Sir Hubert Ferdinand Opperman, OBE, referred to as Oppy by Australian and French crowds, was an Australian cyclist and politician, whose endurance cycling feats in the 1920s and 1930s earned him international acclaim.
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 a British 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 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.
The Herne Hill Velodrome is a velodrome in Herne Hill, in south London. It is one of the oldest cycling tracks in the world, having been built in 1891. It hosted the track cycling events in the 1948 Summer Olympics and was briefly the home of Crystal Palace Football Club during World War I.
George Pilkington Mills was the dominant English racing cyclist of his generation, and winner of the inaugural Bordeaux–Paris cycle race. He frequently rode from Land's End to John o' Groats, holding the world record time on six occasions between 1886 and 1895. He was a member of the Anfield and North Road cycling clubs. He later won races and broke records as a car racer and motorcycle rider.
Constance Eileen Sheridan was an English cyclist who specialized in time trialing and road record-breaking. She broke all the records of the Women's Road Records Association during the late 1940s and 1950s. They included Land's End to John o' Groats, set by Lilian Dredge.
William Frank Southall was an English racing cyclist who won silver medals for Great Britain in the individual road race at the 1928 Summer Olympics and a track cycling medal at the 1932 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. He also represented Britain in world championships from 1926 to 1933.
Raymond 'Ray' Charles Booty, sometimes nicknamed 'The Boot', was an English road bicycle racer. In 1956 he was the first man to beat four hours for the 100 miles (160 km) individual time trial.
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.
Karel Kaers was a Belgian professional cyclist with 30 wins.
The British National Derny Championships are annual bicycle races held in the United Kingdom.
Jimmy Michael was a Welsh world cycling champion and one of the top riders in the sport for several years.
Arthur Augustus Zimmerman was one of the world's great cycling sprint riders and winner of the first world championship in 1893. His prizes as an amateur were a consideration in the establishment of the International Cycling Association (ICA).
Charles Frederick Davey was a British racing cyclist who rode in the Olympic Games, the world championship and the marathon Bol d'Or race.
Richard William Ewart Poole was the first man to cycle from Land's End to John o' Groats, the length of mainland Britain, in less than two days. He then beat the 1,000-mile record... only to find he was a few yards too short.
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.
Sidney Herbert Ferris was an English long-distance cyclist who broke the records for Edinburgh-to-London, Land's End to John O'Groats, and 1,000 miles in 1937.
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.
Maurice Gaetan Selbach was an American-British racing cyclist and frame builder.
