Press Release: The Olympia F1 29er

With Eurobike barely weeks away, it’s time to get ready for all of those bizarre Italian, French and German products that we never really hear or see any other time of year. We quite enjoy it though, as it’s always intriguing to see how these Euro companies can offer something different from what we’re used to seeing.

One of those brands is Olympia, which is an Italian cycling company with a 100+ year history steeped in road racing. They also build mountain bikes too, though their focus is very much on the lightweight XC realm, with lots of carbon fibre goodies designed for Lycra-clad whippets. Drawing from their road experience, Olympia have just unveiled their latest 29er race bike that’s boldly called the “F1”. Is it worthy of the name? Checkout the press release from Olympia below:

Press Release: The élite of the MTB 29er range; a bike that challenges shape and design without any comprise, thinking out of the box. It’s F1. A name, a goal, the exceptional XC high profile.

The front 29er Olympia MTB range has been revolutionised for 2017. The company at Piove di Sacco (PD) is proud to launch F1, a new model destined to be talked about wherever it goes. And it wasn’t named by chance.

Created also thanks to the feedback from the top bikers who are racing in the Olympia teams, and who are using the company frames in national and international competitions, such as the XCO Italian champion Daniele Braidot (GS Forestale Cicli Olympia Vittoria), and the Columbian champion Leonardo Paez (Olympia-Polimedical), F1 features an uncompromising design, with artfully designed oversized sections and refined tubes, not only for aesthetic purposes.

Featuring a rugged steering section and bottom bracket joint, the weight of F1 is reduced where stress does not require the special addition of material, for the benefit of the overall weight and rigidity of the assembly (1,050 g, size S). The lowered and tapered steering section is inserted in a solid joint, the result of long- standing technical and style research, and providing the point of departure for the horizontal and down tubes. This creates an exceptionally rigid block able to withstand and absorb all stress generated by the latest generation forks, such as the ROCK SHOX RS1. From the expert design of tube connections, a unique detail is also created with a special part which intentionally recreates the O of Olympia.

The horizontal tube is slightly raised and oversized immediately behind the steering section, to improve absorption of the stress generated by the fork and handles of 700 mm and more, normally used on the 29ers. The vertical rear stays are joined to the seat tube joint with a very enlarged flat section, and are also perfectly integrated with the horizontal tube, so that stress generated by the rear wheel is better distributed across the entire frame. The seat tube houses a saddle post of 27.2 and features a coupling that reinforces the zone protruding from the rear stays.

With a monocoque design and the latest generation carbon fibers, such as the Toray T1000 offering minimal weight and maximum rigidity, expertly alternated with the M40J and T800, F1 features a rear stay with BOOST specifications of 148 mm and thru axle diameter of 12mm. This strengthens the frame on the transverse plane, while the forward mounted vertical tube and flattened section of the vertical rear stays maintain optimal flexibility along the longitudinal axis, giving the wheel excellent grip on terrain, both uphill and downhill. Overall the rear stay is shorter, to achieve maximum reactivity and aggression on terrain uphill. Lastly the bottom bracket version is PressFit 41X92, well secured to the seat tube and down tube to ensure minimal dispersion of pedalling force.

In aesthetic terms, the research by Olympia R&D has worked on the F1 frame to maximise a clean cut design, especially when dealing with the increasing use of separate components. The steering zone, where stress is minimal compared to the rest of the frame, integrates internal cable routing. The horizontal tube is thus not drilled to route cables, thereby avoiding zones at risk of breakage in the areas subject to most stress. Again to maximise style, the dérailleur coupling is also hidden. F1 is available in the white/red/black version, and in sizes S-M-L. Available for delivery from October 2016.