's squad will support O'Connor but not ignore the prospect of stage wins. Oliver Naesen will be O'Connor's henchman on the flat, in the wind, and especially on the cobbles on stage 5. Likewise Geoffrey Bouchard in the mountains, while Aurelien Paret-Peintre is more of a last-man and back-up GC rider.

The punchy Benoît Cosnefroy will look to attack wherever possible and it's worth keeping an eye on Bob Jungels, whose performance at the Tour de Suisse suggested he could be on his way back to his best after two difficult years of injury. 

Full line-up: Ben O'Connor, Geoffrey Bouchard, Michael Cherel, Benoit Cosnefroy, Stan Dewulf, Oliver Naesen, Aurélien Paret-Peintre, Bob Jungels

Alpecin-Fenix

Team leaders: Jasper Philipsen, Mathieu van der Poel Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: The leaders

The Belgian team make their second Tour de France appearance after last year's blistering debut that saw Mathieu van der Poel win two stages and wear the yellow jersey, plus another stage win for Tim Merlier. It would have been the perfect Tour had Jasper Philipsen converted one of several near misses. 

Philipsen has been given the nod over Merlier for the sole sprinter's slot, and he'll be given a solid lead-out service. That could even include Van der Poel, who set up Merlier's win last year and has ruled himself out of any bid for the green jersey. But while Philipsen is the nominated man for the flat stages, Van der Poel is the star of the team and capable of shining wherever he feels like it.

The cobbled day on stage 5 stands out, as do punchy finishes at Longwy and Lausanne in the first half of the race, while hilly and mountainous breakaways are on the cards and even a shout at the opening time trial in Copenhagen. 

Elsewhere, Alexander Krieger will have extra lead-out responsibility in the absence of the injured Jonas Rickaert, while the likes of Silvan Dillier and Michael Gogl provide horsepower on the flat and rolling terrain.

Full line-up: Mathieu van der Poel, Jasper Philipsen, Michael Gogl, Alexander Krieger, Silvan Dillier, Kristian Sbaragli, Edward Planckaert, Guillaume Van Keirsbulck.

Bahrain Victorious

Team leaders: Jack Haig, Damiano Caruso Objective: GC, stage wins Rider to watch: Matej Mohorič

The Bahrain Victorious team ride the Tour on the back of an eventful appearance last year. They won three stages and the teams classification last year, but also saw their hotel raided by French police in an anti-doping operation.

Matej Mohorič , winner of two of those stages last year, returns as a formidable breakaway threat on the undulating days, while Dylan Teuns can do the same on the more mountainous stuff, as he did into Le Grand Bornand last year.

Meanwhile, they return with bolstered GC ambitions after Jack Haig crashed out with a broken collarbone on stage 3 last year. The Australian returns to the fold but does so alongside Damiano Caruso, who shed off his career-long domestique status with his 2021 Giro podium and has seamlessly settled into leadership life ever since. 

Caruso finished fourth and Haig fifth at the recent Critérium du Dauphiné and both go in on a similar level, in the bracket of riders looking for the top-five and maybe even the podium. They don't have quite the climbing team sent to accompany Mikel Landa at the Giro but the pair can quietly have their say. 

Full line-up: Damiano Caruso, Jack Haig, Matej Mohoric, Luis Leon Sanchez, Dylan Teuns, Jan Tratnik, Fred Wright, Kamil Gradek

BikeExchange-Jayco

Team leaders: Dylan Groenewegen Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Michael Matthews

The identity of the Australian team has chopped and changed over the past decade, from happy-go-lucky stage hunters to GC team. For this Tour, they're a sprint outfit, led by Dylan Groenewegen and with serious resources devoted to his success. 

Things might have been a little different had Simon Yates recovered more quickly from the knee injury that wrecked his Giro d'Italia. In his absence, Nick Schultz is the only rider who gives the team a real presence in the mountains.

Groenewegen won four stages of the Tour during his time at Jumbo-Visma and signed for BikeExchange following his ban for the crash involving Fabio Jakobsen at the 2020 Tour de Pologne. He has won five times this season and, even though they've all been in lower-level races, there's a real conviction among the management that he can deliver at the Tour. Luka Mezgec will be his lead-out man, while Jack Bauer, Amund Grondahl Jansen and Luke Durbridge are all capable of mucking in. 

That leaves Michael Matthews feeding off scraps. Once a surefire green jersey contender, the Australian's win rate has dipped dramatically in the past few years. He'll get his chance on the hillier days where Groenewegen gets dropped but will otherwise have to carve out his opportunities in the breakaways. 

Full line-up: Dylan Groenwegen, Michael Matthews, Luka Mezgec, Nick Schultz, Luke Durbridge, Jack Bauer, Amund Grondahl Jansen, Chris Juul-Jensen

Bora-Hansgrohe

Team leaders: Aleksandr Vlasov Objective: GC and stage wins Rider to watch: Max Schachmann

Fresh off their victory at the Giro d'Italia, Bora-Hansgrohe head into the Tour de France with a sharpened focus on the overall classification. That means there's no room for sprinter Sam Bennett , the Irishman who won the green jersey in 2020. Bennett returned to the team this year but has struggled for form and has been deemed surplus to requirements. 

That means the team are getting fully behind Aleksandr Vlasov , who is a legitimate contender for the final podium. 

Vlasov had to leave the recent Tour de Suisse with COVID-19. A lot will depend on how badly he was affected, and how much of his preparation training load has been written off. If fully fit, he's seen by many of his rivals as a podium threat, just below the Pogačar, Roglič, Vingegaard trio in the overall hierarchy. At 26, he's really started to hit his stride this season, with stage race victories at Tour de Romandie and Volta a Catalunya, a podium at Basque Country and a sense of 'what might have been' at Suisse. 

Patrick Konrad and Felix Großschartner provide the climbing support. Lennard Kämna, for all the attention garnered by his turn for Jai Hindley when dropping Richard Carapaz at the Giro, is more of a lone breakaway hunter. Max Schachmann is an all-rounder who can go deep into the mountains but also shine on many stages himself, while Nils Politt is a Classics-style rider for the transition-day breaks. 

Interestingly, Bennett's lead-out man Danny van Poppel has made the cut and could get involved in the sprints instead, with Marco Haller bumped up the lead-out train.

Full line-up: Aleksandr Vlasov, Max Schachmann, Danny van Poppel, Patrick Konrad, Felix Grosschartner, Nils Politt, Marco Haller, Lennard Kamna

B&B Hotels-KTM

Team leaders: Pierre Rolland Objective: Breakaways Rider to watch : Franck Bonnamour

The French team set up by Jérôme Pineau have had a trying season, with question marks over the spirit in the camp. They go into this Tour without an obvious source of success, with no GC outsider and no real sprint option after Bryan Coquard moved to Cofidis. Instead, it's all about the breakaways, and it'd be surprising to seem them miss one between now and the end of July. 

Pierre Rolland won the polka-dot jersey at the recent Dauphiné and will surely be out for more of the same from the start of the race. The Frenchman was top 10 with stage wins at the 2011 and 2012 Tours and, having hinted at retirement, will want to make the most and satisfy the fans' desire for attacks. 

Elsewhere, Franck Bonnamour was awarded the 'super-combativity' prize for his constant breakaway efforts at last year's Tour, and this year while he's looking to stay aggressive the plan is to bring in a more targeted approach by taking on the stages where there is a real chance of success. Alexis Gougeard is also never shy when it comes to a break.

Full line-up: Cyril Barthe, Franck Bonnamour, Alexis Gougeard, Jérémy Lecroq, Cyril Lemoine, Luca Mozzato, Pierre Rolland, Sebastian Schonberger

Team leaders: Guillaume Martin, Bryan Coquard Objective: GC, stage wins Rider to watch: Victor Lafay

The French team clock up their 26th Tour de France appearance, but do so looking to scratch a long and uncomfortable itch. They have not won a stage since 2008. For a respected French team, it's not ideal, especially now they're back in the WorldTour. 

The team are led by the familiar figure of Guillaume Martin , the French philosopher having earned a reputation as a 'yo-yo' man. In his recent Grand Tour appearances he has lost time in the mountains but gained it back by slipping into breakaways, and the only thing stopping him doing that here is if he decides that, after doing the Giro d'Italia, he should focus squarely on stage wins. 

Elsewhere, Ion Izaguirre is a former stage winner and quality campaigner while 26-year-old Frenchman Victor Lafay is an up-and-coming puncher who has come close to a few wins this year and could spring a surprise. 

Pierre-Luc Perichon gets the late call-up to replace sprinter Bryan Coquard, who tested positive for COVID-19.

