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36-559: Antonín Hönig was a Czech cyclist . In 1926, he was the Czechoslovak national champion, and he took part in the 1926 UCI Road World Championships . Two years later, he competed for Czechoslovakia in the individual and team road race events at the 1928 Summer Olympics . Honig's cycling activities were the inspiration for his cousin Josef Josten to take up sports journalism. This biographical article relating to Czech cycling

72-465: A new velodrome in Turkmenistan 's capital city Ashgabat both have a 250 m track and a 6,000-seat spectator capacity. Banking in the turns, called cant , allows riders to keep their bikes relatively perpendicular to the surface while riding at speed. When travelling through the turns at racing speed, which may exceed 85 km/h (52.8 mph), the banking attempts to match the natural lean of

108-495: A bicycle moving through that curve. At the ideal speed, the net force of the centrifugal force (outward) and gravity (downward) is angled down through the bicycle, perpendicular to the riding surface. Riders are not always travelling at full speed or at a specific radius. Most events have riders all over the track. Team races (like the Madison ) have some riders at speed and others riding more slowly. In match sprints riders may come to

144-404: A different arrangement of lines to suit their facility and to assist riders in holding a straight line and in avoiding drifting onto the flatter section below the bankings where they risk their tyres sliding out. Between the infield (sometimes referred to as an apron) and the actual track is the blue band (called "côte d'azur") which is typically 10% of the surface. The blue band is not technically

180-513: A dirt course of jumps and banked and flat corners. Cycle speedway is bicycle racing on short outdoor dirt tracks, 70–90 m (230–300 ft) in length. Motor-paced racing and keirin use motorcycles for pacing, so cyclists achieve higher speeds. Gravel racing is one of the newest disciplines of bicycle racing, emerging in the 21st century. For example, one of the premiere gravel races, Unbound Gravel , started in 2006. Some precursors to gravel racing in its current form include road races like

216-463: A fixed gear bicycle with no brakes or freewheel. The ball is controlled by the bike and the head, except when defending the goal. Cycle Polo is a team sports sport that combines elements of traditional horse polo with bicycling and is played on grass. Cycle Polo's was included in the 1908 London Olympics as a demonstration sport. The game has become particularly popular in India. Hardcourt Bike Polo

252-617: A mile in length and sometimes run for a set time (60 min, 90 min, etc.) rather than a specific distance. Criteriums are the most popular form of road racing in North America. In Belgium, kermesses are popular, single-day events of usually over 120 km (70 mi). As well as road races in which all riders start simultaneously, individual time trial and team time trial events are also held on road-based courses. Track cycling has been around since as early as 1870. The riders competed on wooden indoor tracks that closely resembled

288-423: A part of the track; although it is not illegal to ride there, moving into it to shortcut another rider results in disqualification. During time trials, pursuits or other timed events, the blue band is obstructed with sponges or other objects. The blue band is a warning to cyclists that they may scrape their pedal along the infield when in a curve, which can easily result in a crash. 20 centimetres (7.9 in) above

324-493: A sport for road racers during the off season, to vary their training during the cold months. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter (the international or World Cup season is September–January) and consist of many laps of a 2–3 km (1–2 mi) course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills, and obstacles requiring the rider to dismount, carry the bike and remount in one motion. Races for senior categories are generally between 30 minutes and an hour long,

360-407: A stop by performing a track stand in which they balance the bicycle on the sloped surface while keeping their feet locked into the pedals. For these reasons, the banking tends to be 10 to 15 degrees less than physics predicts. Also, the straights are banked 10 to 15 degrees more than physics would predict. These compromises make the track ridable at a range of speeds. From the straight, the curve of

396-457: Is 0.2 miles or 321.9 m. Velodrome tracks can be surfaced with different materials, including timber, synthetics and concrete. Shorter, newer, and Olympic quality tracks tend to be timber or synthetics; longer, older, or inexpensive tracks are concrete, macadam, or even cinder. Important cycling events are usually held on tracks which have lines laid out in a specified arrangement. Some other tracks also follow these protocols, but others have

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432-590: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Cycle sport Bicycle racing is recognised as an Olympic sport . Bicycle races are popular all over the world, especially in Europe. The countries most devoted to bicycle racing include Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland. Other countries with international standing include Australia, Luxembourg, Slovenia, United Kingdom, United States and Colombia. The first bicycle race

468-488: Is a more popular, fast-paced, and physically demanding variation of Cycle Polo played on hard surfaces such as asphalt or concrete. In teams of three, players maneuver their bicycles while using mallets to strike a ball into the opposing team's goal. Originating in Seattle in the late 1990s, hardcourt bike polo has since gained a sharp spike in popularity worldwide, with organized leagues and tournaments held in urban centers across

