KOGA is a Dutch bicycle manufacturer based in

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, fry, It Hearrenfean ) is a town and municipality in the province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the municipality had a population 50,859 (1 July). ...

Friesland Friesland (, ; official fry, Fryslân ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of ...

. The company is known for its long time partnership with Japanese frame manufacturer Miyata, producing bicycles and sponsoring racing teams under the brand name Koga Miyata. As of May 2010 the partnership ended and the company began manufacturing bicycles under the KOGA brand.
at ''koga.com''

History

The company was founded by Andries Gaastra in 1974
who had left his function at his father's company

Batavus Batavus BV is a Dutch bicycle manufacturer, owned by the Accell Group European Cycle conglomerate. Batavus Intercycle Corporation was the leading manufacturer of bicycles and mopeds in the Netherlands during the 1970s. During its most productive ...

. The name Koga is a combination of his surname and that of his wife Marion Kowallik. The addition of Miyata came from the cooperation with Japanese manufacturer Miyata. Koga Miyata relied on Japanese components from manufacturers such as

Shimano , originally and later , is a Japanese multinational manufacturing company for cycling components, fishing tackles and rowing equipment, who also produced golf supplies until 2005 and snowboarding gear until 2008. Named after founder Shozabu ...

. From 1980 Koga Miyata sponsored the ''IJsboerke'' cycle team whose member, the Dutch

Peter Winnen Peter Johannes Gertrudis Winnen (born 5 September 1957) is a Dutch former road racing cyclist. He competed at the 1980 Summer Olympics in road racing and finished in 26th place. After the Games he turned professional in 1981. Among his 14 victor ...

, won a stage in the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally passing through nearby countries. Like the other Grand Tours (the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España), it consists ...

at the

Alpe d'Huez L'Alpe d'Huez () is a ski resort in southeastern France at . It is a mountain pasture in the Central French Western Alps, in the commune of Huez, which is part of the department of Isère in the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is part of ...

soon after, leading to wider recognition. In 1992, Gaastra sold his company to the Atag Cycle Group, which had acquired Batavus six years earlier. KOGA is now owned by the Accell Group.

Products

Koga Miyata started with the use of Japanese components. The design and assemblage of the bicycles was done by hand in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. At first Koga Miyata only produced

racing bicycles In sport, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific goa ...

. In 1976 they added a range of randonneurs or touring bicycles, and in 1986

mountain bikes A mountain bike (MTB) or mountain bicycle is a bicycle designed for off-road cycling. Mountain bikes share some similarities with other bicycles, but incorporate features designed to enhance durability and performance in rough terrain, which m ...

. In 1993, after it was acquired by the Atag Cycle Group, Koga Miyata also produced

hybrid bicycles Hybrid bicycles blend characteristics from more specialized road bikes, touring bikes and mountain bikes. The resulting "hybrid" is a general-purpose bike that can tolerate a wide range of riding conditions and applications. Their stability, comf ...

. Koga now produce a range of e-bikes (bicycles with an electrical assist system).

Early models

Some of the early company brochures are publicly available for download. * Pro-Racer * Pro-Luxe * FullPro-L * Gents-Racer * Gents-Touring * Gents-Luxe * Road Racer * Road Winner * Road Speed * Road-Mixed * Silver-Ace

References

External links

* {{Japanese bicycle manufacturers Bicycle framebuilders Cycle manufacturers of the Netherlands Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1974 1974 establishments in the Netherlands Companies based in Friesland Heerenveen