Deceuninck-QuickStep announce bike auction in support of climate projects

After fully offsetting their carbon emissions for the 2020 season by supporting climate projects in Uganda and on Mont Ventoux, Deceuninck-QuickStep have announced another step in their climate commitments.

Having worked with CO2Logic to supply clean drinking water in Uganda – which on its own made up for the squad's 2020 emissions total – and supported a conservation project on Mont Ventoux, the team will next support a reforestation project in Brittany and a forest conservation project in Guatemala.

The Belgian team announced on Tuesday that profits from the auction of a specially-designed Specialized Tarmac SL7 frame will go towards the project in Brittany, part of their #ItStartsWithUs campaign.

"At the start of Le Tour in France in Brittany, Deceuninck-QuickStep announced that it will support two new climate projects, including a reforestation project in the Bretagne region of France, where trees will be planted in collaboration with the CO2logic experts," read a statement issued by the team.

"Now the team will take this project to another level to give back to climate and the environment, getting the support of our sponsor Specialized."

Specialized principal concept designer Kayla Clarot said of the design, which is hand-painted and inspired by the Ventoux reforestation project: "We wanted to create a design that speaks to the life we see on the Ventoux, but also acknowledges the role humans have played, both good and bad."

Deceuninck-QuickStep's project is the latest of several carbon-neutral initiatives to have been put in place throughout the professional peloton in recent years.

Back in mid-2020, Movistar announced that they would support green projects, switch their team vehicles to hybrid models, and install solar panels at the team headquarters.

Earlier this season, Israel Start-Up Nation rider Michael Woods announced that he would also offset his carbon emissions having discovered that his carbon footprint amounted to roughly three times that of the average person in his region.