Will we still see Campagnolo in the WorldTour in 2024?
BMC bikes of AG2R Citroën Team at the UAE Tour(Image credit: Getty Images)
AG2R Citroën Team are rumoured to be parting ways with team sponsor and frame manufacturer BMC at the end of the year after three years of partnership.
According to a story published by French newspaper Ouest France, the French team are set to drop BMC at the end of the year and make the switch to Van Rysel bikes for the 2024 season.
Van Rysel is the performance road arm of the French chain Decathlon. Decathlon produces bikes, componentry and cycle clothing bearing the Van Rysel brand name.
Decathlon has a history of its bikes being ridden at the highest level of the sport by French teams. AG2R has competed on Decathlon's Penta and Btwin bikes in previous years and Cofidis have also raced on Decathlon bikes in the past.
Sylvain Calzati's Ag2rPrévoyance Decathlon bTwin FC700 bike from 2007 (Image credit: Shane Stokes)
Launched in 2018, Van Rysel is headed by Nicolas Pierron who stated in an earlier interview with Ouest France last year, "The desire is to return to the World Tour in 2023" signalling the brand's strong intentions to be represented in the WorldTour once more. Van Rysel currently supplies the Cofidis team with both cycling and casual wear.
The brand also released seven new bike models this year at the Velofollies show in Kortrijk, Belgium. The new models include a time trial bike, a gravel model and performance road machines. As well as a range of clothing, shoes and even a smart trainer.
A concept bike named the PNPL 3.0 was also displayed which showcases the brand's partnership with Autodesk, a company that specialises in Generative Design. This involves using artificial intelligence and 3D printing bikes or components. This could be useful in a WorldTour setting to produce custom time trial bar components for instance.
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The top tube of the Van Rysel XCR time trial bike signals its intentions for 2024 (Image credit: Van Rysel)
Campagnolo currently provides AG2R Citroën with groupsets and wheels, but we will be interested to see whether their equipment will feature on the Van Rysel bikes next year as an increasing number of teams have switched away from Campagnolo in recent years. If AG2R were to move to Sram or Shimano, it would see Campagnolo not feature on a single WorldTour bike in 2024.
That said, one of the new Van Rysel models, the RCR road bike looks set to feature Campagnolo equipment in its stock model, so perhaps the Italian manufacturer will remain on board.
We did recently report that a new wireless Campagnolo groupset may well be on the way, so Campagnolo may push hard for increased presence across the WorldTour to best showcase their new shifting technology.
Cyclingnews has reached out to AG2R Citroën for comment but for now, the team remain tight-lipped. We will provide more details on this story when we know more.
Tom joined the Cyclingnews team in late 2022 as a tech writer. Despite having a degree in English Literature he has spent his entire working life in the cycling industry in one form or another. He has over 10 years of experience as a qualified mechanic, with the last five years before joining Cyclingnews being spent running an independent workshop. This means he is just as happy tinkering away in the garage as he is out on the road bike, and he isn’t afraid to pull a bike apart or get hands-on with it when testing to really see what it’s made of.
He has ridden and raced bikes from an early age up to a national level on the road and track, and has ridden and competed in most disciplines. He has a keen eye for pro-team tech and enjoys spotting new or interesting components in the wild. During his time at Cyclingnews, Tom has already interviewed some of the sport's biggest names including Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Alberto Contador. He's also covered various launches from brands such as Pinarello, Ridley, Specialized and more, tackled the Roubaix Challenge sportive aboard his own rim-brake Cannondale SuperSix Evo, tested over 20 aero helmets in the wind tunnel, and has created helpful in-depth buying advice relating to countless categories from torque wrenches to winter clothing.
