Cycling

Have you ever ridden a bike? Maybe you own one. While the bicycle is used by millions of people around the world as a means of transport, it is also used for recreation, or in sports such as triathlons, track cycling, BMX or mountain bike competitions. Cycling is one of the fastest growing sports in the world and one of the toughest events at the Olympic Games. Cyclists must have incredible levels of fitness and stamina.

There are three types of competition for cycling at the Olympic Games - track (in an arena or velodrome), road and mountain bike.

Races include pursuits, time trials, and sprints.

In order to show the world the beauty and attractions of Athens, the 2004 Olympic Games will begin with a cycling event - the men's road race. Cyclists will take 3 - 4 hours to complete the course through the streets of Athens.

Cycling is a sport that attracts as much interest in the state-of-the-art bikes as the athletes. Spectators are sometimes kept waiting until the last minute to know what sort of high-tech bike the riders will use.

The following information will help you find out more about bikes in general and racing bikes such as those that will be used in the Athens 2004 Olympics.

Minerals and metals are essential to the making of a bike, especially a really fast one. Most of the materials used in the bike first started out as rocks in the ground. These rocks contain minerals that can be mined, then processed into metals. Bikes are made up mostly of metals and carbon fibre as you will soon find out!