LeBron James turning from basketball to bicycles with Canyon

LeBron James is turning from basketball to bicycles, after a £25m fundraising for German brand Canyon. 

The American athlete, one of the greatest players ever, picked up a 4 per cent stake alongside pal Maverick Carter as their investment vehicle LRMR Ventures led a funding round. 

It valued Canyon at £623m, with LRMR’s stake worth £25.2m. 

Canyon was set up by Roman Arnold in 2002 in Germany. It sells road, mountain, triathlon and urban bikes for as much as £11,349, and had sales last year of £398m, with £52m in profit. 

Sales have grown by 21 per cent per year since 2015, and soared through lockdowns as people turned to outdoor hobbies. 

Arnold, who owns 40 per cent, said James and Maverick’s passion for Canyon will make them ‘instrumental members’ of the team. 

He said they ‘immediately understood’ Canyon’s mission. It is majority-owned by Belgian investor Groupe Bruxelles Lambert.