Full line-up: Guillaume Martin, Ion Izagirre, Simon Geschke, Victor Lafay, Anthony Perez, Benjamin Thomas, Max Walscheid, Pierre-Luc Perichon

EF Education-EasyPost

Team leader: Rigoberto Urán Objective: GC and Stage wins Rider to watch: Alberto Bettiol

Rigoberto Urán has had a slow 2022, scoring a solitary top-10 finish at Itzulia Basque country – where he edged into a paltry 10th on stage 3, and 10th in the GC. It’s not a result that will put him on the radar of the Tour de France’s major GC contenders. Nonetheless, the veteran Colombian remains the highest pedigree climber and the most proven GC campaigner in the EF Education-EasyPost squad, and will likely enter the race as team leader. 

He has company, though. With his fourth place finish at the Tour de Suisse, Neilson Powless could have the potential to crack into the top 10 in the GC, while Ruben Guerreiro showed a decent level at the Dauphiné and an even higher one to win the Ventoux Challenge.

Despite some GC potential, we expect EF Education-EasyPost will be primarily hunting stage wins at this year’s Tour, where breakaways will probably offer the best opportunities. After Alberto Bettiol’s stage victory at last year’s Giro d’Italia, he’s certainly a dangerous rider when in an escape, and will be one to watch on the Tour’s more sedate transition stages.

While Magnus Cort hasn’t made much of a dent in 2022, after his three stage wins at last year’s Vuelta the puncheur will certainly have a Tour stage win on his bucket list, and in the right conditions every chance of getting one.

Finally, Stefan Bissegger is one of only a few riders with a chance of upsetting Filippo Ganna in the Copenhagen time trial.

Full line-up: Rigoberto Urán, Neilson Powless, Alberto Bettiol, Magnus Cort, Stefan Bissegger, Ruben Guerreiro, Owain Doull, Jonas Rutsch

Groupama-FDJ

Team leaders: David Gaudu, Thibaut Pinot Objective: GC and stage wins Rider to watch: Stefan Küng

Groupama-FDJ, the long-running French team run by Marc Madiot, unveiled their Tour de France plans at the start of the year and outlined a leadership trio of David Gaudu, Thibaut Pinot, and Michael Storer . At this point, it seems clear that Gaudu is the main man when it comes to the general classification. 

After two troubled years, Pinot has shown signs he's on his way back to his best – not least with his recent stage win at the Tour de Suisse – but he's surely not ready for a yellow jersey challenge. Still, mountain stage wins and, why not, the polka-dot jersey are realistic ambitions. Storer, meanwhile, has had a mixed year since signing from DSM on the back of his brace of stage wins at last year's Vuelta, and perhaps looks more suited to mountain support and stage hunting. 

There's no Arnaud Démare, so no sprint ambitions. Luxury support comes from puncher Valentin Madouas and rouleur Stefan Küng . The latter is the European time trial champion and in with a shout for the opening stage and penultimate stage, but also produced an astounding climbing performance to finish fifth at the recent Tour de Suisse. 

Full line-up: David Gaudu, Thibaut Pinot, Michael Storer, Stefan Küng, Valentin Madouas, Olivier Le Gac, Kevin Geniets, Antoine Duchesne

Ineos Grenadiers

Team leaders: Adam Yates, Dani Martínez, Geraint Thomas Objective : GC and stage wins Rider to watch: Tom Pidcock

Ineos' plans are an area of particular intrigue, and not just because Adam Yates left the Tour de Suisse with COVID-19. Even before that news, there was a sign that they were re-shaping their approach for July. For so long the dominant team with the dominant rider, the British team won seven Tours in eight years but have now run up against a Pogačar-shaped problem. 

With Bernal out due to a long-term injury, they don't have their favourite status of old, with Yates and Martínez drawn together in an open-ended leadership duo. Throw in Geraint Thomas and you have another question mark.

The Welshman has been spoken about as a domestique not even guaranteed of a start but he remains the 2018 Tour winner and, despite lengthy dips in form, has done nothing to suggest he cannot raise his level to a very competitive one when required. He sent that message with victory at the Tour de Suisse and, with Yates' preparation compromised, he has to be part of the leadership conversation, especially with more than 50km of time trialling on the route.

Beyond all that, it appears Ineos may not limit themselves to backing the yellow jersey cause as they have over the past decade. Tom Pidcock and Ethan Hayter are both on the longlist and it's not beyond the realms of possibility that both start. If so, stage wins – and not just those as a byproduct of the GC battle – enter the agenda. Hayter can compete in reduced sprints while Pidcock can do just about anything and his Tour debut would likely not be dull.

Either way, Ineos have spoken about their new adventurous racing style since becoming 'Grenadiers' and we could see it rolled out in the Tour for the first time. 

Full line-up: Geraint Thomas, Dani Martínez, Adam Yates, Tom Pidcock, Dylan van Baarle, Filippo Ganna, Luke Rowe, Jonathan Castroviejo

Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert

Team leaders: Louis Meintjes, Alexander Kristoff Objective: GC, stage wins Rider to watch: Taco van der Hoorn

The Belgian team used to be a second-division outfit and earned three Tour invites thanks to Frenchman Guillaume Martin, who's now with Cofidis. They were widely ridiculed when they took CCC's licence to step up to the WorldTour in 2021, but have looked every inch their top-tier status this year. As such, confidence will be high for the Tour. 

There's no Biniam Girmay, the new superstar of African cycling, but they do have a team that can fight on a number of fronts. Louis Meintjes looks to be on his way back after a few years in the wilderness following his back-to-back top 10s at the 2016 and 2017 Tours. He won the recent Giro dell'Appenino and placed sixth at Tour de Suisse, so could certainly have an impact this July. 

Alexander Kristoff is 34 and has seemingly been fading in recent years but always seems to pop up with big wins, as he did at Scheldeprijs this spring. The Norwegian will lead the line in the sprints, while Quinten Hermans has surprisingly been left out of the squad ahead of an expected transfer to Alpecin next year.

Dutch attacker Taco van der Hoorn could be one to watch. He doesn't take many wins but when they do they're nailbiters from the break – see last year's Giro and the Brussels Cycling Classic three weeks ago.

Full line-up: Alexander Kristoff, Louis Meintjes, Kobe Goossens, Georg Zimmerman, Taco van der Hoorn, Adrien Petit, Andrea Pasqualon, Sven Erik Bystrøm

Israel-Premier Tech

Team leaders: Michael Woods, Jakob Fuglsang Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Chris Froome

Israel-Premier Tech set out on their third Tour de France and in desperate need of having an impact on the race after two relatively anonymous outings. They're very much in the WorldTour relegation battle, but the recent form of Jakob Fuglsang and Michael Woods will give them hope they can shine on the biggest stage of all and lift themselves out of trouble. 

Fuglsang won the recent Classic Alpes-Maritimes and placed third at Tour de Suisse, while Woods finished second at the former and then won the Route d'Occitanie. The pair have both appeared reluctant to go for a GC bid this time around but stage wins are well within their grasp, while the polka-dot jersey will surely become an ambition for one of them. 

Hugo Houle, Krists Neilands, and Simon Clarke comprise a strong and in-form support unit. Chris Froome , meanwhile, is very much the rider to watch. A four-time winner, he has struggled badly since his massive 2019 injury but has shown glimpses of form in recent weeks. He's done enough to earn his spot but we should find out more about whether he might indeed return to his levels of old. 

Guillaume Boivin and Guy Niv got late call-ups to replace the COVID-positive Omer Goldstein and Daryl Impey.

Full line-up: Michael Woods, Jakob Fuglsang, Chris Froome, Krists Neilands, Simon Clarke, Hugo Houle, Guillaume Boivin

Jumbo-Visma

Team Leaders : Primož Roglič, Jonas Vingegaard, Wout Van Aert Objective : Yellow jersey, green jersey Rider to watch: Christophe Laporte

The Dutch team formerly known as Rabobank have joined the very top echelon of world cycling in recent years but are still searching for their first Tour de France victory. They came agonisingly close through Primož Roglič – three-time Vuelta winner – in 2020, and placed second again last year through the revelatory Jonas Vingegaard, who stepped up once Roglič crashed out.

With Tadej Pogačar a dominant double winner, Jumbo have tweaked their approach for 2022, going in with a leadership duo. Both Roglič and Vingegaard underlined their form with a one-two at the recent Dauphiné, but in order to crack Pogačar they'll likely have to play their cards more creatively. How they do so will be one of the most intriguing narratives of the whole Tour. 

On top of all that, Jumbo-Visma also have Wout van Aert to think about. The Belgian star has had to stifle his personal ambitions in recent years but has still managed six stage wins in three editions, on a wide variety of stages to boot. As such, this year he wants to target the points classification. Whether Jumbo can support a green jersey bid as well as two riders going for yellow is another of those central narratives. 

As for the rest of the squad, it's five support riders. Sepp Kuss and Steven Kruijswijk are the mountain men, while Christophe Laporte will be Van Aert's lead-out and right-hand man. Tiesj Benoot will be expected to do a bit for both camps while Nathan Van Hooydonck – a late replacement for Rohan Dennis – is set to be the engine doing the heavy lifting in the earlier phases of stages.

