Triumph in Rome: Yates rides to Giro victory with new saddle development
Simon Yates triumphs in Rome at the Giro d'Italia 2025, while Italian saddle specialist Prologo celebrates its second overall victory in a row. Prologo is the new technical partner of the Visma | Lease a Bike team in 2025. The 32-year-old Yates was able to pull away from his rivals on the penultimate stage over the dreaded Colle delle Finestre and defend the pink jersey all the way to the finish in Rome. The Scratch NDR saddle in particular, which Yates used during the three-week stage race, is said to have given the Briton optimum comfort and performance on all terrains.
Team success with strong helpers
The team performance of Visma | Lease a Bike was decisive for the Giro victory. All-rounder Wout van Aert in particular was an important helper for Yates. The Belgian classics specialist supported his captain in his attack on the queen stage over the Colle delle Finestre. Sprinter Olav Kooij also contributed to the team's success with a stage win on the final stage in Rome. The climbers Wilco Kelderman, Steven Kruijswijk and Bart Lemmen as well as the riders Edoardo Affini and Dylan Van Baarle completed the successful Visma | Lease a Bike line-up at the Giro d'Italia 2025.
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Wout van Aert shared a picture on Instagram showing him transporting Simon Yates in a child seat. The picture was shared several times. There is certainly some truth to it. Van Aert himself gave an insight into his statistics and was able to set a new personal best of over an hour on the Colle de Finestre. He had to give his all on the climb to prevent Yates from catching up with him. That worked. There was still a short breather before he became Yates' draft horse.
Rather in the Giro he had already improved other records such as his average power over 10 minutes, which is now 518 watts. Scroll forward in the post below to see the statistics.
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New Prologo Predeator//01TT time trial saddle
Anyone who has ever sat on a saddle that doesn't fit knows that a good seat is also crucial for performance on the bike. A new time trial saddle concept from Prologo apparently also played a role in Simon Yates' Giro victory. While Yates spent most of the Tour of Italy on the Prologo Scratch NDR, the recently released Prologo Predator 01TT celebrated its official race premiere in the time trial from Lucca to Pisa. Pogacar already rode a prototype at the Tour de France last year and the final product was already in use at various races in the early 2025 season. The new saddle concept was developed in close collaboration with the World Tour teams Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Ineos Grenadiers and UAE Team Emirates.
CFD analyses were followed by wind tunnel tests in which the interaction between the bike, rider and saddle were also examined.
The side wings shield the saddle clamp from the airstream, while the rear section directs the air coming from the rider's back parallel to the road, thus reducing air resistance.
- Weight: 135 grams or 159 grams (manufacturer's specification)
- Price: 1,250 euros
Further successes for Prologo
In addition to Simon Yates' overall victory, Prologo enjoyed further successes at this year's Giro d'Italia. A total of six stage wins went to riders using saddles from the Italian manufacturer. In addition, the Italian climber Lorenzo Fortunato from Team XDS Astana secured the blue jersey of the best climber. For Prologo Managing Director Salvatore Truglio, the renewed Giro triumph is a great honour in view of the extremely high level of competition. They are proud to have contributed to the success with their technical expertise.
Leon Weidner
Working student
