Here's the planet's best cyclist in his brand-new world champion's kit with his $11,000 custom-painted bike
Slovakia's Peter Sagan is the new elite men's UCI Road World Champion. He's one of the most talented riders the sport has ever seen, and he's only 25. He can win all kinds of races — including those with sprint finishes and hard climbs. He's the best bike handler in the peloton, and one of the best descenders, too. He's taken wins in major one-day races and won stages in the Tour de France.
ICYMI, Sagan's apparel sponsor is Sportful.
Sagan's Specialized S-Works Tarmac, with Shimano Di2 and an SRM power meter, would retail for at least $11,000, but this custom-painted version would go for a good bit more. It weighs a tad under 15 pounds.
"When designing Peter’s worlds bike I took three important factors into consideration," said Ron Jones, lead road designer at Specialized. "The first, of course, is Peter's panache and flair on the bike. I've translated this into the rainbow effect paint, camouflage, and gold head badge on the bike.
"Second is his respect for the sport, which is represented by the placement of the names of all winners of previous world championships in the down tube logos. I felt it was important for both past winners and our newest champion to be represented in this way.
"And then there's his Slovakian heritage, a design cue which I added by applying elements of the flag in the graphic, as well as transitioning the rainbow camouflage into the Slovakian flag colors on the fork and seat stay. Peter had a big challenge ahead of him with such a small team, but having their constant, vigilant support made all the difference for him on the day."
The frame's downtube features the double cross of the Slovakian coat of arms.
The colorful design works well against the black frame and fork.
"I didn't want to be creatively limited by adhering rigidly to the traditional rainbow stripes, so avoiding them was a definite design choice for me. I choose a black and rainbow base over a more traditional white, and my goal was for this to be disruptive — kind of like Sagan's personality and style is," Jones said.
The world champ uses an SRM power meter to track his massive watts.
A gold Specialized "S" on the headtube, no less.
So inviting.
Lest anyone be confused whose bike this is ...
As world champ, Sagan will ride in the rainbow jersey in mass-start road races for the next year. Expect more wins in 2016.
This week Sagan is racing in Abu Dhabi:
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You can watch the highlights from Sagan's big win in RVA below:
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Here's the planet's best cyclist in his brand-new world champion's kit with his $11,000 custom-painted bike
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