– EVENTS: Men: 1K time trial, individual match sprint, 4,000-meter individual pursuit, 4,000-meter team pursuit, individual points trace, 100K team time trial, individual road race; Women: individual match sprint, 4,000-meter individual pursuit, individual road race.
– FORMAT: Cycling has two racing categories: track and road. Track bikes are single-geared with no brakes and are raced on banked tracks. Road bikes are heavier and can have up to 14 gears. Road races take place on paved roadways. The rules of cyclng are simple. A cyclist cannot cross in front of another rider or push another cyclist. Time often means virtually nothing. In fact, in the 1,000-meter match sprint, cyclists often come to a halt as they jockey for position. Only the final 200 meters are timed. Cyclists compete in pairs, with losers eliminated, until the field is reduced to two.
The individual time trial is one man against the clock. In the 4,000 individual and team pursuits, cyclists start at opposite ends of the track and try to pass each other. Whoever is caught loses. If neither is caught, the best time wins. In the 50K points race, cyclists ride for 150 laps and two-man teams earn points in a series of sprints every five laps. Midway and final sprints count double. If there is a tie, the rider who places higher in the final sprint wins.
The 197K individual race features cyclists competing on the open road, usually in packs until one or more decide to break away.
The 100K team trial features four-man teams that race together, alternating the lead and splitting the wind while the other three draft him. The team will have one combined time, from the starter`s gun until the third man of the team crosses the finish line.
– MEDAL WATCH: The U.S. team took home five medals from the world championships in Tokyo, but it will be lucky to get more than three or four in Barcelona. The best of the Americans are veterans Rebecca Twigg, who could even win a gold in the individual pursuit, Connie Paraskevin-Young and Inga Thompson.
