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Cycling (Olympic sport since 1896)
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Cycling Road |
Cycling Track |
Mountain Bike |
Cycling BMX |
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History |
Equipment |
Glossary |
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About
Bicycles were first developed in the mid-18th century and have long since been used as a form of transport. Originally, the front wheel was much larger than the rear wheel, and the rider was elevated a great deal, making them difficult to control and very dangerous. In 1885, J.K. Starley of England devised the more modern bike with a chain and gearing to allow the wheels to be of equal size. Although bicycle races had been held on the old "penny farthings", the new bikes stimulated the growth of bicycle racing as a sport.
Cycling at the Olympics features three exciting disciplines: road, track and mountain biking.
Cycling Road
About
Scottish blacksmith Kirkpatrick McMillan gave bicycle racing its first big boost back in 1839 when he devised a pedal-and-crank mechanism to power the two-wheeled machines. Until then, bicycles were pushed along by the feet. It rather limited their racing potential.
In the 1880s, cycling took another leap forward with the development of the chain-and-gearing system. With that, bikes evolved from the awkward penny-farthing style to the sleeker shape so familiar today. Since then, the sport's evolution has been a steady climb as athletes and engineers experiment with anything that might shave a few seconds off their times.
The sport's boom in the late 19th century made it a natural for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896. That inaugural Olympic road race was held on the marathon course, with riders completing two laps covering a total of 87 kilometres. Almost a century passed before women got their chance to race in 1984, and, 12 years later, at the 1996 Atlanta Games, time trials were introduced.
Competition
The men's and women's road races and time trials now comprise the four events that make up the Olympic road-racing programme.
The road races begin with mass starts. The men race over 239km and the women over 120. The time trials are raced against the clock, with riders starting at 90-second intervals. In those, the men race over 46.8km, the women over 31.2.
List of events
-- individual road race Men
-- individual road race Women
-- individual time trial Men
-- individual time trial Women
Cycling Track
About
Road racing and mountain biking relate easily to the average rider's view of cycling. Track cycling does not.
In track cycling, the riders go nowhere, just around and around an oval track banked at 42 degrees. The track's name - the velodrome - sounds space-age, and the helmets, suits and bikes bearing no resemblance to a common two-wheeler more closely resemble something out of Star Wars.
Those idiosyncrasies grew out of years of refinement, though. All were aimed at helping man push bicycles faster and faster.
The aerodynamic "funny bikes" of today offer greater speed than ever, despite their poorer manoeuvrability that leaves them ill-suited to pack racing.
The 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, in particular, fielded a wave of futuristic machines, including the debut of the spokeless, carbon-fibre disc wheel.
Another revolution occurred in the 1992 Barcelona Games, where Great Britain's Chris Boardman won his country's first cycling gold medal since 1920. Boardman broke world records and lapped the world champion in the final with a bike fully utilising carbon-fibre technology and aerodynamic cross-sections, weighing less than nine kilograms.
Track cycling evolved again during the Sydney 2000 Games, with a new range of races. Women competed in a 500-metre time trial, and men added the keirin, Madison and Olympic sprint races.
Competition
The full programme includes individual and team events, sprint and endurance races, pursuits, time trials and first-over-the-line finishes. The time trial, sprint, individual pursuit and points race include events for men and women. The 4000m team pursuit, Madison, keirin and Olympic sprint involve only men.
The Madison is a mass-start event comprising teams of two riders per team. It is similar to a team points race, as points are awarded to the top finishers at the intermediate sprints and for the finishing sprint. Only one of the two team riders is on the track at any one time, riding for a number of laps, and then exchanging with his partner, who is propelled onto the track by a hand sling from the cyclist leaving the track.
The keirin is one of the most exciting events in cycling because of the speeds. The event is a 2000 metre paced event in which the riders ride behind a motorised derny, which increases the potential speeds. The derny paces the riders for 1400 metres and then pulls off the track, at which time the cyclists begin a furious sprint to the finish. Keirin racing has traditionally been practised in Japan, where it has been a professional sport for over 20 years, and in which pari-mutuel betting on the riders is permitted.
The Olympic sprint is a team sprint event, with each team consisting of three riders. Two teams compete against each other, starting on opposite sides of the track, with the goal being to catch the other team, or finish three laps of the track first. Each of the three riders leads their team for a single lap. The time for the final rider to finish the third lap is the time for the team.
List of events
--1km time trial Men
-- 500m time trial Women
-- Individual Pursuit Men
-- individual pursuit Women
-- Keirin Men
-- Madison Men
-- Olympic Sprint Men
-- Points Race Men
-- points race Women
-- sprint Women
-- Sprint indivual Men
-- Team Pursuit (4000m) Men
Mountain Bike
About
First came the road race. It became the rage of the late 1800s, after the invention of the bicycle and before the invention of the car. Then came track racing. It was part of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, even though it looks space-age in its truly modern form. Then came mountain biking.