Full line-up : Primoz Roglic, Jonas Vingegaard, Wout van Aert, Tiesj Benoot, Sepp Kuss, Steven Kruijswijk, Christophe Laporte, Nathan Van Hooydonck

Lotto Soudal

Team leaders: Caleb Ewan Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Tim Wellens

The Belgian team once again go into a Tour de France targeting stage wins. In 37 starts they have never won the Tour and haven't had a GC contender since Jurgen Van den Broeck in 2012. Andre Greipel flew the flag for a long time but in the new John Lelangue-led era it's Caleb Ewan who leads the way for the third year in a row. 

Ewan won three stages in 2019 and two in 2020 but crashed out on stage 3 last year with a a broken collarbone. At his best he's one of the most dynamic and aerodynamic sprinters in the world and a key breadwinner for Lotto Soudal in their relegation fight. There is slight cause for concern as his lead-out man Jasper De Buyst is injured and Roger Kluge similarly not racing. In their absence Reinardt Janse van Rensburg takes responsibility, while Frederik Frison can also chip in. 

However, there's more of an emphasis on breakaways in Lotto Soudal's plans. Philippe Gilbert will want to make an impact in his final Tour de France, while Brent Van Moer has been touted as a new Thomas De Gendt. Florian Vermeersch can target the cobbled stage and Andreas Kron will look at the hilly ones if recovered from COVID-19.

Finally, Tim Wellens has announced he is leaving at the end of the year but retains a great deal of affection for the team where he has spent his whole career so far. The Belgian remains a top-class attacking rider who can complete the Grand Tour set of stage wins in what is only his fourth Tour appearance.

Full line-up: Caleb Ewan, Philippe Gilbert, Tim Wellens, Andreas Kron, Brent Van Moer, Florian Vermeersch, Reinardt Janse van Rensburg, Frederik Frison

Movistar Team

Team leaders: Enric Mas Objective: GC Rider to watch: Matteo Jorgenson

Movistar, the Spanish team formed in the 1980s, line up for their 40th Tour de France. They've won it seven times, five of those coming through Miguel Indurain in the 1990s, but haven't done so since Oscar Pereiro in 2006. In recent years, they've been regular winners of the teams classification but have become confused and at times chaotic in their handling of multiple leaders. 

This year, there's far more clarity. Enric Mas will lead the line and shoot for the podium. The Spaniard, a breakthrough runner-up at the 2018 Vuelta, has been a consistent if unspectacular Grand Tour presence since signing in 2020, placing fifth and sixth in the past two Tours, as well as another second at the Vuelta last year. 

While Movistar have not yet unveiled their final line-up, a key rider appears to be Matteo Jorgenson, the US all-rounder who's steadily improving. He's looking to develop into a GC rider and could become the last line of support for Mas, and he could even decide he's not going to throw away time unless he absolutely has to. 

Full line-up: Enric Mas, Carlos Verona, Imanol Erviti, Matteo Jorgenson, Nelson Oliveira, Albert Torres, Gregor Mühlberger, Gorka Izagirre

QuickStep-AlphaVinyl

Team leaders: Fabio Jakobsen Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch : Mattia Cattaneo

The Belgian squad have dominated Tour de France sprints over the years, with the likes of Marcel Kittel, Fernando Gaviria, Sam Bennett, and Mark Cavendish all sweeping up in recent years. The next man up is Fabio Jakobsen , who has been given the nod over Cavendish despite the Manxman winning four stages and the green jersey last year and tying Eddy Merckx's record of 34 stage wins. 

There's no room for sentiment or history at Patrick Lefevere's stable, however, and he has given the reins to the rider he considers the future of his team's sprinting ambitions. You can't argue with the decision on form. Jakobsen has returned from nearly losing his life at the 2020 Tour de Pologne to re-establish himself as one of the fastest in the world, winning 10 times already this season. 

As always, the bulk of the team is devoted to the lead-out, with Kasper Asgreen and Yves Lampaert and, lastly, Michael Mørkøv, widely regarded as the best in the business. Florian Sénéchal is a late call-up for the COVID-positive Tim Declercq , though it's unclear who will replace the Belgian's long stints on the front of the peloton this July.

The big hole in QuickStep's line up is in the shape of the world champion, Julian Alaphilippe, who suffered a heavy crash at Liège-Bastogne-Liège-Liège in April and hasn't been deemed fit enough to make his usual impact at the Tour. Alaphilippe has won several stages, finished top five on GC, and injected electricity into the race over the past few years.

His absence is a major blow for the team and the race, with Andre Bagioli, the Italian puncheur who's taken his spot, having a lot to live up to. His compatriot, the 31-year-old Mattia Cattaneo, has a shot at a top-10 overall place, having finished 12th last year.

Full line-up: Fabio Jakobsen, Michael Mørkøv, Kasper Asgreen, Yves Lampaert, Mikkel Honore, Mattia Cattaneo, Andrea Bagioli, Florian Sénéchal

Team leaders: Romain Bardet, Alberto Dainese Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Andreas Leknessund

The Dutch team formerly known as Sunweb have a general philosophy that's both open and rigid. They eschew hierarchy in favour of a collective approach where everyone gets a chance, but there's relatively little flexibility when it comes to individual preferences.

This has divided opinion, with the alarming number of riders looking to leave the team seen by many as a cause for concern. On the road, it has divided their results. The free-flowing Sunweb (as they were then called) of the 2020 Tour were great to watch and hauled in three stage wins, but they were anonymous last year and struggled for much of this season. 

They go into this Tour in typical fashion, an open and exciting line-up, but not without its controversy as Søren Kragh Andersen – not only one of their bigger-name riders but also a native of the Danish Grand Départ – has been left at home. 

In his absence, Romain Bardet returns to the Tour after a year's absence. A GC bid is no priority given he was targeting the Giro and had to pull out when in a strong position, but the Frenchman will want to add to his stage win collection from 2015, 2016, and 2017.

John Degenkolb is on the start list and returns to the cobbles where he famously won a stage in 2018, but Alberto Dainese is the team's lead sprinter. The Italian won a stage at the Giro with a fearsome sprint that suggested a breakthrough, and he will be an outsider but a danger man in the bunch finishes. Elsewhere, Kevin Vermaerke is an exciting young US talent but the Norwegian Andreas Leknessund is already hitting his stride at 23, winning a stage at the recent Tour de Suisse in a solo breakaway. Expect him to go out in search of more of the same. 

Full line-up: Romain Bardet, Alberto Dainese, John Degenkolb, Kevin Vermaerke, Andreas Leknessund, Martijn Tusveld, Nils Eekhoff, Chris Hamilton

TotalEnergies

Team leader: Peter Sagan Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Pierre Latour

When it comes to TotalEnergies’ 2022 objectives, it’s hard to look beyond Peter Sagan . Arguably the most exciting riders in men’s cycling, Sagan has had an unfortunate 2022, plagued by illness. The Tour de Suisse gave us a glimpse of Peter the Great at his best when he won stage 3. His positive test for COVID ahead of the final time trial seemed like a predictable kick in his run of bad luck.

However, Sagan returned to win yet another Slovakian road race title on Sunday, an indication he's on track for the Tour. He'll also have loyal lieutenants Daniel Oss and Maciej Bodnar at his disposal. Sagan will target sprints on flat and hilly days, but a record-extending eighth green jersey is complicated by the presence of Wout van Aert. 

There'll be no shortage of breakaway interest for Jean-René Bernaudeau's French team, especially after Mathieu Burgaudeau scooped a stage of Paris-Nice and Valentin Ferron and Alexis Vuillermoz took home a stage apiece from the Dauphiné. Anthony Turgis could certainly be a contender on the cobbles, but he’ll need an early break to separate himself from the fastmen such as Mathieu van der Poel to stand a chance at a win on the pavé.

Finally, there's Pierre Latour, who has so much energy he sometimes doesn't know what to do with it. The Frenchman won the white jersey and placed 13th overall while riding as an AG2R domestique in 2018 and, while his career has faded since, there remains a great deal of talent. 

The experienced and versatile fastman Edvald Boasson Hagen was called up three days out from the start after Cristian Rodríguez fell ill.

Full line-up: Peter Sagan, Pierre Latour, Mathieu Burgaudeau, Alexis Vuillermox, Daniel Oss, Maciej Bodnar, Anthony Turgis, Edvald Boasson Hagen.

Trek-Segafredo

Team leader: Giulio Ciccone Objective: Stage wins Rider to watch: Bauke Mollema

Having taken a third career Giro d’Italia win on stage 15 of this year’s race, Giulio Ciccone is showing excellent climbing form and seems sure to be Trek-Segafredo’s team leader at this year’s Tour de France. Only one year ago he lay in sixth place on the Tour’s second rest day, before crashing out on stage 17 and abandoning the race.

