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Franziska Koch sprinted to victory at the end of Paris-Roubaix Femmes yesterday, fending off a two-on-one assault from no less than Marianne Vos andPauline Ferrand-Prévot.
The German national road race champion did so aboard her team-issued FDJ United-Suez Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8 race bike, and I took a look at the Roubaix winning machine as Koch gave her a winner's press interview post-race.
It was a fairly stock setup for Koch, nothing too crazy or unusual, but with some interesting details, such as Roval's fastest wheels, and a nice 1X aero chainring from British brand Drag2Zero, which you can look at below.
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What made it for me was the personal message Koch had applied to the tops of her handlebars before the race, which I saw on several of the women's machines. Her reminder to herself seemed to pay off, resulting in the biggest win of her career to date.
Koch took the win on her team-issue Specialized S-Works Tarmac SL8 team bike. I grabbed it in the press room post-race. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
It was fitted with an aero Drag2Zero chainring. I couldn't make out the tooth count, but it looked good. I haven't seen much Drag2Zero on WorldTour road bikes. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
Roval Rapide CLX Sprint wheels for Koch, claimed to be Roval's fastest, deepest option and designed for speed on the flat and in sprints. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
Nothing crazy here, just a functional, well-set-up race bike. Koch ran roughly 10mm of spacers under her stem. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
This made me smile, a nice personal note from Koch. It seemed she heeded her own pre-race advice and fought until the end; the reward was a Roubaix win. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
Very neat Di2 cabling here for Koch to prevent an unwanted snag, a zip tie at the chainstay and likely some inner tube over the upper derailleur link. Good work mechanics. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
The Drag2Zero chainring integrates very neatly with the Dura-Ace crank arm spider. It's looking mean. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
A K-Edge chain keeper and chain guide were both bolted to the front derailleur mount for maximum protection. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
32mm Specialized Cotto TLR tyres for Koch, this is a new tyre, essentially a super fast Turbo Cotton in tubeless form. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
Specialized S-Works 3D printed Power-Evo saddle for Koch. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
The shadows were getting longer in the velodrome as the dust settled at the end of a long day's racing. The winners bike stood alone at the side of the room for a few minutes, it's work done for the day. (Image credit: Tom Wieckowski)
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Tom joined the Cyclingnews team in late 2022 as a tech writer. Despite having a degree in English Literature he has spent his entire working life in the cycling industry in one form or another. He has over 10 years of experience as a qualified mechanic, with the last five years before joining Cyclingnews being spent running an independent workshop. This means he is just as happy tinkering away in the garage as he is out on the road bike, and he isn’t afraid to pull a bike apart or get hands-on with it when testing to really see what it’s made of.
He has ridden and raced bikes from an early age up to a national level on the road and track, and has ridden and competed in most disciplines. He has a keen eye for pro-team tech and enjoys spotting new or interesting components in the wild. During his time at Cyclingnews, Tom has already interviewed some of the sport's biggest names including Mathieu van der Poel, Tadej Pogačar and Alberto Contador. He's also covered various launches from brands such as Pinarello, Ridley, Specialized and more, tackled the Roubaix Challenge sportive aboard his own rim-brake Cannondale SuperSix Evo, tested over 20 aero helmets in the wind tunnel, and has created helpful in-depth buying advice relating to countless categories from torque wrenches to winter clothing.
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