Cycling at the 2004 Summer Olympics – Men's sprint

This was the 23rd appearance of the event, which has been held at every Summer Olympics except 1904 and 1912. Three of the quarterfinalists from 2000 returned: fourth-place finisher Laurent Gané of France, sixth-place finisher José Antonio Villanueva of Spain, and seventh-place finisher Sean Eadie of Australia. Three recent world champions were competing: Gané (2003, also runner-up in 2000, 2001, and 2004), Eadie (2002), and Theo Bos of the Netherlands (2004). René Wolff of Germany and Ryan Bayley of Australia were also significant contenders, each having reached the podium at world championships.{{cite web |url=https://www.olympedia.org/results/155049 |work=Olympedia |title=Sprint, Men |access-date=18 November 2020}}

For the second consecutive Games, no nations made their debut in the men's sprint. France made its 23rd appearance, the only nation to have competed at every appearance of the event.

This sprint competition involved a series of head-to-head matches along with the new qualifying round of time trials. There were five main match rounds, with two one-round repechages.Official Report, Results Book for Track Cycling.

• Qualifying round: Each of the 19 competitors completed a 200-metre flying time trial (reaching full speed before timing started for the last 200 metres). The top 18 advanced to the match rounds, seeded based on their time in the qualifying round. With only 19 riders starting, only the slowest cyclist was eliminated; however, one of the qualified riders withdrew, and the 19th-placed rider moved up to 18th and qualified.
• Round 1: The 18 cyclists were seeded into 9 heats of 2 cyclists each. The winner of each heat advanced to the 1/8 finals (9 cyclists) while the other cyclists went to the first repechage (9 cyclists).
• First repechage: The 9 cyclists were divided into 3 heats, each with 3 cyclists. The winner of each heat advanced to the 1/8 finals (3 cyclists) while the losers were eliminated (6 cyclists).
• 1/8 finals: The 12 remaining cyclists competed in a 1/8 finals round. There were 6 heats in this round, with 2 cyclists in each. The winner in each heat advanced to the quarterfinals (6 cyclists), while the loser in each heat went to the second repechage (6 cyclists).
• Second repechage: This round featured 2 heats, with 3 cyclists each. The winner of each heat advanced to the quarterfinals (2 cyclists); the losers competed in a ninth-twelfth classification race.
• Quarterfinals: Beginning with the quarterfinals, all matches were one-on-one competitions and were held in best-of-three format. There were 4 quarterfinals, with the winner of each advancing to the semifinals and the loser going to the fifth-eighth classification race.
• Semifinals: The two semifinals provided for advancement to the gold medal final for winners and to the bronze medal final for losers.
• Finals: Both a gold medal final and a bronze medal final were held, as well as a classification final for fifth through eighth places for quarterfinal losers.

The records for the sprint are 200 metre flying time trial records, kept for the qualifying round in later Games as well as for the finish of races.

{{World Olympic Record

| world_athlete = {{flagathlete|Curt Harnett|CAN}}

| world_mark = 9.865

| world_place = Bogotá, Colombia

| world_date = 28 September 1995

| olympic_athlete = {{flagIOCathlete|Gary Neiwand|AUS|1996 Summer}}

| olympic_mark = 10.129

| olympic_place = Atlanta, United States

| olympic_date = 24 July 1996

}}

No new world or Olympic records were set during the competition.

All times are Greece Standard Time (UTC+2)

Times and average speeds are listed. Q denotes qualification for the next round.

After Tomohiro Nagatsuka dropped out of competition following the round, all of the cyclists following him advanced one position. This allowed Stefan Nimke to compete in the first round despite having originally placed 19th.

The first round consisted of nine heats of two riders each. Winners advanced to the next round, losers competed in the 1/16 repechage.

The nine defeated cyclists from the 1/16 round took part in the 1/16 repechage. They raced in three heats of three riders each. The winner of each heat rejoined the nine victors of the 1/16 round in advancing to the 1/8 round

The 1/8 round consisted of six matches, each pitting two of the twelve remaining cyclists against each other. The winners advanced to the quarterfinals, with the losers getting another chance in the 1/8 repechage.

The six cyclists defeated in the 1/8 round competed in the 1/8 repechage. Two heats of three riders were held. Winners rejoined the victors from the 1/8 round and advanced to the quarterfinals. The four other riders competed in the 9th through 12th place classification.

The eight riders that had advanced to the quarterfinals competed pairwise in four matches. Each match consisted of two races, with a potential third race being used as a tie-breaker if each cyclist won one of the first two races. All four quarterfinals matches were decided without a third race. Winners advanced to the semifinals, losers competed in a 5th to 8th place classification.

The four riders that had advanced to the semifinals competed pairwise in two matches. Each match consisted of two races, with a potential third race being used as a tie-breaker if each cyclist won one of the first two races. Both semifinals matches were decided without a third race. Winners advanced to the finals, losers competed in the bronze medal match.

The 9-12 classification was a single race with all four riders that had lost in the 1/8 repechage taking place. The winner of the race received 9th place, with the others taking the three following places in order.

The 5-8 classification was a single race with all four riders that had lost in the quarterfinals taking place. The winner of the race received 5th place, with the others taking the three following places in order.

The bronze medal match was contested in a set of three races, with the winner of two races declared the winner. Since René Wolff won both of the first two races, the third was not run.

The final was a best-of-three match. Bos took a lead in the series when he won the first race, but Bayley defeated him in the second race. The third race was decisive and Bayley came out on top again.

{{reflist}}

• [https://web.archive.org/web/20060622162855/http://www.la84foundation.org/5va/reports_frmst.htm Official Olympic Report]

{{Footer Olympic Champions Track Individual Sprint Men}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cycling At The 2004 Summer Olympics - Men's Sprint}}

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Category:Cycling at the Summer Olympics – Men's sprint

Category:Track cycling at the 2004 Summer Olympics

Category:Men's events at the 2004 Summer Olympics