Cycle sport

{{Main|History of cycling}}

File:Giro_d'Italia_2021,_Stage_15.jpg|italic=no}} race]]

Image:Borgå rund.jpg a one-hour cycling competition in {{Lang|fi|Porvoo|italic=no}}, Finland, on June 11th 2005]]

The first bicycle race is popularly held to have been a {{Convert|1200|m|ft|abbr=on|sp=us}} race on the 31 May 1868 at the Parc de {{Lang|fr|Saint-Cloud|italic=no}}, Paris, France.{{Cite web |title=cycling {{!}} sport {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/sports/cycling |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en |archive-date=2021-10-09 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009050721/https://www.britannica.com/sports/cycling |url-status=live }} It was won by expatriate Englishman James Moore who rode a wooden bicycle with solid rubber tires.{{cite book |last1=Maso |first1=B |translator-last1=Horn |translator-first1=M |year=2005 |title=The sweat of the gods: myths and legends of bicycle racing |location=Norwich, England |publisher=Mousehold Press |pages=1–2 |isbn=1-874739-37-4}} The machine is now on display at the museum in Ely, Cambridgeshire, England.

The {{Lang|fr|Union Cycliste Internationale|italic=no}} was founded on 14 April 1900 by Belgium, 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.{{Cite web |last=Torres-Davis |first=Rosael |date=2021-07-30 |title=Compared to Other Disciplines, Track Cycling Involves the Most Strategy |url=https://www.bicycling.com/racing/a37169779/track-cycling-basics/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |website=Bicycling |language=en-US |archive-date=2022-07-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726194309/https://www.bicycling.com/racing/a37169779/track-cycling-basics/ |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Road bicycle racing}}

Image:Masson flameng.jpg and Paul Masson at the 1896 Summer Olympics.]]

Road bicycle racing involve both team and individual competition, and races are contested in various ways. They range from the one-day road race, criterium, and time trial to multi-stage events like the {{Lang|fr|Tour de France|italic=no}} 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 the {{Lang|fr|Tour de France|italic=no}}, {{lang|it|Giro d'Italia|italic=no}} and the {{Lang|es|Vuelta a España|italic=no}} 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 {{Convert|206|mi|km|abbr=on|sp=us}} from Logan, Utah, to Jackson, Wyoming. Criteriums are races based on circuits typically less than 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.{{Cite web|url=http://bicycle-racing.com|title=Road Bicycle Racing|website=Bicycle Racing|language=en|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804173520/https://www.bicycle-racing.com/|archive-date=2017-08-04|access-date=2017-08-04|url-status=dead}} In Belgium, kermesses are popular, single-day events of usually over {{Convert|120|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}}. 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.

{{Main|Track cycling}}

Image:Stamp - GDR 20 Pfennig - Road Cycling World Championships 1960.jpg postage stamp depicting Täve Schur, 1960]]

Track cycling has been around since as early as 1870.{{Cite web |title=Cycling Track |url=https://olympics.com/en/sports/cycling-track/ |access-date=2022-07-26 |archive-date=2022-07-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726195201/https://olympics.com/en/sports/cycling-track/ |url-status=live }} The riders competed on wooden indoor tracks that closely resembled 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.

{{Main|Cyclo-cross}}

Cyclo-cross originated as 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 {{Convert|2–3|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} 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, the distance varying depending on the conditions. The sport is strongest in traditional road cycling countries such as Belgium (Flanders in particular) and France.

{{Main|Mountain bike racing}}

Image:Tour of gippsland final stage.jpg climbing up "The Gap" to Omeo]]

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.

{{Main|BMX}}

BMX takes place off-road. BMX races are sprints on purpose-built off-road single-lap tracks, typically on single-gear bicycles. Riders navigate a dirt course of jumps and banked and flat corners.

{{Main|Cycle speedway}}

Cycle speedway is bicycle racing on short outdoor dirt tracks, {{Convert|70–90|m|ft|abbr=on|sp=us}} in length.

{{Main|Motor-paced racing}}

Motor-paced racing and keirin use motorcycles for pacing, so cyclists achieve higher speeds.

{{Main|Gravel cycling}}

Image:TourDeFrance 2005 07 09.jpg of the {{Lang|fr|Tour de France|italic=no}}]]

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.{{cite web |last1=Ostanek |first1=Daniel |title=Top 10 gravel races in the USA |url=https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/top-10-gravel-races-in-the-usa/ |website=Cyclingnews |date=16 June 2020 |access-date=11 August 2021 |archive-date=10 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210610201109/https://www.cyclingnews.com/features/top-10-gravel-races-in-the-usa/ |url-status=live }} Some precursors to gravel racing in its current form include road races like 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 {{Convert|100 to 200|mi|km|abbr=on|sp=us}}, 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 the route profile (flats and hills), wind conditions, temperatures and elevation. At a 2013 event in Mexico, François Pervis achieved an average of {{convert|21.40|m/s|km/h mph}} with a flying start over {{Convert|200|m|ft|abbr=on|sp=us}}. The top average speed over the men's {{Convert|1|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} time trial at the 2004 Summer Olympics was {{convert|16.4|m/s|km/h mph}} recorded by Chris Hoy. Average speeds clearly drop with increasing distance, so that over the {{Convert|120|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} Cootamundra Annual Classic it is {{convert|11.8|m/s|km/h mph}}. In the {{Convert|259|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} 2010 Paris–Roubaix, Fabian Cancellara set a speed of {{convert|10.9|m/s|km/h mph}}, while over the {{Convert|818|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} Furnace Creek 508, the speed drops dramatically to {{convert|8.3|m/s|km/h mph}}. For an extreme road distance such as the {{Convert|4800|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} Race Across America, the average speed of the record holder is {{convert|5.7|m/s|km/h mph}}, while the {{Convert|2350|km|mi|abbr=on|sp=us|sigfig=1}} Freedom Trail over mountainous terrain in South Africa is at a record speed of {{convert|1.9|m/s|km/h mph}}.

Mountain bike trials is a sport where riders navigate natural and human-made obstacles without putting down their foot, or "dabbing". It is similar to motorcycle trials. Points are awarded for bike handling skills. The first UCI Trials World Championships took place in 1986.

{{Expand section|Cycle polo|date=June 2017}}

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 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.

File:Hardcourt Bike POLO fh 2018 tours fin de match.jpg

Hardcourt Bike Polo 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,{{Cite news |date=2009-07-31 |title=Polo's young punk cousin |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8177668.stm |access-date=2024-02-06 |language=en-GB}} with organized leagues and tournaments held in urban centers across the globe.

{{cmn|

• 2018 European Cycling Championships
• Alleycat races
• Cycling
• The Cyclists' Alliance
• Dirt jumping
• Downhill mountain biking
• Freestyle BMX
• Glossary of cycling
• Hardcourt Bike Polo
• History of cycling
• List of doping cases in cycling
• List of racing cyclists and pacemakers with a cycling-related death
• Mountain bike trials
• Mountain biking
• Outline of cycling

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