While a GC bid isn’t beyond comprehension, with Ciccone and Bauke Mollema’s proclivity for successful breakaways, individual stage wins in the mountains are Trek’s most likely target.

Milan-San Remo winner Jasper Stuyven and former World Champion Mads Pedersen will both be riders to watch on the cobbles of stage 5 of this year’s race. Both will also be contenders for individual stage wins on fast finishes. For Pedersen, there's the extra motivation of starting on home roads, with a strong short time trial and a fast sprint at the end of a windy day, he'll be going all-in on the Denmark days. 

US debutant Quinn Simmons will no doubt offer good support to both riders on the cobbles, and has shown an appetite for breakaways so far this season.

Full line-up : Guilio Ciccone, Bauke Mollema, Mads Pedersen, Jasper Stuyven, Quinn Simmons, Tony Gallopin, Alex Kirsch, Toms Skujiņš 

UAE Team Emirates

Team leaders: Tadej Pogačar Objective : Yellow jersey Rider to watch: Brandon McNulty

About as one-dimensional as it gets, the UAE-funded team are here to win the Tour with Pogačar for a third straight year. The rest of the team is entirely at his service, and you get the impression he could do it without them anyway. 

Not that UAE are weak. The criticism they faced last year was unfounded, and in any case they are stronger again this time around. They have added George Bennett and Marc Soler, while Brandon McNulty is another year older and – when not the victim of bad luck – has shown his strength this season. Rafał Majka, who came good last year and has been even better this season, has struck up a great relationship with Pogačar, the pair dominating the recent Tour of Slovenia. It's a super solid mountain unit. 

Beyond that, Mikkel Berg did huge pulls on the flat and in the middle mountains last year and will be pivotal again, while Vegard Stake Laengen is the big workhorse for the early phases. Pogačar is in a league of his own, but he has a team that can provide a platform for a third straight yellow jersey.

Swiss rider Marc Hirschi is a late call-up after Matteo Trentin returned a positive COVID-19 test two days before the race start.

Full line-up: Tadej Pogačar, Rafal Majka, Brandon McNulty, Marc Soler, Vegard Stake Laengen, George Bennett, Mikkel Bjerg, Marc Hirschi

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Patrick is a freelance sports writer and editor. He’s an NCTJ-accredited journalist with a bachelor’s degree in modern languages (French and Spanish). Patrick worked full-time at Cyclingnews for eight years between 2015 and 2023, latterly as Deputy Editor.

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• 1 VINGEGAARD Jonas
• 2 BENOOT Tiesj
• 3 KELDERMAN Wilco
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• 6 VAN AERT Wout (DNS #18)
• 7 VAN BAARLE Dylan
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• 111 GIRMAY Biniam *
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• 115 PETIT Adrien
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• 121 MARTIN Guillaume
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• 128 ZINGLE Axel *

• 131 MAS Enric (DNF #1)
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The Biggest Champions in Tour de France History

While we anticipate who will rise to glory this year, let’s look at the legends who have already cemented their place in Tour history.

We’re just a few days away from the start of the 111th edition of the Tour de France , La Grand Boucle , arguably the biggest bike race on Earth. As we’ve wound through the early season, over the cobbles of Northern Europe, around Italy in the season’s first Grand Tour, and up and down countless mountains, hills, and bergs, some of this year’s storylines have crystallized.

Can Tadej go for back-to-back Grand Tours? Will Jonas be able to defend his double titles? Is 2024 finally the year that Primož Roglič—at the front of a new team—can exorcize the demons of the Super Planche des Belles Filles? Will Remco finally deliver on all of the promise and raw talent he’s long exhibited? Or will some sleeper pounce on a golden opportunity and surprise us all the way Sepp Kuss did in last year’s Vuelta?

All of these questions will be answered in just a few days. But for now, instead of looking forward, let’s look back. Rather than speculate on the unknown, let’s remember the known. Let’s talk about some of the most famous (and at least one infamous) winners in the history of the Tour de France, men whose names and exploits have become synonymous with Le Tour.

The Classic Era

Maurice garin – 1903.

Any list of Tour de France winners has to include Garin for no other reason than the Frenchman won the first-ever. In 1903, Garin won the six-stage Tour, covering its 1,509 miles in under ninety-five hours. But don’t let those six stages fool you, as the race averaged over 250 miles each day. Garin defended his title the following year, only to be stripped of the win following allegations that he was transported by a car or a horse at some point during the race.

Phillipe Thys – 1913, 1914, 1920

Thys’s first Tour victory wasn’t without issue, as the Belgian won the 1913 race despite suffering a broken fork. He was penalized ten minutes after it was discovered he repaired the fork at a bicycle shop, yet still won the race by nine minutes. He repeated this in 1914, again overcoming a major penalty. This time, he was hit with a thirty-minute deduction for an unauthorized wheel change. As the race was not run between 1915 and 1918 due to the First World War, Thys had to wait until 1920 for his third and final Tour victory. Following that win, Tour de France founder Henri Desgrange wrote of Thys, “France is not unaware that, without the war, the crack rider from Anderlecht would be celebrating not his third Tour, but his fifth or sixth.”

Gino Bartali – 1938, 1948

Though Coppi was perhaps better known for his trio of wins at his native Giro d’Italia (which included seven King of the Mountains wins), he was twice the winner of the Tour de France. After withdrawing from his first Tour in 1937, where he wore the leader’s jersey for a time, Bartali returned the following year and won, immediately becoming an icon in Italy. A decade later, Bartali returned to the Tour, leaving a nation of people to choose between him and his countryman Fausto Coppi. Bartali won seven stages en route to both the yellow jersey and the KOM classification. Years later, it was discovered that Bartali secretly used his training rides to shuttle documents back and forth between Florence and Assisi in order to aid Jews who were being persecuted by the Nazis.

The Golden Era

Fausto coppi – 1949, 1952.

Fausto Coppi kicked off what many call cycling’s Golden Age and is perhaps most well-known for the fact that he won the Giro/Tour double twice. Coppi was the first to achieve the double. Only eight other riders have achieved the result. Coppi’s early career was interrupted due to the Second World War, leaving generations of pundits to wonder what he might have done in the early 1940s. However, he did win five Giris d’Italia and scores of classics in addition to his pair of Tours. He frequently clashed with his biggest rival, Gino Bartali, dividing a nation of fans down into “Coppiani” and “Bartaliani.”

Jacques Anquetil – 1957, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964

Over the course of eight years, Jacques Anquetil won the race five times. His first victory came on debut, just months after he was discharged from military service. Following a rocky few years spent chasing an elusive Giro/Tour double, Anquetil returned to the top of the podium in 1961. He repeated as Tour champion the following year doubled up the next two years, with the Tour and the Vuelta a España in 1963 and the Tour and the Giro in 1964.

Eddy Merckx – 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974

There might be no more famous bicycle racer than Eddy Merckx. The Belgian legend remains forty-five years after his retirement, as the name to which everyone else is compared. “Is he the next Mercxk?” is asked every few years. And to this point, everyone has fallen short of the mark. And though he’s tied with three other riders on this list with five Tours de France on his resume, his name rises above all due in large part to the rest of his palmarés, which includes victories at virtually every other race of import. And for all of his yellow jerseys, he’s equally known for his thirty-four stage wins at the Tour, matched only by Mark Cavendish, and six stage wins clear of the next closest racers (Bernard Hinault with twenty-eight).

Bernard Hinault – 1978, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1985

In Mercxk’s final year, his heir apparent was coronated when Frenchman Bernard Hinault won his first Tour de France. He won again the following year and was leading the race in 1980, expected by many to three-peat. However, “The Badger” was forced to abandon due to a knee injury. He came back the following year and the year after that, again going back-to-back. His final Tour victory came in 1985 thanks in large part to the work of his teammate, a young Greg LeMond.

The New Era

Greg lemond – 1986, 1989, 1990.

Greg LeMond finished his first-ever Tour de France in third place. The following year, he took one step further on the podium, finishing second after he spent the race working in service of his La Vie Claire team leader Hinault. The year after that, in 1986, the reins came off, and LeMond entered Le Tour as La Vie Claire’s co-leader. He won that race, besting Hinault by just over three minutes. After being shot in a hunting accident, LeMond missed the next two Tours de France, only to return in 1989, winning what many call the greatest Tour of all time. LeMond entered the race with little hype or expectation. He hoped for a top-twenty finish. However, over the course of the Tour, LeMond’s strength and position grew as he battled back and forth with his French rival, Laurent Fignon. LeMond headed into the race’s final stage, a time trial fifty seconds short of Fignon. He finished it eight seconds clear of the Frenchman, winning the race in what remains the smallest margin of victory ever. Later that year, he won his second World Championship (his first came in 1983) and followed up his performance with a repeat Tour de France victory the next summer.

