Vittoria insists hookless rims were not to blame for De Gendt's crash

Tyre manufacturer Vittoria has dismissed claims that hookless rims were to blame for Thomas De Gendt’s dramatic crash at the UAE Tour, insisting instead that the Lotto Dstny rider hit a rock and that there were no compatibility issues between tyre and wheel.

Hookless rims, which use a flat internal rim wall instead of a fold for the tyre to mount onto, have come under fire since De Gendt’s crash, which saw his front tyre detach from the wheel, and the foam insert become tangled in his spokes.

Numerous figures in the sport have since flagged safety concerns over the technology, with the president of the professional riders’ association (CPA), Adam Hansen, said the union was “100% against” hookless technology.

Read more: Hookless rims under CPA scrutiny after Thomas De Gendt crash at UAE Tour

Vittoria has now responded with a statement in which it denies any link between the hookless system and the crash.

"In the aftermath of Thomas De Gendt's crash during the UAE Tour last week, there has been some discussion about the hookless system. It is crucial to clarify that the rim's failure resulted from an impact with an object, in this case, a rock, and is unrelated to the hookless rim design,” read the statement.

“The intensity of the impact caused the rim/wheel to break in a manner that prevented the tire from staying securely in place. The force was so severe that it tore apart the tire insert."

Vittoria went on to address question marks over compatibility, with hookless systems governed by tighter guidelines given the less secure interface between rim and tyre. It was suggested that De Gendt’s 28mm Vittoria Corsa Pro tyres were too narrow for the 25mm rim width on his Zipp 353 NSW wheels, according to the International Organisation for Standardisation’s guidelines that recommend a 29mm tyre for a 25mm hookless rim.

Read more: What are hookless rims and should we all be using them?

However, Vittoria insists De Gendt’s tyre was perfectly compatible with his wheels, citing the European Tire and Rim Technical Organization (ERTRO) as the standard to follow.

“It's important to emphasise that the accident was not a result of any compatibility issues among the components utilised by the team. The Vittoria Corsa PRO 28mm TLR underwent extensive testing on various hookless commercial wheels, including Zipp models (such as 353NSW),” read the statement.

“The compatibility was thoroughly validated through laboratory tests, outdoor field tests, and races, with official communication provided through the SRAM website.

“As members of ETRTO, we consistently develop our products in strict adherence to ETRTO norms, encompassing both current ETRTO standards and "Previous Standard Data (PSD)"