The award winning 3T Strada aero road bike, dedicated to wider tyres and a single chainring drivetrain, will be the ride of choice for Aqua Blue Sport – the Irish UCI Professional Continental cycling team that launched in January 2017.
Aqua Blue Sport has a ‘long-term vision to compete on the highest stage of world sport with a team based on a unique, self-sustained funding model’. Founded by Irishman Rick Delaney, Aqua Blue Sport features a 16-strong rider roster supported by multi-retailer online marketplace – aquabluesport.com.
Rick Delaney, Team Owner, said that the concept of 3T’s revolutionary platform was the key to the decision in selecting the bike. He said “We at Aqua Blue Sport are very much attracted to innovation and people who are moving cycling forward. What Gerard Vroomen and 3T have designed is truly a step forward in bicycle design. We are delighted to bring this bike to the professional ranks and ride it in the world’s biggest events.”
Alongside a sponsor partnership between 3T and the Aqua Blue Sport pro cycling team, online marketplace aquabluesport.com will also become an official 3T online partner. It will be selling team bikes, the Strada aero road bike, the Exploro (billed as the world’s first aerodynamic adventure bike) and all other 3T products on aquabluesport.com.
Gerard Vroomen, 3T’s co-owner and Head of Design, said he is looking forward to building an innovative and long-lasting relationship with Aqua Blue Sport. He said “Aqua Blue Sport is doing something different, and that is exciting. We watched Aqua Blue Sport’s successes on the roads with victories at the US National Championships, the Tour of Austria and La Vuelta.”
He continued, “Even more importantly, they recognize that the pro-cycling business model has to change and their innovative new funding model is a great idea. Taking all of this together, we felt that this was something we really wanted to get involved in. We are very excited to supply 3T frames and parts and help Rick and his whole team to continue to make their project grow into an even bigger success.”
For 3T co-owner and CEO Rene Wiertz the new relationship is seen as a clear commitment to a long-term goal of future growth. Wiertz said, “It’s a testament to the forward-thinking vision of the Aqua Blue Sport project, its staff and riders that they have chosen the Strada to race on. We’re excited to work together with them in the coming years.”
3T will create an Aqua Blue Sport Edition Strada for the team that will debut at the start of the season in January 2018. Aqua Blue Sport will announce additional component partnerships in the coming weeks.
Aqua Blue Sport riders are supported by a top-tier backroom staff of sporting directors, high-performance coaches and race support personnel. With guaranteed financial backing for four years and rolling two-year contracts for riders, the mission is to create a rewarding team culture with athlete welfare firmly at its heart.
Having already notched success in its maiden season – including stage wins in the Tour de Suisse for US rider Larry Warbasse and in La Vuelta a España for Austrian Stefan Denifl (who also took overall victory in the Tour of Austria) – Aqua Blue Sport notes that it is firmly on track to achieve its ultimate goals: WorldTour status, participation in the Tour de France, and success for the team and its sponsor partners.
3T is a global company with three regional customer service offices (Italy; California, US; Taiwan) and 20+ service centres. Founded in Turin in 1961 as Tecno Tubo Torino (Turin Tube Technology), 3T adds that it has a track record of being ‘first’: first to introduce many modern alloys to cycling; first to produce a dedicated aerobar; first to win the ID design award; first to introduce dedicated gravel wheels; first to introduce an aero adventure frame and now the first to offer a dedicated 1x road frame with the Strada aero road bike.
www.3T.bike
www.aquabluesport.com
