Bicycle Racing
Gym Make Up Project
Aaron Larson
Aaron Larson
Mr. Ferenczy
Gym
Bicycle Racing
Bicycle racing or Cycle sport is a very popular sport all over the world. Countless races and Criteriums are held in almost every country in the world. The most famous Grand Tour is the Tour de France. Which is part of a series of 3 Grand Tours, the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a Espana are the other two which appear along with the Tour de France. These are the best known Grand Tours but there are many others.
The history of bicycle racing goes back to 1868, May 31. This is the date of the first bicycle race won by James Moore an Englishman. The race was held in Paris and was 1200 meters in length. Following this the first Tour de France was held in 1903. Every one of the 6 stages was won by the same the same rider, Maurice Garin. The first Tour de France was already an international event with riders from France, Belgium, and, Germany. By the time the Tour de France was organized, bicycle racing had become popular in the United States and all over Europe. But the second Tour was almost the end of the tour. The popularity of the tour had made the winning team obsessed with winning that they cheated and sabotaged many other competitors. The French team that had gotten first through fifth had cheated. They had set traps made of nails and used other vehicles to get to the finish. They were stripped of their stage wins and titles and the new winner was the fifth place rider, Henri Cornet. The Third Tour put it back on track. The team that had dominated the first 2 Tours was now permanently banned and the contestants, after the consequences of cheating that had become clear after the last tour, were too scared to cheat. The tour was the longest yet and had 5 more stages than the previous two tours. It was also the first to include a stage in the Alps. The winner was Louis Trousselier. Trousselier won the next Tour as well. The next few Tours were all won by different riders until Lucien Petit-Bretons wins two in a row. He was the last to do so for over 10 years. Another significant feat was accomplished by Philippe Thys, in 1920, as he became the first to win 3 tours. Soon other types of bicycle racing had started appearing across the world. The main form of bicycle racing is road racing which is the entirety of the tours. Road racing is very diverse in that there is many different events that are road races. There are team time trials, individual time trials, sprints, and team racing. The most well-known is the team race where everyone starts at the same time and fight for positioning in the peloton or break away to challenge the leaders. There is also track cycling where the riders are on a banked track that is usually oval or a circle. Other disciplines include BMX, Cyclo-cross, Mountain biking, and Cycle speedway. They each have different tracks and bike styles. BMX bikes are generally smaller with stronger frames, and only one gear. There is also...