Bikes

Colnago bikes in the pro peloton (2004-2026)

Take a ride down memory lane by tracking the evolution of Colnago bikes in the pro cycling peloton from 2004 to 2026…

Rob Arnold 09.09.2026

Continuing the retrospective series about bikes raced in the pro peloton we trace the history of the celebrated Italian brand, Colnago, which has been riding a wave of success on the racing scene again thanks to its association with UAE Team Emirates-XRG after a few years supplying bikes to lower-tiered teams.

Colnago has a long history of supplying trade teams with bikes before this period, including one of the most dominant teams of the 1990s, Mapei (through to its final season in 2002). That was around the time when a mix of materials were used in the construction of bike frames and Colnago was one of the early adopters of carbon-fibre – as per the C-40 and C50 (which were raced by the Rabobank team, as featured early in this bike gallery).

Michele Bartoli, wearing the leader’s jersey of the UCI’s World Cup series, and Paolo Bettini in Milan-Sanremo 1999. This was a halcyon time for the Mapei team and its bike supplier, Colnago. (*Photo: Stefano Sirotti*)

In 2026 Colnago is enjoying a strong resurgence in popularity thanks to the considerable publicity generated by the all-conquering UAE Team Emirates-XRG line-up that boasts Tadej Pogačar.

Ernesto Colnago holds the bike of Tadej Pogačar before the start of Milan-Sanremo in 2022. (*Photo: Stefano Sirotti*)

In 2020 Pogačar and his cohort raced Colnago bikes with Campagnolo groupsets, taking top honours in the biggest race of the season, the Tour de France, for the first time since 2006. The team’s long association with the Italian component brand ended after the 2022 season, with UAE Team Emirates switching to Shimano from 2023 onwards.

Curiously, despite the enormous success achieved by riders on Colnago bikes, it wasn’t until Pogačar made his debut in the TDF in 2020 that the Italian brand could lay claim to victory in that Grand Tour. Six years later, Colnago bikes are omnipresent both at the front of the peloton as UAE Team Emirates continue a dominant romp through the season as well as on the honour roll of numerous additional races, including fives Tours de France, a Giro d’Italia, two road race world championships… and the long list of conquests achieved by the Slovenian superstar.

Colnago at the TDF 2024

Click ‘Play’ on the link below and take a closer look at the bike Tadej Pogačar rode for the team presentation of the Tour de France in Florence, Italy a couple of years ago. It was a special-edition paint scheme on a bike that featured in the TDF but was never raced.