Sagan the centre of attention at Spanish training camp
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Ralph Denk with two of his new riders Peter Sagan and Pascal Ackermann(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The Bora-hansgrohe jersey(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The back of the new jersey(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The team has remained with the all-black shorts(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The Bora-hansgrohe bib-shorts(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Peter Sagan talks to the media(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Peter Sagan talks to team manager Ralph Denk(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Peter Sagan answers questions from the media(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Rafal Majka talks to the press(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Leopold Konig back at his first team(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Peter Sagan wore plain clothes(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The sponsors were also in attendence(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The media get photos of Peter Sagan(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
The full Bora-hansgrohe kit(Image credit: Bora-hansgrohe)
Bora Hansgrohe's bike for 2017(Image credit: Peter Sagan)
A closer look at Peter Sagan's new steed(Image credit: Peter Sagan)
Bora-hansgrohe is the latest team to show off their new colours for the 2017 season with new leader Peter Sagan claiming he already feels at home at the new team.
With a new sponsor on board comes a slightly different look for the German-registered WorldTour squad. Black remains the key component of the new jersey, but white and blue accents have been brought in. A white stripe across the chest, shorts and sleeves hold the name of new sponsor Hansgrohe. A blue and white polka-dot pattern on the bottom half of the jersey is a hint towards their title sponsor Bora, which features dots in their logo. The team calls themselves Team BORA – hansgrohe, in a confusing mix of upper and lower case letters.
The jersey was unveiled at a press conference in Valencia with team manager Ralph Denk, Sagan, Rafal Majka and Leopold König. New signing Pascal Ackermann was also in attendance, wearing the new kit.
Sagan was the star of the show, and he will shoulder most of the burden of the team's ambitions in 2017.
Still contracted to Tinkoff until the end of the month, Sagan was in plain clothes rather than his jersey for next season. He has already been training with his new teammates several times.
"At the first team meeting in October I said that this is going to be a new adventure for all of us," Sagan said in a team press release. "Like BORA is working hard on their cooking revolution, I think, with this team, we can start a revolution in cycling. For me, it is key to have backing from the team and at BORA – hansgrohe I felt comfortable right from the beginning."
Between Majka and König, the team has two Grand Tour contenders. Earlier this week, Polish media reported that Majka would be Bora-hansgroge's leader at the Tour de France while König would focus on either the Giro d'Italia or the Vuelta a Espana. Majka confirmed that the Grand Boucle would be the centre of his season along with the Spanish Grand Tour, and indicated that König would be there beside him. Their goal for 2017 is to secure a top five finish in at least one Grand Tour.
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"Both of us, Leo and myself, can lead a team in a Grand Tour. I will focus on the Tour and the Vuelta next year. At the Tour, with Leo, myself but also with Peter, we can play a big role," said Majka.
"For BORA – hansgrohe it will be important how all the new riders can integrate themselves in this new team, but what I saw until now makes me confident that we find the right team spirit very fast."
Bora-hansgrohe team for 2017: Pascal Ackermann, Shane Archbold, Jan Barta, Erik Baska, Cesare Benedetti, Sam Bennett, Maciej Bodnar, Emanuel Buchmann, Marcus Burghardt, Silvio Herklotz, Michael Kolar, Patrick Konrad, Leopold König, Rafal Majka, Jay McCarthy, Jose Mendes, Gregor Muhlberger, Matteo Pelucchi, Christoph Pfingsten, Pawel Poljanski, Lukas Postlberger, Juraj Sagan, Peter Sagan, Aleksejs Saramotins, Andreas Schillinger, Michael Schwarzmann and Rudiger Selig.
