The name of Luca Oggiano it pops up for the first time speaking with Dario Cioni after Ganna Hour recordIt is soon understood that the Sardinian engineer, CEO of NabaFlow (company specialized in fluid dynamic solutions), is a key figure in Ineos' aerodynamic developmentsIn reality, his collaboration began much earlier, but few people know it. He was behind the development of the time trial suits and the many innovations introduced from time to time by the British team.
A few days ago, on the eve of the European Championships in Grenchen, Oggiano was in Montichiari with the national team. And so, curious about his role, we reached him in his office in Stavanger, on the Norwegian sea, where he has lived for 15 years nowNorwegian wife and children, a couple of jokes about sometimes feeling like Checco Zalone and off we go.
Good morning Luca, is the assignment with the Federation in some way a continuation of the collaboration with Ganna?
We work towards Paris, for implement some of the experiences that have been made with Filippo and with the Villa group, more than anything for the trackA mix of development for the athletes' positioning, but also the materials and the coordination of aerodynamic development, for both the women's and men's quartet.
Does this mean that new materials are being worked on for Paris?
The problem is that we have limited timeframes. Everything has to be delivered before the World Cup in August, so there are some projects in development and others that will be complicated to implement.I can't say everything in detail, but there's work being done on the athletes and the position that we can continue to develop even after the August date. Instead for materials we have this limit, so some things will be new and you will see them a little laterOthers, however, will be an optimization of what already exists.
What kind of work were you doing in Montichiari?
We went to do Complete 3D scanning of the athletes and digitally optimizing their positions, which is the basis of the work we also did with Ganna. We use animation techniques mixed with cloud simulations, with proprietary software that was also used for everything we did in Filippo's record.
What are the advantages?
First of all, the times are optimized, because you can run hundreds of simulations very smoothly and you also reduce the time it takes to test the athletesWe no longer go to the gallery to test 50-60 possible positions, perhaps even a little randomly, but you work already having a fairly clear idea of what you want to change or improve the athletes' positioning. The same approach is applied to materials and what can be developed. The biggest change, however, occurred three years ago.
What happened three years ago?
We started to implement Formula One technologies, basically. 3D simulations, done much more accurately, much faster, much more scaled. Aerodynamic studies have evolved. If one can optimize aerodynamics in any situation, the advantages are clear. They will clearly be superior on the track, slightly inferior in the time trialsIn any case, the lower the speed, the less aerodynamics influence. When you go uphill, for example, not only does your speed decrease, but you also no longer maintain a constant position. In short, there are many other factors that become determining.
So aerodynamics in road racing are less effective?
In a classical one, for example, or In one of the stages where you are in front and you push, aerodynamics plays a fundamental role. In short, the averages at Tour de France Last year's were scary. Well, at that level, aerodynamics play a fairly important role. As well as in some sprints.
Is cycling the main focus of your company?
We're a three-year-old startup, so we're small. Sports is one of our core businesses. The idea is to transfer the technologies from Formula One to professional sport.But then we also work with bridges, with fluid dynamics inside buildings, therefore inside cities. Wind turbines, fluid dynamics for offshore structures. So our business is also implementing methodologies and technologies in a much larger environmentWe're very focused on the green shift, trying to help companies save on cement and steel.
How will the work with the national team proceed?
The idea is to optimize times. The simulation tests will be the basis for those in the velodrome and make sure that athletes can produce the necessary power and maintain the position even with a certain comfortThen we'll go to the wind tunnel in Milan.
Are there any of your colleagues who exclude velodrome tests and consider only the tunnel to be reliable?
In 2023, we can't think like this. The three phases are complementary, you cannot afford to give up one of the steps.. As in Formula One, there is no way of taking the car from simulation to race: first you build the track.
Do you also work with other sports?
We are collaborators of the Norwegian Olympic Committee. So for example At the Alpine Ski World Championships all the Norwegian athletes collaborated with us, using our softwareWe manage all sports, especially winter sports leading up to the next Olympics, including triathlon, from an aerodynamic point of view.
How do you reconcile aerodynamics and comfort?
It depends on the discipline. The Hour Record was an extreme thingWe've worked a lot with triathletes, where it's important to look at the balance between comfort and aerodynamic performance. Some disciplines require shorter efforts, like a pursuit that lasts for minutes. So you can push more on the discomfort side, while making sure that the power produced by the legs is maximized.
Do the kids understand this reasoning?
Ganna is one of those who has embraced the cause with an open mind, even understanding that some steps sometimes require a little extra effort to find the best solution. It could mean an extra day of testing in the tunnel or velodrome. Steps that some may see as a waste of time, but which are actually very important. The aim is to make him understand that with that half day in the tunnel they can earn as much as they would in a month of trainingEvery athlete takes it differently. Some are very open, others are almost annoyed, but I don't know them well yet.
If you had to redo the Hour Record tomorrow, would you have any changes you'd like to suggest?
Yes, there are some things that actually need to be implemented. Some on the comfort side, because we didn't have much time to develop a dedicated saddle and Filippo suffered from it.And then there are the changes regarding the new regulations for the position. Philip is very tall and could have some advantagesWe've started working on it with Ineos, but we'll need to find time for testing for him too. His schedule isn't very open.