504-576: Is measured along a line 20 cm (7.9 in) up from the bottom. Olympic and World Championship velodromes must measure 250 m (820 ft). Other events on the UCI International Calendar may be held in velodromes that measure between 133 and 500 m (436 and 1,640 ft) inclusive, with a length such that a whole or half number of laps give a distance of 1 km (0.62 mi). The velodrome at Calshot in Hampshire , England,

540-680: Is only 142 m (466 ft) and has especially steep banking because it was built to fit inside an aircraft hangar . The Forest City Velodrome in London, Ontario , Canada, is the world's shortest at 138 m (453 ft). Built to fit a hockey arena, it too has steep banking. The smaller the track, the steeper the banking. A 250 m (820 ft) track banks around 45°, while a 333.33 m (1,093.6 ft) track banks around 32°. Some older velodromes were built to imperial standards . The Dick Lane Velodrome in East Point, Georgia , United States,

576-495: Is popularly held to have been a 1,200 m (3,900 ft) race on the 31 May 1868 at the Parc de Saint-Cloud , Paris , France. It was won by expatriate Englishman James Moore who rode a wooden bicycle with solid rubber tires . The machine is now on display at the museum in Ely , Cambridgeshire , England. The Union Cycliste Internationale was founded on 14 April 1900 by Belgium,

612-491: Is similar to motorcycle trials . Points are awarded for bike handling skills. The first UCI Trials World Championships took place in 1986. Freestyle BMX is an extreme sport of stunt riding BMX bikes . Artistic cycling is a discipline where athletes perform tricks (called exercises) in a format similar to ballet or gymnastics. Cycle ball , also known as "radball" (from German), is a sport similar to association football played on bicycles. The two people on each team ride

648-536: The Tour de France , Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España to multi-day stage races such as the Tour de Suisse and Tour of California , to single day "Classics" such as the Tour of Flanders and Milan–San Remo . The longest one-day road race sanctioned by USA Cycling is LOTOJA which covers the 206 mi (332 km) from Logan, Utah , to Jackson, Wyoming . Criteriums are races based on circuits typically less than

684-697: The Tour of the Battenkill and Boulder–Roubaix (named after Paris–Roubaix ) which are road races with gravel sections. The distinguishing features of gravel racing include long distances, often 100 to 200 mi (160 to 320 km), and mass starts that include all categories of racers, similar to Gran Fondo rides. The bicycles and courses in gravel racing vary widely, from road bicycles with wide tires used on smooth gravel roads to bicycles that are similar to mountain bike used on courses that include technical trails. Speeds achieved on indoor tracks are usually greater than those on roads. Other factors affecting speed are

720-705: The Vélodrome d'hiver was built in Paris in 1909 and featured a 250 m (820.2 ft) indoor track with a wooden surface. International competitions such as the Olympic Games led to more standardisation: two-straight oval tracks quickly became the norm, and gradually lap lengths reduced. The Vélodrome de Vincennes , used for the 1900 (and 1924) Games was 500 m (1,640 ft) per lap, while Antwerp 's Vélodrome d'Anvers Zuremborg , used in 1920, and Helsinki Velodrome , used in 1952, were both 400 m (1,312 ft). By

756-439: The 120 km (70 mi) Cootamundra Annual Classic it is 11.8 metres per second (42 km/h; 26 mph). In the 259 km (200 mi) 2010 Paris–Roubaix , Fabian Cancellara set a speed of 10.9 metres per second (39 km/h; 24 mph), while over the 818 km (500 mi) Furnace Creek 508 , the speed drops dramatically to 8.3 metres per second (30 km/h; 19 mph). For an extreme road distance such as

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792-550: The 1960s up to 1989, tracks of 333.33 m (1,094 ft) length were commonly used for international competitions (e.g.: the Agustín Melgar Olympic Velodrome used for track cycling events at the 1968 Summer Olympics , and Leicester 's Saffron Lane velodrome used at the 1970 and 1982 Track Cycling World Championships ). Since 1990, such events are usually held on velodromes with 250 m (820 ft 2.52 in) laps. London's 2012 Olympic velodrome and

828-521: The 4,800 km (3,000 mi) Race Across America , the average speed of the record holder is 5.7 metres per second (21 km/h; 13 mph), while the 2,350 km (1,000 mi) Freedom Trail over mountainous terrain in South Africa is at a record speed of 1.9 metres per second (6.8 km/h; 4.3 mph). Mountain bike trials is a sport where riders navigate natural and human-made obstacles without putting down their foot, or "dabbing". It

