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33-492: BMX , an abbreviation for bicycle motocross or bike motocross , is a cycle sport performed on BMX bikes , either in competitive BMX racing or freestyle BMX , or else in general street or off-road recreation. BMX began during the early 1970s in the United States when children began racing their bicycles on dirt tracks in southern California , inspired by the motocross stars of the time. The size and availability of

66-559: A BMX rider. Cycle sport Bicycle racing is recognised as an Olympic sport . Bicycle races are popular all over the world, especially in Europe. The countries most devoted to bicycle racing include Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Switzerland. Other countries with international standing include Australia, Luxembourg, Slovenia, United Kingdom, United States and Colombia. The first bicycle race

99-513: A dirt course of jumps and banked and flat corners. Cycle speedway is bicycle racing on short outdoor dirt tracks, 70–90 m (230–300 ft) in length. Motor-paced racing and keirin use motorcycles for pacing, so cyclists achieve higher speeds. Gravel racing is one of the newest disciplines of bicycle racing, emerging in the 21st century. For example, one of the premiere gravel races, Unbound Gravel , started in 2006. Some precursors to gravel racing in its current form include road races like

132-467: A fixed gear bicycle with no brakes or freewheel. The ball is controlled by the bike and the head, except when defending the goal. Cycle Polo is a team sports sport that combines elements of traditional horse polo with bicycling and is played on grass. Cycle Polo's was included in the 1908 London Olympics as a demonstration sport. The game has become particularly popular in India. Hardcourt Bike Polo

165-624: A mile in length and sometimes run for a set time (60 min, 90 min, etc.) rather than a specific distance. Criteriums are the most popular form of road racing in North America. In Belgium, kermesses are popular, single-day events of usually over 120 km (70 mi). As well as road races in which all riders start simultaneously, individual time trial and team time trial events are also held on road-based courses. Track cycling has been around since as early as 1870. The riders competed on wooden indoor tracks that closely resembled

198-493: A sport for road racers during the off season, to vary their training during the cold months. Races typically take place in the autumn and winter (the international or World Cup season is September–January) and consist of many laps of a 2–3 km (1–2 mi) course featuring pavement, wooded trails, grass, steep hills, and obstacles requiring the rider to dismount, carry the bike and remount in one motion. Races for senior categories are generally between 30 minutes and an hour long,

231-493: Is a more popular, fast-paced, and physically demanding variation of Cycle Polo played on hard surfaces such as asphalt or concrete. In teams of three, players maneuver their bicycles while using mallets to strike a ball into the opposing team's goal. Originating in Seattle in the late 1990s, hardcourt bike polo has since gained a sharp spike in popularity worldwide, with organized leagues and tournaments held in urban centers across

264-568: Is now one of the staple events at the annual Summer X Games Extreme Sports competition and the Etnies Backyard Jam, held primarily on the East and West coasts of the United States. The popularity of the sport has increased due to its relative ease and availability of places to ride and do tricks. In the UK, BMX was a craze which took off in the early 1980s, specifically 1982 and 1983, when

297-502: Is popularly held to have been a 1,200 m (3,900 ft) race on the 31 May 1868 at the Parc de Saint-Cloud , Paris , France. It was won by expatriate Englishman James Moore who rode a wooden bicycle with solid rubber tires . The machine is now on display at the museum in Ely , Cambridgeshire , England. The Union Cycliste Internationale was founded on 14 April 1900 by Belgium,

330-491: Is similar to motorcycle trials . Points are awarded for bike handling skills. The first UCI Trials World Championships took place in 1986. Freestyle BMX is an extreme sport of stunt riding BMX bikes . Artistic cycling is a discipline where athletes perform tricks (called exercises) in a format similar to ballet or gymnastics. Cycle ball , also known as "radball" (from German), is a sport similar to association football played on bicycles. The two people on each team ride

363-537: The Schwinn Sting-Ray and other wheelie bikes made them the natural bike of choice for these races, since they were easily customized for better handling and performance. BMX racing was a phenomenon by the mid-1970s. Children were racing standard road bikes off-road around purpose-built tracks in California. The motorcycle racing documentary On Any Sunday (1971) is generally credited with inspiring

