Keirin – literally "racing cycle" – is a form of motor-paced cycle racing in which track cyclists sprint for victory following a speed-controlled start behind a motorized or non-motorized pacer. It was developed in Japan around 1948 for gambling purposes and became an official event at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia.
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.
A Derny is a motorized bicycle for motor-paced cycling events such as during six-day and Keirin racing and motor-paced road races. Some riders train behind a derny on the road. The Derny is so-called as it was originally produced by the French Derny firm, but the name Derny is now applied to all small cycle-pacing vehicles, regardless of manufacturer.
Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The two most common competition formats are mass start events, where riders start simultaneously and race to a set finish point; and time trials, where individual riders or teams race a course alone against the clock. Stage races or "tours" take multiple days, and consist of several mass-start or time-trial stages ridden consecutively.
The Bordeaux–Paris professional cycle race was one of Europe's classic cycle races, and one of the longest in the professional calendar, covering approximately 560 km (350 mi) – more than twice most single-day races. It started in northern Bordeaux in southwest France at 2am and finished in the capital Paris 14 hours later. The professional event was held from 1891 until 1988. It was held as an amateur event in 2014.
Reginald Hargreaves Harris OBE was an English track racing cyclist in the 1940s and 1950s. He won the world amateur sprint title in 1947, two Olympic silver medals in 1948 and the world professional title in 1949, 1950, 1951 and 1954. His ferocious will to win made him a household name in the 1950s, but he also surprised many with a comeback more than 20 years later, winning a British title in 1974 at the age of 54.
This is a glossary of terms and jargon used in cycling, mountain biking, and cycle sport.
The Bol d'Or was a bicycle track race that ran in France between 1894 and 1950. It was a paced, 24-hour endurance event. It has been won by several notable cyclists including Constant Huret, the Australian Hubert Opperman and three time hour record breaker Oscar Egg. The person with the most wins is Léon Georget with nine.
Leonard "Leon" Lewis Meredith was a British track and road racing cyclist who competed in the 1908 Summer Olympics, in the 1912 Summer Olympics, and in the 1920 Summer Olympics. He won seven world championships and set up one of Britain's largest cycle-parts companies and ran a roller-skating rink and ballroom.
The 1893 Track Cycling World Championships were the inaugural world championships for track cycling. Before then there had been events described as world championships but without ratification by a world cycling authority. The creation of the International Cycling Association in 1892 made internationally recognised championships possible.
Paul Curran is a former professional English racing cyclist from Thornaby, North Yorkshire.
The International Cycling Association (ICA) was the first international body for cycle racing. Founded by Henry Sturmey in 1892 to establish a common definition of amateurism and to organise world championships its role was taken over by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 1900.
The British National Team Pursuit Championships are held annually as part of the British National Track Championships organized by British Cycling. Prior to 1996, there were two separate team pursuit championship events for amateur and professional riders. A women's championship was later added, competing over a shorter 3 km distance with three riders, until 2013 when this was increased to 4 km with 4 riders as in the men's event.
The British National Madison Championships were held annually as part of the British National Track Championships organised by British Cycling, originally with two separate championship events for amateur and professional riders previously.
Harry Grant (1906-1993) was a British racing cyclist who specialised in motor-paced events. He was national amateur champion in 1926, 1928 and 1931. At the time he turned professional in 1932 he held four British amateur track records. He also won many races on the continent and held the world paced one-hour record on three occasions.
Motor-paced racing and motor-paced cycling refer to cycling behind a pacer in a car or more usually on a motorcycle. The cyclist follows as close as they can to benefit from the slipstream of their pacer. The first paced races were behind other cyclists, sometimes as many as five riders on the same tandem. Bordeaux-Paris and record attempts have been ridden behind cars. More usually races or training are behind motorcycles.
Cees Stam is a former Dutch track cyclist and four-time world champion stayer.
Theo Verschueren is a retired Belgian cyclist. He had his best achievements in motor-paced racing, in which he won the world championships in the professionals category in 1971 and 1972 and finished second in 1969, 1970 and 1974. During his career Verschueren took part in 67 six-day road races, winning the race of Antwerp in 1968 and 1972.
This page is an overview of the Netherlands at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships.
Richard William "Fatty" Lamb was an Australian racing cyclist who competed on both road and track, as was typical of Australian cyclists of the era such as Hubert Opperman. Throughout his career, Lamb was associated with Malvern Star Bicycles and Bruce Small.
