"My appeal to the UCI is clear: ban it" - Sep Vanmarcke speaks out against hookless rims

The ever-evolving nature of cycling means teams are constantly looking to develop ways to find an advantage. One of the more recent developments, is the use of hookless rims, although according to ex-pro turned Israel - Premier Tech sports director Sep Vanmarcke, the UCI needs to move quickly to ban this particular novelty.

"With normal rims, or hooked rims, there is a rim on the inside of the rim where the tyre hooks behind so that the tyre stays in place. Now wheel manufacturers have been busy in recent years developing rims without such a rim: hookless rims," begins Vanmarcke to Het Nieuwsblad, explaining in layman's terms what the debate is about. "They are cheaper to produce, they are lighter and the lack of that ran means the tyre can sit more nicely against the rim, with the result that it is more aerodynamic and therefore faster."

Cheaper, faster and more aerodynamic they may be, but there are also clear issues with hookless rims. "That all sounds nice, but there is one huge disadvantage to it: it is absolutely not safe," Vanmarcke warns concernedly. "There is no rim holding the tyre in place, the tyre shoots off if you have a puncture. And then, as a rider, you just don't have a chance, with all the consequences."

One such instance happened recently on stage 2 of the 2025 Etoile de Besseges. There, Marc Brustenga of Equipo Kern Pharma spectacularly crashed in final sprint for the line, seemingly out of nowhere. "When I saw it happen, I immediately thought: this is because of the hookless rims he is riding with," Vanmarcke recalls. "Equipo Kern Pharma has Cadex as a cycling sponsor and indeed: they sell hookless rims. One plus one is two." It must be noted that a Giant spokesperson has since told Cyclingnews that the cause of the incident was the "result of wheel damage sustained when he struck a hole in the road at high speed," adding that it was "not the result of a tyre or rim malfunction."

Nevertheless, the 36-year-old former Omloop Het Nieuwsblad winner is concise in his message to the sport's governing body. "My appeal to the UCI is clear: ban it," he pleads.