Miguel Indurain – 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995

There was a time when it was presumed that no one would top Eddy Mercxk’s record of four consecutive Tour de France wins (1969-1972). But then came Miguel Indurain, who unseated LeMond in 1991 (LeMond finished second), snatching his first of a then-record five straight Tour de France victories. In addition to his stretch of Tour wins, Indurain twice doubled up, winning the Tour and the Giro in 1992 and 1993.

Marco Pantani – 1998

Unlike most of the others on this list, Marco Pantani’s renown doesn’t come from repeated success at the Tour de France. In fact, Il Pirata only won the yellow jersey once, in 1998 (after a pair of third-place finishes in 1994 and 1997). However, that year, he doubled up, winning his home race, the Giro d’Italia. Much of Marco Pantani’s legacy is couched in legend and lore, owing in large part to his elusiveness while racing and untimely death at just thirty-four years old.

The Modern Era

Lance armstrong – 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 (all vacated).

Lance Armstrong had all seven of his Tour de France titles stripped and received a lifetime ban from all sports that follow the World Anti-Doping Code.

Alberto Contador – 2007, 2009

Alberto Contador is one of just seven riders to have won all three Grand Tours more than once. He’s also a four-time winner of the Vélo d’Or, the only person to win the award for the year’s best rider four times. He was the first man in the twenty-first century not named Lance Armstrong to win the Tour de France. However, after being implicated in a doping scandal (he was later cleared), Contador didn’t even have a pro contract going into the 2007 season. He went on to win that race by just twenty-three seconds over Cadel Evans (who would go on to win the Tour in 2011). Two years later, he notched his second Tour victory, beating Andy Schleck by just over four minutes.

Bradley Wiggins – 2012

Like Marco Pantani, Bradley Wiggins has just one Tour de France victory. That win came in 2012 after the British track champion fully committed to road racing. Wiggo won over many European fans after a fan threw carpet tacks onto the course during stage 14. Unaffected, Wiggins commanded the peloton to slow down and wait for his competitors—namely Cadel Evans, who suffered a puncture—to catch up. Since his 2012 victory, Wiggins has remained in the spotlight as a pundit, a rower, a published author, and lately, an advocate for mental health awareness.

The Contemporary Era

Chris froome – 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017.

After displaying strong form as a super domestique during the 2012 season, riding in support of Bradley Wiggins, Froome entered 2013 with massive expectations. He took on the leader’s role in some early-season races and headed into the Tour de France as the heavy favorite, fulfilling bets with a four-plus-minute win over Nairo Quintana. The following year, he crashed out of the race on stage 5. However, Froome returned with a 2015 victory, the first in three consecutive Tour de France wins.

Tadej Pogačar – 2020, 2021

In his short career, Tadej Pogačar has won just about everything there is to win. And he’s often done as much with aplomb and style, with many experts saying his versatility, pure strength, and insatiable will win make Pogačar the closest thing we’ve seen to Eddy Merckx since the real thing. His first Tour de France victory came in 2020 after he snatched the win from fellow Slovenian Primož Roglič. It was there that he won on the race’s penultimate stage, going from fifty seconds down on Roglič to one minute up in the span of one final climb. The following year, he defended with relative ease, beating then-newcomer Jonas Vingegaard by more than five minutes.

Jonas Vingegaard – 2022, 2023

Jonas Vingegaard’s backstory is already the stuff of legend. While working in a Danish fish factory, he was discovered after posting a ride to Strava. Within a few years, he won his first Tour de France, beating the seemingly invincible Tadej Pogačar. The following year, he went head-to-head with Tadej, winning his second-straight Tour on the back of one of the greatest time trials in the history of the Tour (and arguably ever). He then put the final nail into the coffin by doing what was then unthinkable: cracking Tadej Pogačar up a brutal climb.

Michael Venutolo-Mantovani is a writer and musician based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He loves road and track cycling, likes gravel riding, and can often be found trying to avoid crashing his mountain bike. 

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2022 Tour de France: Who are the Seven Americans Competing?

As the 2022 tour de france kicks off, here’s everything you need to know about the seven americans competing this year., by julia elbaba • published july 1, 2022.

The 2022 Tour de France is officially underway.

The event, known to be the world's "most prestigious and most difficult" race, includes seven determined Americans seeking the iconic Tour de France trophy and a cash prize of $528,000. 

The action, consisting of 176 riders from around the world, kicks off on Friday, July 1 with the Grand Depart in Copenhagen, Denmark and concludes on July 24.

24/7 New York news stream: Watch NBC 4 free wherever you are

Americans competing in the different stages of the epic competition can be watched on Peacock and the NBC Sports app.

Here are the seven Americans competing in the 2022 Tour de France:

Sepp Kuss 

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View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sepp Kuss (@seppkuss)

Sepp Kuss is the American to watch.

Last year, the 27-year-old won stage 15 of the Tour de France, becoming the first American to win a stage of the event since Tyler Farrar, who won stage 3 in 2011.

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Making his third appearance at the prestigious event, Kuss has also won a stage of the Vuelta de España.

Kuss currently rides for Jumbo-Visma.

Neilson Powless

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Neilson Powless (@neilsonpowless)

Neilson Powless was the first US Native American to compete in the Tour de France. He is a member of the Oneida Indian Nation.

Now competing in his third Tour de France, the 25-year-old Powless won the 2021 San Sebastian Classic in Spain, becoming only the second American to achieve that.

Powless currently rides for EF Education-EasyPost.

Brandon McNulty

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Brandon McNulty (@brandon_mcnulty)

Brandon McNulty is competing in his second Tour de France.

The 24-year-old’s first tour was in the 2022 Giro d'Italia where he finished 15th overall.

In 2021, he rode in the Tour de France, serving as a domestique for teammate and race winner Tadej Pogacar. A domestique is a rider who works to help and lead their team.

McNulty currently rides for UAE Team Emirates.

Joe Dombrowski 

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Joe Dombrowski (@joedombro)

Although Joe Dombrowski has been around for a while, he is making his Tour de France debut this year. 

The 31-year-old won a stage in the 2021 Giro d'Italia and has made four appearances in the Vuelta de Espana.

Dombrowski currently rides for Astana Qazaqstan but has spent time with Team Emirates, Splitstream, Bontrager-Livestrong and Team Sky.

Matteo Jorgenson

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Matteo Jorgenson (@matteojorgenson)

Matteo Jorgenson is also making his Tour de France debut and will ride in a support role for Spanish Movistar Team lead rider Enric Mas.

The 23-year-old has competed in one other tour in his young career -- the 2021 Giro d'Italia.

Kevin Vermaerke

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kevin Vermaerke (@kvermaerke)

Kevin Vermaerke is making his Tour de France debut this year.

The 21-year-old has competed in two other tours, winning the ub-23 Liege-Bastogne-Liege and finishing fourth in the Critérium du Dauphiné.

Vermaerke currently rides for Team DSM.

Quinn Simmons

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Quinn Simmons (@skin.quimmons)

Quinn Simmons is the youngest American competing at this year's Tour de France.

In 2021, the 21-year-old got himself in some trouble for actions he took on Twitter. In the incident, Simmons tweeted a black hand emoji and said "Buh-bye" in response to a cycling journalist who told supporters of former president Donald Trump to unfollow her.

Simmons was reinstated after issuing an apology and denying racist intent.

Simmons currently rides for Trek-Segafredo.

This article tagged under:

Tour de France 2022 start list: Tadej Pogačar, Primož Roglič and Wout Van Aert all line up for the 109th edition

The squads of all 22 teams starting in Denmark in the battle for the yellow jersey

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The 2022 Tour de France begins on Friday 1 July, with 176 riders taking to the start line at the Grand Départ in Denmark before finishing, as usual, on the Champs-Élysées in Paris on Sunday 24 July. 

Reigning champion, Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates) is returning to try and win the title for the third successive year over the 21 days of racing to Paris, but he and his team will face a tough battle for the Maillot Jaune. 

His compatriot Primož Roglič (Jumbo-Visma) is expected to provide him the most difficult test at the Grand Tour, with Jonas Vingegaard (Jumbo-Visma), and Daniel Martínez (Ineos Grenadiers) ready and waiting for any opportunities in the general classification. 

Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers), Tour winner from 2018, also lines up, but he will likely ride for his teammates rather than making an attempt at the yellow jersey himself, despite recently winning the Tour de Suisse. After twice finishing second at the Tour de France before, and once in third, Nairo Quintana (Arkéa Samsic) is no doubt desperate to stand on the top step of the podium this time around, though his chances in doing so look slim.

Chris Froome (Israel-Premier Tech) is starting at the 2022 Tour de France, and while a GC challenge is extremely unlikely, the four-time Tour winner will still believe he can produce consistently over the three weeks.

Romain Bardet (Team DSM) perhaps offers France's greatest opportunity at a home win, though he has previously stated stage wins are the main goal at this Tour, rather than the overall victory. 

Plenty of other riders are aiming for stage wins and the different jerseys on offer, too. Wout Van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) will resume battle in France. While the latter has claimed he is only targeting stage wins, rather than the points classification, it is likely he will still have to beat Van Aert on a few occasions to achieve that goal.  

