Colnago C68 Fleur-de-Lys Limited Edition Bike

The Colnago C68 Fleur-de-Lys Limited Edition Bike marks the start of the 2024 Tour de France in Florence. Colnago built it as a numbered run of 111 bikes, and the fleur-de-lys, the lily that links Florence with France, runs through the livery, the saddle and the bottle cages. It is a collector's piece and a complete race bike at once, and the two halves of that description are both accurate.

The C68 underneath

The C68 is Colnago's flagship carbon road frame. It uses modular carbon construction built from eight carbon parts, and it is made for disc brakes with a carbon fork, internal cable routing and a round 1-1/8 inch steerer section. A T47 bottom bracket gives the cranks an oversized shell to work from. The geometry leans toward racing. The 53cm size has a 72.5-degree head angle, 575mm of stack and 395mm of reach, so you sit low and forward, though the head tube leaves some room to dial in bar height. Chainstays are 408mm on the 48.5cm and 414mm on the 53 and 55cm, which keeps the rear end tight.

Colnago has been building bikes in Cambiago, Italy, since Ernesto Colnago opened his workshop in 1954. The C68 is the current top of that lineage, and this edition builds the whole bike around it.

Dura-Ace Di2 with Colnago touches

The groupset is Shimano Dura-Ace Di2, 12-speed, with 9270 hydraulic disc shifters and brakes, a Dura-Ace 9200 crankset and an 11-30 cassette. Colnago swaps in custom Carbon-Ti chainrings in 52/36, and Carbon-Ti X-Rotor rotors measuring 160mm in front and 140mm in the rear. A CeramicSpeed SLT headset and a limited-edition CeramicSpeed rear derailleur pulley set are part of the build. The 52/36 combination covers fast flat roads and still gives you a usable inner ring on long climbs.

The cockpit is Colnago's CC.01 integrated carbon bar and stem, in a limited edition carrying a gold Tour de France logo. Cables disappear into the frame, so the front end stays clean.

Wheels, tires and the details

The wheels are ENVE SES 4.5, a limited Colnago x Tour de France edition, hand-spoked in Italy with gold spokes that pick up the colors of the paint. Continental GP5000 S tires in 700x28 do the work on the road. The saddle is a Prologo Nago R4 in a Fleur-de-Lys edition, the bar tape is black Colnago Grip, and the bottle cages are limited-edition replicas of the Tour de France trophy. A Colnago x Tour de France bike cover and a collector's booklet come with the bike. Pedals are not included.

Who it is for

The Fleur-de-Lys comes in 48.5, 53 and 55cm. The numbered edition and the livery will appeal to collectors, and Colnago riders who want a flagship build with some Tour de France history will find the same here. Nothing about the build is held back for show. It is a full race-grade C68, and it is meant to be ridden hard.