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396-544: The Tour de France , Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a España to multi-day stage races such as the Tour de Suisse and Tour of California , to single day "Classics" such as the Tour of Flanders and Milan–San Remo . The longest one-day road race sanctioned by USA Cycling is LOTOJA which covers the 206 mi (332 km) from Logan, Utah , to Jackson, Wyoming . Criteriums are races based on circuits typically less than

429-703: The Tour of the Battenkill and Boulder–Roubaix (named after Paris–Roubaix ) which are road races with gravel sections. The distinguishing features of gravel racing include long distances, often 100 to 200 mi (160 to 320 km), and mass starts that include all categories of racers, similar to Gran Fondo rides. The bicycles and courses in gravel racing vary widely, from road bicycles with wide tires used on smooth gravel roads to bicycles that are similar to mountain bike used on courses that include technical trails. Speeds achieved on indoor tracks are usually greater than those on roads. Other factors affecting speed are

462-439: The 120 km (70 mi) Cootamundra Annual Classic it is 11.8 metres per second (42 km/h; 26 mph). In the 259 km (200 mi) 2010 Paris–Roubaix , Fabian Cancellara set a speed of 10.9 metres per second (39 km/h; 24 mph), while over the 818 km (500 mi) Furnace Creek 508 , the speed drops dramatically to 8.3 metres per second (30 km/h; 19 mph). For an extreme road distance such as

495-527: The 4,800 km (3,000 mi) Race Across America , the average speed of the record holder is 5.7 metres per second (21 km/h; 13 mph), while the 2,350 km (1,000 mi) Freedom Trail over mountainous terrain in South Africa is at a record speed of 1.9 metres per second (6.8 km/h; 4.3 mph). Mountain bike trials is a sport where riders navigate natural and human-made obstacles without putting down their foot, or "dabbing". It

528-684: The American Motocross Association (AMA). Their two sons, Greg and Brian, raced motorcycles, but also enjoyed riding and racing BMX with their friends. It was their sons' interest, and the lack of BMX organizations in the East, which prompted Esser to start the NBL in Florida. By 1977, the American Bicycle Association (ABA) was organized as a national sanctioning body for the growing sport. Freestyle BMX

561-609: The BMX bike became the must-have bicycle for children and teenagers. The 1983 cult movie BMX Bandits helped establish the sport further worldwide. Previously a small niche area, BMX exploded at this time into the dominant bicycle for the younger rider, with older teenagers and even adults becoming known names through publications like BMX Bi-Weekly , featuring big names like Tim March and Andy Ruffell. The shift to freestyle from racing came in 1985 with popular styling moving from chrome frames and contrasting components in black blue or red being

594-645: The International Olympic Committee made BMX a medal Olympic sport for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing , China , and Māris Štrombergs (male, for Latvia ) and Anne-Caroline Chausson (female, for France ) became the first Olympic champions. Many talented BMX riders go on to other cycling sports like downhill , including Australian Olympian Jared Graves , Eric Carter and youth BMX racer Aaron Gwin . Multiple world and Olympic champion track sprinter Chris Hoy also began as

627-490: The Trek World Racing Team after relocating to Temecula, CA. During his time at Trek World Racing , he won two World Cup Overall titles, in 2011 and 2012. On January 7, 2013, it was announced that Aaron would be riding for Specialized Racing , replacing Sam Hill on the team. His teammate at Specialized was Troy Brosnan . After a successful season with Specialized, Gwin announced that he would be leaving

660-681: The UCI World Championships in Champery. In 2012, Gwin once again dominated the circuit, taking first place in 4 out of 6 World Cup races. He finished in 128th at World Championships in Leogang. The year 2013 was a disappointing one for Gwin, with unexpected poor results culminating in an accident involving a tree at the World Championships. In 2014, Gwin's racing improved from 2013, although with only one 1st in

693-621: The United States, France, Italy, and Switzerland to replace the International Cycling Association , which had been formed in 1892, over a row with Great Britain as well as because of other issues. Since the rise of the Olympic Movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics , cycling has been a contestant event in every Summer Olympic Games . Road bicycle racing involve both team and individual competition, and races are contested in various ways. They range from

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726-738: The World Cup along with the USA National Championships. His racing showed recovery from his 2013 setbacks, but suffered several mechanical accidents, such as his run in Leogang at the UCI MTB World Cup in 2014, where he suffered a flat tire as he left the start gate, which resulted in the tire coming off of the rim; or his 2015 race run at the Leogang UCI MTB World Cup where his chain broke on