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Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl are placing their sprint hopes on Fabio Jakobsen, opting not to bring Mark Cavendish into the fold - a stage win for the Manxman would give him the most stage wins in Tour history, allowing him to overtake Eddy Merckx as the pair both sit on 34. 

Peter Sagan (TotalEnergies) and Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) also join Caleb Ewan (Lotto Soudal) in lining up for the Grands Départs in Denmark, adding their names to an already stellar start list of some of cycling's biggest names.

The full start list for the 2022 Tour de France is below.

Tour de France 2022 start list

UAE Team Emirates

1. POGAČAR Tadej 2. BENNETT George 3. BJERG Mikkel 4. LAENGEN Vegard Stake 5. MAJKA Rafał 6. MCNULTY Brandon 7. SOLER Marc 8. HIRSCHI Marc 

Jumbo-Visma

11. ROGLIČ Primož 12. BENOOT Tiesj 13. KRUIJSWIJK Steven 14. KUSS Sepp 15. LAPORTE Christophe 16. VAN AERT Wout 17. VAN HOOYDONCK Nathan 18. VINGEGAARD Jonas

Ineos Grenadiers

21. THOMAS Geraint 22. MARTÍNEZ Daniel Felipe 23. CASTROVIEJO Jonathan 24. GANNA Filippo 25. PIDCOCK Thomas 26. ROWE Luke 27. VAN BAARLE Dylan 28. YATES Adam  

AG2R Citroën

31. O'CONNOR Ben 32. BOUCHARD Geoffrey 33. CHEREL Mikael 34. COSNEFROY Benoît 35. DEWULF Stan 36. JUNGELS Bob 37. NAESEN Oliver   38. PARET-PEINTRE Aurélien

Bora-Hansgrohe

41. VLASOV Aleksandr 42. GROßSCHARTNER Felix 43. HALLER Marco 44. KÄMNA Lennard 45. KONRAD Patrick 46. POLITT Nils 47. SCHACHMANN Maximilian 48. VAN POPPEL Danny 

Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl

51. JAKOBSEN Fabio 52. ASGREEN Kasper 53. BAGIOLI Andrea 54. CATTANEO Mattia 55. HONORÉ Mikkel Frølich 56. LAMPAERT Yves 57. MØRKØV Michael 58. SÉNÉCHAL Florian

61. MAS Enric 62. ERVITI Imanol 63. IZAGIRRE Gorka 64. JORGENSON Matteo   65. MÜHLBERGER Gregor 66. OLIVEIRA Nelson 67. TORRES Albert 68. VERONA Carlos 

71. MARTIN Guillaume 72. PERICHON Pierre-Luc 73. GESCHKE Simon 74. IZAGIRRE Ion 75. LAFAY Victor 76. PEREZ Anthony 77. THOMAS Benjamin 78. WALSCHEID Max

Bahrain-Victorious

81. HAIG Jack 82. CARUSO Damiano 83. GRADEK Kamil 84. MOHORIČ Matej 85. SÁNCHEZ Luis León 86. TEUNS Dylan 87. TRATNIK Jan 88. WRIGHT Fred

Groupama-FDJ

91. GAUDU David 92. DUCHESNE Antoine 93. GENIETS Kevin 94. KÜNG Stefan 95. LE GAC Olivier 96. MADOUAS Valentin 97. PINOT Thibaut 98. STORER Michael  

Alpecin-Deceuninck

101. VAN DER POEL Mathieu 102. DILLIER Silvan 103. GOGL Michael 104. KRIEGER Alexander 105. PHILIPSEN Jasper 106. PLANCKAERT Edward 107. SBARAGLI Kristian 108. VAN KEIRSBULCK Guillaume    

111. BARDET Romain 112. DAINESE Alberto 113. DEGENKOLB John 114. EEKHOFF Nils 115. HAMILTON Chris 116. LEKNESSUND Andreas 117. TUSVELD Martin 118. VERMAEKE Kevin

Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux

121. KRISTOFF Alexander 122. BYSTRØM Sven Erik 123. GOOSSENS Kobe 124. MEINTJES Louis 125. PASQUALON Andrea 126. PETIT Adrien 127. VAN DER HOORN Taco 128. ZIMMERMANN Georg  

Astana Qazaqstan

131. LUTSENKO Alexey 132. RIABUSHENKO Aleksandr 133. DOMBROWSKI Joe 134. FELLINE Fabio 135. GRUZDEV Dmitriy 136. MOSCON Gianni 137. VELASCO Simone 138. ZEITS Andrey

EF Education-EasyPost

141. URÁN Rigoberto 142. GUERREIRO Ruben 143. BETTIOL Alberto 144. BISSEGGER Stefan 145. DOULL Owain 146. CORT Magnus 147. POWLESS Neilson 148. RUTSCH Jonas 

Arkéa Samsic

151. QUINTANA Nairo 152. BARGUIL Warren 153. BOUET Maxime 154. CAPIOT Amaury 155. HOFSTETTER Hugo 156. LOUVEL Matis 157. OWSIAN Łukasz 158. SWIFT Connor 

Lotto Soudal

161. EWAN Caleb 162. FRISON Frederik 163. GILBERT Philippe 164. JANSE VAN RENSBURG Reinardt 165. KRON Andreas 166. VAN MOER Brent 167. VERMEERSCH Florian 168. WELLENS Tim

Trek-Segafredo

171. PEDERSEN Mads 172. CICCONNE Giulio 173. GALLOPIN Tony 174. KIRSCH Alex 175. MOLLEMA Bauke 176. SIMMONS Quinn 177. SKUJINS Toms 178. STUYVEN Jasper

TotalEnergies

181. SAGAN Peter 182. BOASSON HAGEN Edvald 183. BODNAR Maciej 184. BURGAUDEAU Mathieu 185. LATOUR Pierre 186. OSS Daniel 187. TURGIS Anthony 188. VUILLERMOZ Alexis  

Israel-Premier Tech

191. FROOME Chris 192. BOIVIN Guillaume 193. CLARKE Simon 194. FUGLSANG Jakob 195. NIV Guy 196. HOULE Hugo 197. NEILANDS Krists 198. WOODS Michael

BikeExchange-Jayco

201. MATTHEWS Michael 202. BAUER Jack 203. DURBRIDGE Luke 204. GROENEWEGEN Dylan 205. JANSEN Amund Grøndahl 206. JUUL-JENSEN Christopher 207. MEZGEC Luka 208. SCHULTZ Nick

B&B Hotels-KTM

211. BONNAMOUR Franck 212. BARTHE Cyril 213. GOUGEARD Alexis 214. LECROQ Jérémy 215. LEMOINE Cyril 216. MOZZATO Luca 217. ROLLAND Pierre 218. SCHÖNBERGER Sebastian

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Ryan is a staff writer for Cycling Weekly, having joined the team in September 2021. He first joined Future in December 2020, working across FourFourTwo, Golf Monthly, Rugby World and Advnture's websites, before making his way to cycling. After graduating from Cardiff University with a degree in Journalism and Communications, Ryan earned a NCTJ qualification to further develop as a writer. 

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All the gear? Check out the gearing choices of the pros at the Tour de France

First Published Jul 5, 2023

Gearing choice in the Tour used to be easy, a standard chainset was the only way to go and cassette choices were limited at best. However, these days, with 12-speed options from Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo all represented in the peloton, there's more choice than ever. We've had a nosey at the pros' bikes to see what they're using this year.

> ​Suffering on the hills? Find out how to get lower gears to make climbing easier

The peloton's gearing choices differ from many consumer bikes simply because the riders race at very high speeds and therefore need bigger gears to keep a comfortable cadence. Whereas most bikes you can buy come specced with 50/34t compact or 52/36t chainset, (or 48/35t and 46/33t on SRAM 12-speed groupsets paired with 10-tooth start cassettes) you'll typically find the peloton powering along on chainsets with larger chainrings.

Check out this article for a primer on the basics of gears and all the lingo

The most common chainset size in the pro peloton on normal stages is 54/40t. That's a standard Shimano Dura-Ace option, and most teams racing in the Tour de France use this groupset. This is the chainset from Dylan Groenewegen's Giant Propel (above), for example.

There are plenty of other choices, though. We spotted Edvald Boasson Hagen of Team TotalEnergies using this 55/42t chainset (above) which comes from the days when Shimano Dura-Ace was an 11-speed system.

Enric Mas, who had to withdraw from this year's Tour after sustaining an injury during the first stage, was using a 52/39t SRAM chainset (above).

Intermarché - Circus - Wanty's Georg Zimmermann uses this 55/42T Rotor setup on his Cube Litening Aero.

The Shimano neutral service bikes are fitted with 52/36T chainsets that give a broad spread of gear options for any rider who is unfortunate enough to require one.

