Bianchi to Withdraw From Off-Road Racing in 2020

Jul 15, 2019
by James Smurthwaite  
Stephane Tempier had a strong ride to fifth place.

Bianchi has this weekend announced it will no longer be fielding an off road race team from 2020 onwards citing "a new strategic direction involving the Bianchi Reparto Corse (Bianchi Racing division)."

Bianchi have been involved in XC World Cup racing for 29 years and in its time has picked up an Olympic Gold Medal with Julian Absalon at Athens in 2004, alongside 13 World Championships, 13 European Championships, 4 World Cup overalls and 65 National Championships (45 Italian, 20 foreign). Even this weekend, they added another World Cup podium to the tally with Stephane Tempier finishing fourth in the men's race.

Stephane Tempier had a mega ride today. the muck wasn t slowing him down. He rode to second.

The Bianchi Countervail will officially wrap up its activities from 31st December 2019, which will leave Nadir Colledani, Stepahne Tempier and Chiara Teocchi looking for a new team this off-season. In an official statement, Bianchi said: "Bianchi sincerely thanks the champions of the past, today’s athletes, management and staff and partners of Team Bianchi Countervail, for the valuable contribution to achieve significant results, sharing an exciting sporting history and more."

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Racing and Events Bianchi Stephane Tempier


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51 Comments
  • 196 6
 Today I learned that Bianchi still makes mountain bikes.
  • 22 1
 Gutted to hear about this. (sorry, someone had to use the word gutted in response to any less than positive mtb news)
  • 28 2
 Are they still gonna make that spray for bad breath?
  • 1 2
 @maxyedor same
  • 5 0
 @smithcreek: People are no longer gobsmacked by much these days.
  • 3 0
 @Duderz7: Binaca??
  • 9 0
 @Duderz7: *Golf Clap
  • 2 12
flag owlie (Jul 15, 2019 at 12:05) (Below Threshold)
 I thought they this was a Walmart brand now
  • 4 4
 @owlie: English much?
  • 4 9
flag owlie (Jul 15, 2019 at 15:27) (Below Threshold)
 @DirtbagMatt: only when whispering in your misses ear.
  • 1 0
 @Duderz7: hahahaha
  • 2 0
 @DirtbagMatt: dont make eye contact, Grammar police just showed up.
  • 2 0
 @owlie: right? gotta talk to the toddlers like a toddler. haha
  • 1 0
 @smithcreek: Exactly. About as obnoxious as, ‘I know, right?’, which unfortunately, is the perfect response to your comment.
  • 57 2
 I'm really going to miss seeing their DH and enduro bikes at the races.
  • 17 0
 So they are quitting before the next Olympics? I thought a new Methanol just came out. Also, I love their paint jobs. My parents own road bikes from the 1980's and they still look great.
  • 14 0
 Bummer. Anyone that raced NORBA's back in the day will remember the Bianchi/Martini team. Gene Oberpiler et al.
  • 3 0
 Gene-O owns a shop a couple miles from my house. He's still the man!
  • 1 0
 @ReXTless: What's the shop called, and where is it?
  • 3 0
 @swassskier:

One On One. 4461 Minnehaha Ave.
  • 1 0
 @swassskier: oops, I pressed submit a bit quick. It's in Minneapolis
  • 11 1
 might be that Bianchi uses the same factory that Trek uses.... I lost interest in Bianchi when they moved operations to China. In 1985ish, my first real bike, a Bianchi Veloce built with all Campy Record, made in Italy... had those super cool looking Delta V brakes (which sucked ass and were a bitch to work on but man, they looked cool). It was accidently built with Record, it was supposed to have Campy Chorus but, the shop gave me a dealeo I couldn't refuse due to the cost of the mistake.... basically gave me the Record kit a little over cost. shooting myself for selling it about 10 years later for like $300
  • 11 0
 In 1991, I bought my wife a Bianchi mountain bike as a wedding gift. She never had or learned how to ride a bike. Nearly thirty years later, we no longer have the bike and she is no better a rider than the day I taught her.
  • 11 0
 Interesting move, are they pulling the plug on their MTB line entirely I wonder?
  • 2 0
 I wonder the same thing. I can't imagine they sell a lot of mountain bikes. I've never seen one on the trails.
  • 12 0
 They can sell all their stockpiled Celeste colour paint to Yeti.
  • 9 1
 Bianchi to stop making/selling mountain bikes. They expect to see no changes to their current sales numbers in the mountain bike part of their business. LOL
  • 8 0
 Bianchi continuing their strategic move to irrelevancy.
  • 10 2
 Press F to pay respects
  • 1 1
 ROFLMAO
  • 6 2
 Well, they never even bothered to update their geometry since the '90s. Still rocking a 71deg heat tube angle on the hardtail, and a 70.5deg on their full suspension XC bike. Of course they're not selling bikes.
  • 2 0
 They released the CV RS in 2018 with 69.5° head tube angle : bikerumor.com/2018/08/10/bianchi-methanol-cv-rs-s-reshape-lighter-faster-bump-eating-xc-hardtails
  • 1 0
 Isn't it just that to compensate for the added stability of the bigger wheels, brands initially steepened head angles and increased fork offset? That's part of why the first generations of 29ers looked so odd. Most modern 29ers now (in general, not talking about Bianchi) now have the angles back to normal, fork offset reeled back in and everything else supersized (stanchion diameter, rear mech cages, fork travel, wider rims to give tires more volume etc). Sure other brands have gone a bit further now but not even that much for the same category. My Cannondale Prophet from 2007 has a 67.5deg head angle. Their Habit now has 66deg. Reach is about the same as what I have. So yeah back to Bianchi, they may have gotten slightly more stable (due to the bigger wheels). But apparently their customers don't demand much more.
  • 10 7
 " they added another World Cup podium to the tally with Stephane Tempier finishing fourth"
I thought a podium finish was top 3, no?
  • 6 0
 That is the generic meaning of the term, but in a discipline-specific context where a physical podium which accomodates more (here five) places is typical, it might be understood to refer to that expanded number.
  • 6 4
 @werics: Thanks for clarifying that. Strange to get downvoted for asking a legit question, especially as there is no "4" or "5" on the podium, but there is a 1,2, and 3.
I'm curious about when this started to become a thing.
As usual, feel free to downvote this for asking another legitimate question.
  • 16 0
 @woofer2609: For roadies its 3. Mountain biking is 5 and has been since 1994. A world cup in Cairns, Australia wanted to include a junior rider who raced the mens race named Cadel Evans. It stuck and there has been five ever since.
  • 2 0
 @donhix1: Thanks for the info! That's a cool story. Geez, tough crowd on PB somedays.
  • 2 0
 @woofer2609: It may have been like that for WC racing, but the confusing bit starts when you include the olympics (since 1996) and maybe also the World Championships. Not sure but wasn't the Worlds also down to three podium spot? I think it is time to just introduce more medals and introduce a five person podium everywhere. In the music bizz you have a platinum record which is more valuable than gold, so that should bump the other three medals down one spot. And for the fifth place, maybe lithium. It sure is a valuable metal these days. Just watch out for the champagne shower.
  • 2 0
 @vinay: or "Gold stars for everyone!"
  • 4 1
 Bianchi make mountain bikes? ha!
  • 2 0
 Won't be surprised if they anounce a e-bike racing team next. Strange days.
  • 3 0
 Arrivederci Celeste!!!
  • 2 0
 Should be going customer direct right about now.
  • 1 0
 Wonder if this is part of the reason(s) Marco left for e-mtb
  • 1 0
 Marco left for e-MTB because he wasn't strong enough to compete under his own power anymore.
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