759-536: The distance varying depending on the conditions. The sport is strongest in traditional road cycling countries such as Belgium (Flanders in particular) and France. Mountain bike races are held off-road and involve moderate to high degree of technical riding. There are several varieties; the main categories are cross-country , enduro and downhill but also 4X or four-cross racing. BMX takes place off-road. BMX races are sprints on purpose-built off-road single-lap tracks, typically on single-gear bicycles. Riders navigate

792-463: The globe. Aaron Gwin Aaron Holmes Gwin (born December 24, 1987) is an American professional downhill mountain biker from Morongo Valley, California . He is a five-time World Cup overall champion. Aaron Gwin started his cycling career racing BMX from the age of 4. By age 8, Gwin was racing at a national level. At age 12, Gwin moved on to motocross and raced up until he

825-471: The modern velodromes of today. Unlike road racing, which is dependent on environmental factors, indoor tracks ensure the sport can be competed all year round. It encompasses races that take place on banked tracks or velodromes . Events are quite diverse and can range from individual and team pursuits , two-man sprints, to various group and mass start races. Competitors use track bicycles which do not have brakes or freewheels. Cyclo-cross originated as

858-708: The most popular adult bicycle. In 1980, the first BMX track in the UK was founded in Landseer Park , Ipswich , by the Ipswich BMX Club, which still provides coaching and races on a regular basis. In April 1981, the International BMX Federation was founded, and the first world championships were held in 1982. Since January 1993, BMX has been integrated into the Union Cycliste Internationale . In 2003,

891-537: The movement nationally in the United States; its opening scene shows kids riding their Sting-Rays off-road. By the middle of that decade, the sport achieved critical mass , and manufacturers began creating bicycles designed especially for the sport. In 1974, George E. Esser founded the National Bicycle League as a non-profit bicycle motocross sanctioning organization. Before they set up the NBL, Esser and his wife, Mary, sanctioned motorcycle races with

924-490: The norm, to brightly coloured bikes in one colour only, including their magnesium alloy wheels and even matching tyres. Because BMX exploded into Britain's streets so suddenly, it was perhaps inevitable that it would implode with similar speed, when the children who rode the bikes left school and went to work. By 1986–1987, sales in the UK had dropped off dramatically, with the new all-terrain bike or mountain bike (another trend from mid-1970s California) taking off, soon to become

957-536: The one-day road race, criterium , and time trial to multi-stage events like the Tour de France and its sister events which make up cycling's Grand Tours . The races typically take place from spring through to autumn. Many riders from the Northern Hemisphere spend the winter in countries such as Australia to compete or train. Professional races range from the three-week "Grand Tour" stage races such as

990-558: The route profile (flats and hills), wind conditions, temperatures and elevation. At a 2013 event in Mexico, François Pervis achieved an average of 21.40 metres per second (77.0 km/h; 47.9 mph) with a flying start over 200 m (660 ft). The top average speed over the men's 1 km (0.6 mi) time trial at the 2004 Summer Olympics was 16.4 metres per second (59 km/h; 37 mph) recorded by Chris Hoy . Average speeds clearly drop with increasing distance, so that over

1023-592: The savior for US downhill racing on the international scene, since his 10th-place finish at the Mont Sainte-Anne World Cup in 2008 was the first American top 10 finish since 2004. He has since won eight United States National Championships for Downhill, in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017. In 2011 and 2012, Gwin dominated the UCI World Cup downhill series. Gwin won 5 out of 7 World Cup races in 2011, and finished 13th at

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1056-633: The start line, and he raced without pedaling for his race run, managing to hold his speed and win the race. Much of Gwin's style and skill come from his motocross experience. His BMX racing experience has also contributed to his ability to ride smoothly, bringing him success in Dual Slalom and Mountain Cross. Gwin was sponsored in 2008 by Yeti Cycles . He left the Yeti team in November 2010 to join

1089-539: Was 17, when he quit due to constant injuries. In 2008, at age 20, Gwin was loaned a bike by fellow professional downhill racer and good friend Cody Warren and was encouraged to compete in a race. In his first race in the Fontana Winter Series, he placed 3rd, and began racing from then on, quickly signing with Yeti Cycles . He became well-known for breaking into the international World Cup scene after only 8 months of riding downhill. Many saw Gwin as

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