You'll find larger chainrings during the time-trial stages when riders are consistently moving at high speeds. For example, this (above) is Luke Durbridge's TT bike with 58/46t chainrings fitted.

During last year's Tour de France, Stefan Bissegger was spotted using this 64 tooth chainring that is not available to the public.

Cassettes have varied much more over the years, largely as a consequence of the steady increase in gears, from the old days of 5-speed and 6-speed to the 12-speed setups that are currently used in the pro peloton.

As the number of gears has increased, so too has the range, with larger cassettes increasingly common, partly as a response to race routes that are getting ever harder as race organisers attempt to find even more cruelly savage mountains to send racers up.

The increase in the number of gears also means that riders can cover those larger ranges with smaller jumps between sprocket sizes. This helps them keep a more even cadence as they move across the cassette.

When we visited the Critérium du Dauphiné recently, loads of pro bikes were fiitted with 11-30t and 11-32t cassettes. These are positively humongous compared with a few decades ago when you'd get an 11-21t cassette and, if you were lucky, 11-23t for the mountains. 

We saw quite a lot of 11-34t cassettes too, and that surprised us. David Gaudu's Lapierre Xelius SL (above), for example, was fitted with a 54/40t chainset and an 11-34t cassette. With a 40t inner chainring now more common than a 39t, it looks like more riders want a larger cassette to compensate on hillier roads.  

Campagnolo has just updated its Super Record EPS groupset and now the cassettes come with a 10t smallest sprocket. The standard options are 10-25t, 10-27t and 10-29t.

> Campagnolo ditches iconic thumb shifter and goes wireless with new Super Record Wireless electronic groupset... and it'll cost you £4.5k

The largest sprockets on those cassettes might seem pretty small but at the same time Campagnolo has altered the size of its chainsets to compensate. They're available in 50/34t, 48/32t and 45x29t options.

That said, we saw Ben O'Connor's BMC Teammachine (above) at the Dauphine fitted with new Campagnolo Super Record EPS shifters and derailleurs, with a 54/39t chainset and a larger cassette than any of those listed above.

SRAM offers a 10-33t cassette for Red eTap AXS, and that's what we saw fitted to one of Jonas Vingegaard's bikes ahead of the Dauphiné, matched to a 52/39t chainset. 

>  Which chainset is right for you?

The use of that 10t sprocket means that SRAM chainsets don't need to be as large as Shimano's to achieve the same gear ratios (Shimano's smallest cog is 11t). However, as well as the 52/39t chainset Vingegaard was using, SRAM now offers 54/41t and 56/43t options.

What about 1x?

Pic: © Zac WiLLIAMS SWpix.com (t-a Photography Hub Ltd)

Jumbo-Visma switched from Shimano to SRAM for this season and we first saw Vingegaard experimenting with 1x at the Dauphiné.

> Jonas Vingegaard uses 1x gearing for Tour de France opening stages

A few riders have dabbled with 1x, with varying levels of success, and of course, there was the ill-fated Aqua Sport Blue team which solely used 1x drivetrains on 3T Strada bikes. The team boss at the time was quite scathing about  either the drivetrain or the bike, or perhaps both. 

There are benefits to a 1x system. There’s no duplication of gears – which is something you get with 2x groupsets – it can be lighter and more aerodynamic, and the lack of a front derailleur means there's one less component to fail.

Jumbo-Visma uses single chainring setups on its time trial bikes (above) when it doesn't need a huge spread of gears. 

However, Vingegaard and Van Aert have also used 1x for normal road stages with a Wolf Tooth LoneWolf Aero chainguide fitted to help keep the chain in place. 

It's not as if Jumbo-Visma has chosen to give 1x a go just for flat courses; the first two stages of this year's Tour were pretty hilly. It'll be interesting to see if the team sticks with the tech throughout the race and, if not, the circumstances in which it turns to 1x.

SRAM insists that Jumbo-Visma's use of 1x isn't a marketing exercise, by the way. It's down to the team and the individual riders which of SRAM's components they decide to use.

One issue with 1x is that you can still get some fairly sizeable jumps between the gears. A possible solution to this is the Classified system which basically moves the function of the front mech into the rear hub.

Classified's tech could also bring aero benefits and it has been used by a few teams. Uno X has tried it out in competition, for example, and Lotto-Dstny's Victor Campenaerts rode this year's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad with a Classified system on his bike.

The system raises some questions about wheel changes but could it be something we see in the Tour de France in the future?

> Check out Classified's innovative Powershift drivetrain

What about the rest of us?

Today’s pro road racers are provided with equipment vastly superior to 10-20 years ago, but it’s the range of gears that has been the most interesting trend as the groupsets have evolved. As the number of sprockets has increased, the gear range has increased. Are riders getting soft, are courses getting harder, or is the higher number of gears making it possible?

The three big groupset manufacturers are still focused on the needs of the pro racers and delivering groupsets to meet their needs, and then selling them to the public, but there just aren’t many normal people that need a 54-11 gear. The requirements of the pros are very different to people like you and me. 

This is slowly changing though. Outside of the pro peloton, we're starting to see a shift in focus from the equipent manufacturers to meet the growing diversity of modern cyclists that are less influenced by pro racers and more by their riding, whether long-distance road rides or adventure and gravel bikepacking.

Largely thanks to adventure riding, we're now seeing much wider range groupsets with more realistically usable gear ratios for the many people that don't go racing every Sunday, but want gears to help them out on challenging terrain and let them conquer every hill.

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Jamie has been riding bikes since a tender age but really caught the bug for racing and reviewing whilst  studying towards a master's in Mechanical engineering  at Swansea University. Having graduated, he decided he really quite liked working with bikes and is now a full-time addition to the road.cc team. When not writing about tech news or working on the Youtube channel, you can still find him racing local crits trying to cling on to his cat 2 licence...and missing every break going...

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23 comments.

No one other than a professional racing cyclist or an amateur of the very highest level needs an 11 tooth or even a 12 tooth sprocket, unless their big chainring is a 44 rather than a 50 or 52.

People tell themselves that they do because they want to pedal really fast down hill. But it's likely that their pedalling at the low wattages of ordinary cyclists merely increases their drag from the air, downhill; so they go slower than they would if they stopped pedalling, tucked in their knees to the frame and crouched in an elbows-in aero position.

As to the idea that a double or triple chainring giving duplicated gear ratios is somehow a disadvantage .... this too is an unthinking analysis.

The point of a double or triple chainring is to provide, from the same cassette, two or three gear ranges that are close enough to enable the rider to find the ideal cadence, whether for generally slowish ascents, mid-speed undulations or flats agin' the wind, or fast riding when the road is smooth & flat with the wind behind. It isn't to provide more gears but rather to provide better gear ranges for different terrains/speed ranges.

But our culture encourages sales of high end racey bike parts by seeming to promise the buyer of high-geared stuff that they too can be just as fast as them riders in the TdF by having a Dura-Ace 53/39 chainset and an 11-25 cassette. This is just a-one o' them daft "dreams" they install in the heads of folk far too blase about having their wallets emptied whilst paying no attention to the reality of their actual cycling abilities.

The annoying part for those wanting more realistic gears is that it's often very hard to find them. Because road bike frames tend to come with front braze-on fitting to suit chainrings from 48 - 56, rather than 44 - 50, you'r stuck with a 48 or (more probably) the 50 that the bike comes with. But can you buy a 14-34 cassette? Not really - you have to buy an 11- 34 cassette plus three Shimano cogs of 14, 15and 16 (to replace the 11, 13 & 15). This becomes expensive - and difficult to do as only SJS cycles seems to sell spare Shimano sprockets in Blighty, these days. 

My own preferred and favourite gear range is a 50/39/30 chainset with a 15 - 36 cassette of 10 cogs. It goes as fast as I can go pedalling (without a significant downhill) in 50/15 (30 mph, briefly) but also allows a twiddle in a very low gear. Each chainring provides relatively close-ratio gears from the cassette, since there's only usable cogs and no wasted 11, 12, 13 or 14 that would never get used.

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I'm a very ordinary (and I mean very very very ordinary) 54-year-old cyclist and I use my 50/12 as my standard flat no wind gear to ride at around 23mph, on the bike that has a 52/11 I can certainly get a higher speed downhill than just tucking in until the speed starts to approach 50mph. Pardon me saying so but you seem to be rather solipsistic in your belief that what suits you is what should suit anybody and that anyone who disagrees is just a mug falling for marketing hype. We are all different, you know.

Rendel Harris wrote: I'm a very ordinary (and I mean very very very ordinary) 54-year-old cyclist and I use my 50/12 as my standard flat no wind gear to ride at around 23mph, on the bike that has a 52/11 I can certainly get a higher speed downhill than just tucking in until the speed starts to approach 50mph. Pardon me saying so but you seem to be rather solipsistic in your belief that what suits you is what should suit anybody and that anyone who disagrees is just a mug falling for marketing hype. We are all different, you know.