Mountain biking debuted in the Games in 1996 at Atlanta. The sport was about 40 years old then, if you date it back to the university student who first stripped down his bicycle, converted it and headed for the hills in 1953. The sport was just 20 years old, though, if you date it back to the first organised competition outside San Francisco.
The members of the Velo Club Mount Tamalpais generally receive the credit for establishing mountain biking as a sport. They invented the Repack Downhill race, held regularly between 1976 and 1979 just across the famed Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. The races attracted riders from near and far, and the media soon followed.
It was a cool sport, a fringe sport. By 1990, it had turned into a truly professional sport, complete with World Championships. Now, it came back at the Atlanta 1996 Games.
Competition
Cross-country sees the riders riding over what is usually a very hilly, sometimes mountainous course, usually on natural terrain. They may need to manoeuvre over trees, branches, rocks and streams.
Men race between 40 and 50 kilometres, and women cover 30 to 40km. The exact distances are decided the night before the race, when officials ponder the weather conditions and aim for an optimum finishing time of two hours and 15 minutes for the top man, two hours for the top woman. The course is set so men complete six to seven laps and women race five to six.
List of events
-- cross-country Men
-- cross-country Women
Cycling BMX
About
Bicycle moto cross (BMX) started in the late 1960s in California, around the time that motocross became a popular sport in the USA. The motorised version of the sport was the inspiration for the human-powered competition. Children and teenagers with the desire but not the means to participate in motocross sated their appetite by racing bicycles on self-built tracks. These young adventurers completed the imitation by dressing themselves up in motocross gear.
BMX racing offered exciting action at a low cost, close to home. It is easy to see why the sport was an instant hit. In California the sport was more popular than anywhere else. During the early 1970s a sanctioning body for BMX was founded in the USA. This is considered as the official start of BMX racing. As that decade progressed, the sport was introduced on other continents too, among them Europe in 1978.
In April 1981, the International BMX Federation was founded, and the first world championships were held in 1982. BMX rapidly developed as a unique sporting entity, and after several years clearly had more in common with cycling than motorcycling codes. Thus, since January 1993 BMX has been fully integrated into the International Cycling Union (UCI).
On 29 June 2003, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to include BMX in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
Competition
BMX races are held on circuits of around 350 metres, including jumps, banked corners and other obstacles. Eight riders compete in each heat (qualifying rounds, quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals), with the top four qualifying for the next round.
List of events
-- Individual Men
-- individual Women
History
Discipline's origin
Bicycles were first developed in the mid-18th century and have long since been used as a form of transport. Originally the front wheel was much larger than the rear wheel and the rider was elevated a great deal, thus making the bike difficult to control and therefore very dangerous. In 1885, J.K. Starley of England devised the more modern bike with a chain and gearing that allowed the wheels to be of almost equal size. Although bike races had been held on the old "penny farthings", the new bikes stimulated the growth of bicycle racing as a sport.
Bicycle racing became very popular world-wide in the 20th century, but in the 1930s this popularity waned in the United States. However, the sport continued to capture the interest of the European sporting community. One of the styles of bicycle racing was cyclo-cross, which was contested in the winters as an off-season training method for professional cyclists. It consisted of riding over difficult terrain, with the riders often dismounting to run over particularly rough areas. This sport developed in the early 20th century in France, with the first officially recognised world championships held in 1950.
In the 1970s, a new form of bicycle racing began to develop in California, somewhat similar to cyclo-cross. This consisted of riding different bikes from those used in cyclo-cross, with fatter tyres and a suspension system, over very uneven, difficult courses. It was contested both indoors, where it was known as BMX, short for bicycle motocross, and outdoors, where it developed into mountain biking. The first national championships in mountain biking were contested in 1983 in the United States, but the sport also became very popular in Europe and Australia. The first mountain bike world championships were held in 1987.
Olympic history
In 1993, cross-country mountain biking ("v¨¦lo tout terrain") became an Olympic discipline, making its Olympic debut in the programme of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Equipment
Mountain bike
Bicycle pants
Chainring
A large toothed ring (part of the chainset) that drives the chain via the pedals and cranks.
Chainstay
The two horizontal parts of the bike frame that join the bottom bracket to the rear wheel.
Cogwheel
A less commonly used term for a sprocket.
Cranks
The arms which drive the chainwheels. Cranks are bolted to the crankshaft.
Crankshaft
The axle to which the cranks are attached.
Derailleur
The mechanism which moves the chain from one chainring or sprocket to another.
Gear
The mechanism on a bike that changes its rate of motion; low gears make it harder to pedal while high gears make it easier.
Gloves
Handlebars
The part of the bicycle which the rider takes hold of.
