Marcel Kittel out riding Specialized bike before contract with Giant ends
The German rider posted a photo to Instagram of a striking pink S-Works 'cross bike that he'd been training on
Ahead of his move to Etixx - Quick-Step for the 2016 season, Marcel Kittel has been out training on a new bike.
The soon-to-be-former Giant-Alpecin rider is technically in contract with the German outfit until the standard contract switch date of January 1.
After a season from hell that saw him underperform in almost every race he entered, miss selection to the Tour de France and World Championships, Kittel was relased from his commitment to Giant-Alpecin a year early.
As such, it could be the case that all contractual obligations were also rescinded freeing up Kittel to ride whatever bike he likes.
https://instagram.com/p/-Ma7FtDMoO/?taken-by=marcelkittel
The striking pink S-Works shown in the photo is a cyclocross machine meaning the 27-year-old is unlikely to be sizing up a race bike for the Tour Down Under.
Conversly, as he probably won't be racing 'cross this winter, it might also not conflict with any lasting obligation to ride Giant road bikes.
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Riding the new machine may have something to do with Kittel's visit to Specalized's HQ in California.
https://instagram.com/p/-IzkIPjMrB/?taken-by=marcelkittel
Kittel will be looking to put 2015 behind him and the change of teams could be the fresh start the young sprinter needs to recapture the form that propelled him to multiple Grand Tour stages wins and Tour yellow jersey.
He has previously stated that he is not joing Etixx as a replacement Mark Cavendish, who is off to Dimension-Data, but with the sprint train still largely intact Kittel should be back to winning ways in no time.
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Jack Elton-Walters hails from the Isle of Wight, and would be quick to tell anyone that it's his favourite place to ride. He has covered a varied range of topics for Cycling Weekly, producing articles focusing on tech, professional racing and cycling culture. He moved on to work for Cyclist Magazine in 2017 where he stayed for four years until going freelance. He now returns to Cycling Weekly from time-to-time to cover racing, review cycling gear and write longer features for print and online.
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