Chapter 339 - 178: Preparing for the Tour de France, Strengthening ITT Training

With Red Bull’s acquisition, the Bora Team, featuring Huang Chong, was now under an even brighter spotlight.

The brand’s influence in the world of global extreme sports was undeniable.

What’s more, their timing for entering the professional road cycling scene was perfect—right before the start of the Tour de France.

As the team’s newly appointed core rider, Huang Chong naturally became the perfect brand ambassador for Red Bull and the team in the China Region.

The entire team’s style was set to undergo a complete transformation.

Black cycling kits, centered around the Red Bull brand, would replace Bora’s original green and yellow two-tone jerseys.

The road bikes’ paint job would also shift from the original military green to a brand-new, all-white design featuring the Red Bull logo.

All the new equipment had, of course, been prepared long in advance. Everyone was just waiting for the perfect moment for the official announcement, ready to have the travel-weary riders play their part before dropping the bombshell.

After the Tour de Dauphine, Huang Chong returned to Germany with the team. Along the way, he made a special trip with them to the Red Bull Group headquarters in Austria.

The purpose was twofold: to shoot new promotional photos for the team and to get a feel for the new shareholder’s corporate culture.

All in all, this period of business engagements before the Tour de France felt like something out of a movie.

But it was even more thrilling than a movie.

Because in this life, for him to have reached this position as a Chinese cyclist was already an extraordinary achievement in itself.

And as August approached and the UCI transfer window opened, in what capacity would he shine for the brand-new Red Bull Bora Team?

This was the ultimate answer that road cycling fans across the globe were waiting for.

After the official rebranding to Red Bull Bora, all of the team’s official accounts in China, including the brand logo, were updated immediately.

At the same time, they released promotional photos of the entire team, announced the eight-man roster for this year’s Tour de France, and new individual promotional shots of Huang Chong.

This undoubtedly caused an instant uproar across the Chinese internet.

Almost simultaneously, major domestic sports channels in China, including the official accounts of Zhejiang Sports and CCTV Sports, reposted and publicized the news of Huang Chong’s upcoming participation in the Tour de France.

For the domestic road cycling community, this was undoubtedly earth-shattering news.

"It’s like Christmas, everyone! Huang Chong is really going to the Tour de France!!"

In a fan group for watching races, the excited group admin immediately forwarded the Red Bull Bora Team’s official post, instantly sparking a wild celebration among all the fans in the chat!

"Awesome! The pride of China!! Hope Huang Chong does well in the Tour de France!!"

"He performed so well in the Tour de Dauphine, so it’s no surprise he made the Tour de France roster. Now I just hope he can go head-to-head with Pogačar in the mountain stages!!!"

"Logically speaking, it’s still too difficult for Huang Chong to beat Pogačar right now. But given his form at the Tour de Dauphine, he definitely has a shot against Beloved Consort. Let’s see which of them has more Ball when the time comes!!"

"I agree with the post above. As a first-year rookie, winning the Tour de France is too much to ask, but we can definitely hope to see him on the podium!"

"I’m just too broke to go to France and watch it live!!!"

"Any big dick in here willing to sponsor my travel expenses? I’m ready to call you godfather!!!"

...

Meanwhile, in a Hangcheng industrial park, all the assembly lines at a cycling equipment manufacturing base, established just early this year, were already up and running.

But in the CEO’s office, the three major shareholders had gathered. They weren’t concerned with matters on the assembly line.

They too were busy scrolling through the news about Huang Chong’s upcoming Tour de France debut.

"See? I told you so! My boy was definitely going to make it to the Tour de France this year!

So, how about it, Eldest Young Master Zhou? Time to book the flights and hotels, isn’t it?

Get our itinerary sorted!"

Dewey said with a chuckle, scrolling on his phone while sipping Zhou Ming’s top-grade Longjing tea.

Hearing this, Zhou Ming, who sat in the CEO’s chair, had nothing to argue.

As the saying goes, a man’s word is his bond. He was a businessman; for him, keeping his promises was paramount.

Zhou Ming stated plainly,

"I’ll have someone arrange it right away. Just give me your IDs. It’ll be first-class flights and five-star hotels the whole way."

Li Zifan, the most level-headed of the three, didn’t forget to add a reminder:

"General Manager Zhou, watching the race is one thing, but we also need to get our company’s documents in order.

After all, this trip to Europe is for business.

Also, General Manager Du, find some time before we leave for France to contact Huang Chong. Give him a heads-up that we’re coming.

And remember, we’re going as a business delegation.

The Red Bull Bora Team is incredibly popular in the country right now.

If we can negotiate a collaboration with their team—for instance, becoming their sole official distributor in the country—we could not only gain access to their supply channels but also leverage their popularity to launch and sell our own products."

Dewey was clueless when it came to corporate business matters; it wasn’t his area of responsibility.

But he was certainly aware of the company’s strategic planning, as he had to attend the shareholder meetings.

He nodded.

"Don’t worry, General Manager Li. I’ll talk to Huang Chong about this beforehand. I’ll have him act as our go-between with the Red Bull Bora Team!"

...

「Xianyun County.」

As July approached, Huang Lingshan’s college entrance exam scores had, of course, already been released.

Unsurprisingly, they were a complete disaster.

Her scores for the six subjects added up to less than 300 points. She was the slacker of all slackers.