864-539: The 536 m (1,759 ft) Portsmouth velodrome , in Portsmouth , has a single straight linked by one long curve. The oldest surviving regular velodrome two-straight oval tracks is from 1889, located in Brno , Czech Republic. Early surfaces included cinders or shale, though concrete, asphalt and tarmac later became more common. Indoor velodromes were also common particularly in the late 19th and early 20th century. For example,

900-482: The British Army. Some were purpose-built just for cycling, and others were built as part of facilities for other sports; many were built around athletics tracks or other grounds and any banking was shallow. Reflecting the then-lack of international standards, sizes varied and not all were built as ovals: for example, Preston Park is 579 m (1,900 ft) long and features four straights linked by banked curves, while

936-656: The United States, France, Italy, and Switzerland to replace the International Cycling Association , which had been formed in 1892, over a row with Great Britain as well as because of other issues. Since the rise of the Olympic Movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics , cycling has been a contestant event in every Summer Olympic Games . Road bicycle racing involve both team and individual competition, and races are contested in various ways. They range from

972-413: The blue band is the black measurement line. The inner edge of this 5 centimetres (2.0 in) line defines the length of the track. 90 centimetres (35 in) above the inside of the track is the outside of the 5 cm wide red sprinter 's line. The zone between black and red lines is sprinter's lane, which is the optimum route around the track. A rider leading in the sprinter's lane may not be passed on

1008-536: The distance varying depending on the conditions. The sport is strongest in traditional road cycling countries such as Belgium (Flanders in particular) and France. Mountain bike races are held off-road and involve moderate to high degree of technical riding. There are several varieties; the main categories are cross-country , enduro and downhill but also 4X or four-cross racing. BMX takes place off-road. BMX races are sprints on purpose-built off-road single-lap tracks, typically on single-gear bicycles. Riders navigate

1044-514: The globe. Velodromes A velodrome is an arena for track cycling . Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement curve . The first velodromes were constructed during the late 1870s, the oldest of which is the Preston Park Velodrome , Brighton , United Kingdom, built in 1877 by

1080-554: The inside; other riders must pass on the longer outside route. Minimum 2.5 metres (8.2 ft) (or half the track width) above the inside of the track is the blue stayer's line. This line serves in races behind motorbikes as a separation line. Stayers below the blue line may not be overtaken on the inside. In Madison races (named after six-day races at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York, and also known as "the American"),

1116-471: The modern velodromes of today. Unlike road racing, which is dependent on environmental factors, indoor tracks ensure the sport can be competed all year round. It encompasses races that take place on banked tracks or velodromes . Events are quite diverse and can range from individual and team pursuits , two-man sprints, to various group and mass start races. Competitors use track bicycles which do not have brakes or freewheels. Cyclo-cross originated as

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1152-523: The one-day road race, criterium , and time trial to multi-stage events like the Tour de France and its sister events which make up cycling's Grand Tours . The races typically take place from spring through to autumn. Many riders from the Northern Hemisphere spend the winter in countries such as Australia to compete or train. Professional races range from the three-week "Grand Tour" stage races such as

1188-451: The rider to slow by pushing back against the pedals. Modern velodromes are constructed by specialised designers. The Schuermann architects in Germany have built more than 125 tracks worldwide. Most of Schuermann's outdoor tracks are made of wood trusswork with a surface of strips of the rare rain-forest wood Afzelia . Indoor velodromes are built with less expensive pine surfaces. The track

1224-554: The route profile (flats and hills), wind conditions, temperatures and elevation. At a 2013 event in Mexico, François Pervis achieved an average of 21.40 metres per second (77.0 km/h; 47.9 mph) with a flying start over 200 m (660 ft). The top average speed over the men's 1 km (0.6 mi) time trial at the 2004 Summer Olympics was 16.4 metres per second (59 km/h; 37 mph) recorded by Chris Hoy . Average speeds clearly drop with increasing distance, so that over

1260-412: The team's relief rider rests above the stayer's line by riding slowly until his or her teammate comes around the track and throws him or her back into the race. The finish line is black on a wide white band and near the end of the home straight. Red lines are marked in the exact centre of each straight as start and finish line for pursuit races. A white 200 m line marks 200 metres (660 ft) before

1296-526: The track increases gradually into the circular turn. This section of decreasing radius is called the easement spiral or transition. It allows bicycles to follow the track around the corner at a constant radial position. Thus riders can concentrate on tactics rather than steering. Bicycles for velodromes, better known as track bicycles , have no brakes. They employ a single fixed rear gear, or cog, that does not freewheel. This helps maximise speed, reduces weight, and avoids sudden braking while nevertheless allowing

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