Paris Olympics: What to know and who to watch during the cycling competition
A roadmap to follow for cycling — BMX freestyle and racing, time trial and road racing, track cycling and cross-country mountain biking — during the Paris Olympics:
Athletes to Watch
—Chloe Dygert, United States: The reigning time trial world champion also will compete in the road race and the team pursuit.
—Hannah Roberts, United States: The five-time and reigning BMX freestyle world champion finished second at the Tokyo Games.
—Wout van Aert, Belgium, and Mathieu van der Poel, Netherlands: They are the favorites for the road race.
—Tom Pidcock, Britain: The defending mountain bike gold medalist will be heavily favored to repeat.
—Jennifer Valente, United States: She upset the favored British team in the multi-discipline omnium on the track in Tokyo.
Storylines to Follow
—After cycling was largely an afterthought in Rio and Tokyo, where the sport is not as popular, it should take center stage in Paris coming on the heels of the Tour de France. The iconic Grand Tour will end in Nice, rather than its customary finish on the Champs Elysee, because of the Summer Games.
—Britain and the Netherlands have been the dominant nations in cycling, but the U.S. will have one of its strongest teams in several Summer Games. Chloe Dygert (time trial) and Hannah Roberts (BMX freestyle) are heavy favorites to win gold, and there are up to a dozen other riders across the disciplines with a chance to stand on the podium.
Key Dates
Cycling is one of the few sports that takes place every day of the Summer Games. The schedule has changed this year, with the men’s and women’s time trials taking the place of the men’s road race on July 27, the day after the opening ceremony. Mountain bike moves up to Days 2 and 3 of the program before BMX freestyle and racing take center stage. The men’s and women’s road races are Aug. 3 and 4 before the final week is dominated by track cycling at Vélodrome National de Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines outside Paris.
Reigning Champions
—Women’s Road Race: Anna Kiesenhofer, Austria.
—Men’s Road race: Richard Carapaz, Ecuador.
—Women’s Time Trial: Annemiek van Vleuten, Netherlands.
—Men’s Time Trial: Primoz Roglic, Slovenia.
—Women’s Mountain Bike: Jolanda Neff, Switzerland.
—Men’s Mountain Bike: Tom Pidcock, Britain.
—Women’s BMX Racing: Beth Shriever, Britain.
—Men’s BMX Racing: Niek Kimmann, Netherlands.
—Women’s BMX Freestyle: Charlotte Worthington, Britain.
—Men’s BMX Freestyle: Logan Martin, Australia.
—Women’s Track: Jennifer Valente, United States, among others.
—Men’s Track: Matthew Walls, Britain, among others.
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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games