Helmet
Saddle
The seat of a bicycle.
Suspension
A part of a bicycle which absorbs the impact of a wheel going over an obstacle, making for a smoother ride.
Sprocket
The rear cog, normally a smaller toothed ring, which fits onto the rear wheel; also called a cog or cogwheel.
Chainset
The setup comprising the chainwheels, chain and rear sprocket.
Glossary
Attack: A sudden acceleration to move ahead of another rider or group of riders.
Bottom bracket: A hole in the base of a bike frame where the axle unit is attached.
Break/breakaway: A rider or group of riders that has left the main group behind.
Brodie/broadie: In mountain biking, a locking up of the rear brake to force the rear end to skid around so as to make a sharp turn.
Bunny-hop: To jump the bike, without dismounting, over an obstacle.
Caliper brakes: A brake consisting of two brake blocks which are drawn towards each other through a central pivot and which grip the rim of the wheel.
Carve: 1. to make a hard turn with a smooth, clean line. 2. to gouge a groove or rut into dirt by sliding or spinning the rear tyre.
Chainsuck: The chain getting caught between the chainstay and the rear wheel.
Chasers: Riders trying to catch a breakaway group.
Clunking: The original term for mountain biking, when the practice involved stripping down cruiser bicycles and racing them down fire roads, trails etc.
Cornering clearance: The amount of lean angle a bicycle can have without digging a pedal; also called pedal clearance or road clearance.
Cross country: A mountain bike race contested over trails, bush or forest roads, tracks etc.
Digging a pedal: A pedal hitting the ground while the rider is leaning into a turn.
Downhill: A non-Olympic mountain bike event in which riders race down a hill one-by-one, the winner being the rider with the fastest time.
Draft: To ride closely behind a competitor, saving energy by using that racer as a windbreak.
Drift: The bike slipping sideways while going forward, usually as a result of taking a corner too hard.
Fat-tyre: A term for a mountain bike, so called because of their comparatively wide tyres.
Feeding station / zone: Terms for areas where riders in mountain bike or road races can pick up both food and liquid refreshments.
Force the pace: To increase speed to make the group to go faster.
Granny gear: The smallest chainring on a mountain bike, combined with the biggest sprocket to make the lowest gear; also called pixie gear or weenie gear.
Hammer: To ride hard.
Hardtail: A mountain bike with no rear suspension.
Highside: Being thrown from the bicycle in a direction counter to the turn.
Kick out: 1. a cornering technique in mountain biking that involves putting weight on the front wheel and shifting the body to one side so that the back wheel slides outwards. 2. the airborne lateral movement of a wheel when it loses contact with the riding surface in a turn.
Lap: One loop of the track, course or circuit.
Lapped: A rider who has fallen behind another rider by one lap of the track, course or circuit is said to have been lapped.
Mass start: A race start in which all racers start at the same time.
Mechanical: Slang for a mechanical problem with the bicycle.
Off-camber: A curve in the trail that throws riders to the outside of the turn.
Pedal clearance: The amount of lean angle a bicycle can have without digging a pedal; also known as "cornering clearance" or "road clearance".
Peloton: The main group of riders; also called the pack, bunch or field.
Pits: Stations along the course where repairs can be made.
Pixie gear: The smallest chainring on a mountain bike, combined with the biggest sprocket to make the lowest gear; also called granny gear or weenie gear.
Pull: To take a turn at the front of the group, maintaining the same speed of the group.
Pushclimb: A section of a mountain biking trail with inadequate traction or too-steep a pitch, that forces cyclists to dismount and carry their bikes.
Rail: To ride fast and cleanly through a corner.
Road clearance: The amount of lean angle a bicycle can have without digging a pedal; also known as cornering clearance or pedal clearance.
Rock dodge: To steer the handlebars quickly to one side to avoid small road hazards.
Single track: A path or trail wide enough for only one rider at a time.
Sitting in: Drafting, or sitting closely behind the rider immediately in front.
Skid: To lose tyre traction, causing the bike to slide off course.
Snakebite: The most common type of flat tyre, caused by hitting an obstacle so hard that the innertube is pinched against the rim.
Softtail: A mountain bike with rear suspension.
Spin out: To lose rear wheel traction in a turn and have the rear of the bike slide outwards so that the bike turns completely around.
Spokes: The arms inside a wheel rim.
Sprint: 1. a high-speed race, usually over a short distance. 2. the final high-speed dash for the finish line in race of any distance.
Sweeper: A wide turn.
Switchback: A tight, zigzag turn on the face of a mountain, either uphill or downhill.
Technical: A section of trail fraught with obstacles designed to test a mountain biker's skill.
The Countersteering: A manoeuvre used by expert riders to control a skid, executed by steering the bike momentarily in the opposite direction from which they want to turn.
Time trial: A race in which riders start individually and race against the clock.
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