This year’s surprise wild-card entry for the Giro went to the all-Russian Gazprom – RusVelo team, which is part of the Russian Global Cycling project aimed at developing domestic talent. The Russian team rides Italian-made Colnago C60 bikes and hangs an assortment of Italian components from the classic carbon frame. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
This year’s surprise wild-card entry for the Giro went to the all-Russian Gazprom – RusVelo team, which is part of the Russian Global Cycling project aimed at developing domestic talent. The Russian team rides Italian-made Colnago C60 bikes and hangs an assortment of Italian components from the classic carbon frame. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Gazprom’s Alexander Kolobnev is a former Team Katusha rider with extensive WorldTour and ProTour history, having raced with Rabobank, CSC, Saxo, and Katusha since 2005. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Colnago’s carbon C60 frames have a lugged look like the company’s iconic steel bikes. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
White markings on the seatpost and collar provide an easy reference to check Kolobnev’s saddle height and ensure that it hasn’t slipped while riding on the Dolomite’s bumpy mountain roads. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Kolobnev’s bike uses an alloy Deda Zero 100 Performance stem. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Professional riders weren’t the first to train and race with power, but now every pro racer has his watts at his fingertips. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Campy’s Record EPS shifters offer a clicking sensation more similar to mechanical shifting than other electronic systems like Shimano Di2 and SRAM eTap. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Protective housing keeps Campy’s electronic shift wires protected from the elements. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Gazprom uses Campy’s second-tier Record EPS electronic drivetrains. The interface, hooked to the stem, is the thinking center of the EPS system that translates impulses from the controls to digital signals that are transferred down the bike to the derailleurs. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Gazprom uses Campagnolo Bora Ultra 35 wheels on the front and rear for flat and climbing stages alike. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Each team has a unique way to affix riders’ numbers to the bikes. Gazprom works off the seatpost collar for a secure fit. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
As a Pro Continental squad, Gazprom doesn’t have the same sponsorship opportunities as some of the bigger WorldTour teams so second-tier products like Campy’s Record EPS — instead of Super Record EPS — are the components of choice. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Kolobnev opts for the standard 53/39 chainring setup that we’ve seen on many of the bikes here at the Giro. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
The 39-tooth small chainring provides gears small enough for the pros to get up some of Italy’s most challenging climbs. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Gazprom pairs the 53/39 chainrings with 11-29t cassettes for a wide range of gears to suit the ups, the downs, and the flats of the Giro d’Italia. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Campy’s Bora Ultra 35 wheels are exceptionally light and stiff: the ideal combination for tough WorldTour racing. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Kolobnev uses a classic Selle Italia team edition saddle without a cutout. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
Adding to the team’s assortment of Italian-made bike components, Gazprom uses Elite custom race bottle cages. Photo: Kristen Legan | VeloNews.com
THE 2020 TOUR DE FRANCE
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