Concept in Definition ABC

At the beginning of the 19th century, the first bicycles had other names, such as celeriferous, velocipede or velociferous. These first gadgets that were powered with pedals attached to large wheels with pinions evolved with the incorporation of brakes and the reduction in weight.

In 1869 the first cycling competition was held between the cities of Rouen and Paris. With this race cycling started as sport.

The Tour de France

In most sports the Olympic Games they constitute the most prestigious sporting event. However, this criterion is not met in cycling, as the Tour de France is the most important competition on the international level.

The first Tour de France was held in 1903 on the initiative of the Newspaper sporting L´Equipe. In the first two editions, there were night stages and for many years the cyclists themselves had to repair bicycle breakdowns. In 1919 the custom of putting a yellow jersey on the winner of each stage began. Fans followed the news through the press and it was not until 1930 that the first radio broadcasts began. In 1952 French television broadcast the first

images of the Tour. In 1955 a significant technical advance was introduced: the use of the photo-finish to decide precisely who is the winner of the stage. In 1966 the first doping controls were carried out and the cyclists expressed their protest with a strike.

Throughout the history of the Tour there have been several reigns. Thus, Anquetil, Merckx, Hinault and Indurain achieved five victories. This record was surpassed by the American Lance Armstrong with seven consecutive victories between 1999 and 2005, but his triumphs were invalidated when the United States Anti-Doping Agency demonstrated that in all of them the cyclist had had the help of some substance dopant.

Cycling modalities

Cycling is divided into three types of competitions: road, track and Mountain. The Tour de France or the Giro d'Italia are examples of the first modality.

In its version on the track, the competitions are held in a velodrome and with a wide range of alternatives: velocity individual and team, kilometers time trial, individual and team pursuit or the Keirin modality (a motorcyclist sets the pace of cyclists until quitting and cyclists start a sprint for a reduced number of turns). Mountain biking began as a competitive sport in the 1970s in California.

Photos: Fotolia - Maridav / LZF

Topics in Cycling