At 23 mph in 50/12 you'll be revving at mid-60s rpm. That's a hard way to pedal unless you're a body builder. 

At 120rpm in 50/11, you'd only be doing 44mph, so you must have very whizzable legs to get to 50mph whilst pedaling!

Perhaps you need to practice tucking in a bit if you can't increase speed quite dramatically by getting more aero? To increase downhill speed above around 30mph just by pedalling harder, you'd have to be inputting a rather large number of watts - certainly more than those of "a very very ordinary" cyclist.

You can call hard facts about gearing, aero positions and so forth "solipsistic" but facts are uncaring of our mere opinions, seeing as how they're quite hard to avoid or change.

Cugel wrote: At 23 mph in 50/12 you'll be revving at mid-60s rpm. That's a hard way to pedal unless you're a body builder.

As a result of a lot of leg weight work as a rugby player I do have rather large pins - think Chris Hoy rather than Froome, though without an ounce of the talent of either - and I find 65-70 a comfortable cadence at that speed. Which just goes to prove what I said, we're all different and it's nonsense to issue blanket statements like "No one other than a professional racing cyclist or an amateur of the very highest level needs an 11 tooth or even a 12 tooth sprocket."

Cugel wrote: At 120rpm in 50/11, you'd only be doing 44mph, so you must have very whizzable legs to get to 50mph whilst pedaling!

If you look again I said that was on the bike with 52/11 and I get close to 130rpm before spinning out on a downhill, which I don't think is terribly unusual or "whizzable".

Cugel wrote: facts are uncaring of our mere opinions

That is very true, but most of what you wrote was opinion based on what you think is an ideal way to ride.

Rendel Harris wrote: Cugel wrote: At 23 mph in 50/12 you'll be revving at mid-60s rpm. That's a hard way to pedal unless you're a body builder.

Fact-based based on my experience, that of many others and that forced on anyone who employs various gear ratios and positions on a bike, I think you'll find.

But a mental experiment is also available. Consider the gearing of professional cyclists able to output 400 watts continuously then work out what gearing might, scaled, be appropriate for everyday cyclists with power output capbilities more between 100 and 200 watts.

Will the latter somehow be able to emulate the 400 watters just by having the same gear ratios? Some think so, going by their claims. This is not so much "just a different opinion" as "magical thinking".

Rendel Harris wrote: Cugel wrote: facts are uncaring of our mere opinions

Let's face it, the reason why most go about with cassettes starting with 11 teeth (soon to be 10 or even 9!) is that its very, very difficult to buy anything else. And nearly every road, gravel, touring or audax bike sold as such comes with such a cassette.

You can buy a 14-28 cassette from Mr Shimano. But no 14 - 34 cassette - you have to make your own franken-cassette from a 14-28 plus an 11-34; or buy individual alternative cogs. This is costly.

In short, the reason most have 11- summick cassettes is because of marketing, driven by the fashions of professional racing (also determined by marketing). "Reasons" given by ordinary cyclists to justify their 11 toofers seem, to me, to be "rationalisations after the fact" (of being caught by a fashion-net).

It reminds me of the highly successful marketing trick concerning cycling helmets - no decent proof they achieve anything but a lot of profits for manufacturers (not to mention the polluting landfill) and increased "accidents" due to risk compensation thinking .... but millions buy, wear and defend them.

I knew it wouldn't be long before we got back on to those dark forces of the global commerce conspiracy and their evil plan to reprogram the worker drones with their "marketing".

This is simply drivel and your determination to say that anyone who disagrees with your opinion as to the correct gear ratio is falling for a marketing ploy is risible. What is the marketing advantage to Shimano of selling 11 toothed smallest ring cassettes? Do you think they are making a few bob on the micrograms of metal saved? 

If you want a 14-34 11sp cassette, buy a Miche Primato and stop telling everybody else that they are wrong and falling for a sucker punch by The Man just because they prefer a different gear ratio to you.

I commute with 11-34 and 50/34 and usually average about 75rpm. My speed averages out about 25kph (according to Garmin) I moved to that setup because it was the cheapest option that I knew would fit on my bike. It is commuting, so I do the same route every day and don't move out of the 50. I am able to drop to the 11 when the headwind isn't too strong, but usually I don't get down there. My cadence tops out about 105 on some of the uphill sections. I am in exercise clothing, arrive sweaty and very much treat it as my daily exercise routine. I am not a pro.

I commute on 52/36 chainrings with an 11-28t cassette and I'm usually in the 52/11 on the flat if the road is clear. And I'm just a 48-year old hobby cyclist.

CumbrianDynamo wrote: I commute on 52/36 chainrings with an 11-28t cassette and I'm usually in the 52/11 on the flat if the road is clear. And I'm just a 48-year old hobby cyclist.

What speed are you doing and, as a result, what's your cadence, in that gear?

When I were a lad, 382 years ago, even professionals like that Merckx, had 52 X 13 as their top gear. They still managed to race at speeds not that much slower than today's professionals. 

When I raced, often in races on the flat that averaged 27mph+, I managed to do so on a 52X14 or even 15 top gear. This didn't win me any sprints but it got me to the finish only a few seconds behind those who did sprint to victory.

Of course, I don't mind if you want to go about in 52 X 11 at 55rpm cadence but when it means I can't buy the cassette I want because all the fellows with "all the gear" only want to have the same gears as the bloke wot won Le Tour, it gets a bit tedious.

About 45km/h, cadence about 80. Is that acceptable to you?

CumbrianDynamo wrote: About 45km/h, cadence about 80. Is that acceptable to you?

Your flat road commuting pace equates to about 21m30s minutes for a 10 mile TT. That's pretty fast (particularly as I don't suppose you commute on tri-bars, TT wheels, etc.) 

As I'm commuting it's not a speed I sustain for particularly long distance thanks to the hazards you might expect on a city rush hour journey, but I need the 11 when I have enough clear and flat bus lane to be able to get to around 30mph. Wouldn't know about riding TT as I've never done one, but on a good commuting day on my sub-8kg carbon bike it'll take me about 30 mins to travel about 9 miles in London traffic with a couple of hundred metres of ascent. 

www.bikecalc.com/gear_speed may be of interest here.

80rpm in 52/11 is almost 50kph.

Recent hour record breaking bikes had around the equivalent of a 52x11 gear, pedalled at about 100rpm. I guess MAMILs are more likely to be in the 80-90rpm range - much less over any distance doesn't seem very efficient.

Dnnnnnn wrote: www.bikecalc.com/gear_speed may be of interest here.

Cugel wrote:   My own preferred and favourite gear range is a 50/39/30 chainset with a 15 - 36 cassette of 10 cogs. It goes as fast as I can go pedalling (without a significant downhill) in 50/15 (30 mph, briefly) but also allows a twiddle in a very low gear. Each chainring provides relatively close-ratio gears from the cassette, since there's only usable cogs and no wasted 11, 12, 13 or 14 that would never get used.

In my opinion, nce the gear ratio goes much below 1:1 then you can't pedal any mr beause the front wheel keeps lifting off the ground.

wycombewheeler wrote: Cugel wrote:   My own preferred and favourite gear range is a 50/39/30 chainset with a 15 - 36 cassette of 10 cogs. It goes as fast as I can go pedalling (without a significant downhill) in 50/15 (30 mph, briefly) but also allows a twiddle in a very low gear. Each chainring provides relatively close-ratio gears from the cassette, since there's only usable cogs and no wasted 11, 12, 13 or 14 that would never get used.

Is that a bald opinion (one with no experience-hair), a potted opinion from a cycling website or one based on your own experience?

My own experience is that gears below 1:1 are very good at enabling a pedal up those very long and steep ascents to be found in many locations across Blighterdom. This also seems to be the experience of tens of thousands of touring cyclists, over the years, including me on my many cross-Pennine trips with rear panniers but no front 'uns.

I've not yet seen a tourist or any other slow-twiddler o' the hills go tit-over-arse from the bike whilst twiddling up the steeps (and I've frequented many such steeps) despite their 24 ring and 34 cog.

As a 50 year old 77kg 3.8w/kg rider, as far as I'm concerned my 11 & 12 tooth sprockets are effectively spacers that help with my chain line. I run 11-28 and 11-30 11 speed cassettes (with 50/34 or 36 front) but would happily give up the 11 tooth for tighter mid-gear ratios. 

On my gravel bike I've got 46/30 at the front and 11-34t at the rear. I find this suits me very well cycling on the road. I can comfortably ride at any speed from walking pace up to 35 mph.

My cadence is usually around 90 though, if it was lower then I'd want a higher top gear.

Reminder that unless you are putting out 5.5 watts per kg you shouldn't be making gearing decisions based on what the pros are riding. 

To be fair, the article says that.

Indeed it does, hard to overstate though. You see so many ordinary people who wholeheartedly believe that they need gearing to pedal at 40mph and sacrifice an enjoyable ride to get it. 

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