Know the game: what smart fans need to know about Cycling

Cycling in sport refers to various races and formats; namely Road Bicycle Cycling, Mountain Bike Racing, Track Cycling and Bicycle Motocross (BMX). They have one thing in common though, competitive racing riding a pedal bicycle.

There are countless other freestyle bicycle sports, yet these tend not to be as competitive. The four formats listed in this article are all Summer Olympic sports that audiences worldwide follow. 

Cycling competitions and challenges entertain a considerable following in North America, Europe and Asia. Australia also boasts an active cycling culture, hosting major events like the Tour Down Under and contributing significantly to global cycling competitions and infrastructure development.

History of Cycling

The history of cycling is rich and dynamic, tracing its roots back to the mid-19th century. The first recorded bicycle race took place in Paris in 1868, marking the beginning of organized bicycle racing as a sport.

 As cycling gained momentum, Continental Europe became a hub for competitive racing, with France leading the way. The introduction of the Tour de France in 1903 revolutionized the sport, establishing a new standard for endurance and competition that continues to captivate fans today. 

Legendary riders like “Mile a Minute Murphy” became household names, celebrated for their speed and determination. Over time, the sport expanded to include new disciplines such as mountain biking and BMX, reflecting the growing popularity and diversity of recreational cycling. 

Today, cycling is not only a major sport but also a widely embraced form of transportation and recreation, with its growth fueled by ongoing innovation and a passionate global community.

Major cycling events

Cycling’s global appeal is showcased through a calendar packed with major events that draw the world’s best riders and teams.

The Tour de France stands as the pinnacle of road races, challenging competitors with gruelling stages across France and neighbouring countries. Alongside it, the Giro d’Italia and the Vuelta a España complete the trio of Grand Tours, each offering unique terrain and fierce competition.

The World Championships bring together national teams to compete for the coveted rainbow jersey, while the Olympic Games feature a full slate of cycling disciplines, including road races, time trials, and track events.

Classic one-day races like Paris-Roubaix test riders’ endurance and skill on challenging courses, often featuring cobblestones and unpredictable weather. These events not only highlight the athleticism and strategy of professional riders but also serve as a stage for national pride and international rivalry, making cycling one of the most exciting and widely followed sports in the world.

Road Bicycle Cycling

Road cycling can be speed related or endurance, with races taking over a day and sometimes weeks to complete.

Individual Time Trial

In this event cyclists race solo against the clock over mountain roads, rolling or flat terrain. In the Individual Time Trial, the winner is the cyclist who completes the course in the fastest time. Riders take turns to complete their ‘trial.’ Race distances vary depending on the competition.

Road Race

Single-day road races may be as long as a few hundred kilometres. Ultimately the road race is where the rider who finishes first wins the race, being the fastest around a course distance. Shorter road races tend to favour sprint riders, whilst longer distances favour endurance competitors.

Stage Races

Stage races are actually several races, known as stages that riders must complete in the shortest time. The competitor with the lowest cumulative time across all stages will be declared the winner. Each stage winner is the first cyclist to cross the finish line and thus, becomes the fastest rider.

There are three-week stage races known as the Grand Tours, including three of the most prestigious races in cycling; the Giro d’Italia, the Tour de France, and the Vuelta a España.

Mountain Bike Racing

In mountain bike racing, there are four classifications: four cross, downhill, trailquest and cross-country.

Four Cross

Four cross is four mountain bike riders competing on a highly-challenging course. Races are usually frenzied, and due to the speeds involved, races last only 25 seconds to one minute.

Courses include an array of obstacles that riders must navigate and get over whilst riding at high-speed combined with jostling with other competitors. Needless to say, this event has many bicycle crashes.

Downhill

Downhill is the ultimate mountain bike test of nerve and control, with the race being who is the fastest from top to bottom. The difference between first and second can be a matter of seconds.

Riders race down a steep course attempting to navigate bumps, jumps and drop-offs, making this race very exciting and unpredictable for spectators.

Trailquest

This discipline combines orienteering with cross-country racing. Competitors must search for specific locations on courses and clip special cards to demonstrate they have completed particular points. This event can last hours, it is not about the fastest race time but accumulating points from completing the special course cards.

Trailquest can either be a team event with two riders or an individual competition.

Cross-country Racing

Cross-country racing is the only mountain biking event at the Olympics. Riders must have brilliant bike handling skills to manoeuvre around rocks, branches, trees and small streams.

This draining event requires riders to be incredibly fit and have high endurance levels, with the race lasting several laps and a few hours over descending and ascending terrain.

Track Cycling

Track cycling is divided into two further formats; sprints and endurance, with riders tending to focus on either format and rarely compete in both.

Track cycling sprint races

Sprint

Sprint riders require both explosive speed and excellent bike-handling skills. Before the race begins, riders are drawn lots to determine who starts on the track inside and who must lead for the first lap.

In track sprint races, riders don’t want to lead nor leave themselves open from attack from competitors behind them. The race begins very slowly as cyclists jostle to a favoured position before bursting into speed on the final lap attempting to get away from their opponent and sprinting to the finish line.

Keirin

The keirin is an odd event, originating in Japan. Similar to the sprint except it has six to eight riders instead of two; riders follow a small moped-type bike called a derny.

The role of the derny is to set the pace for the riders for the first few laps of an eight-lap race. The derny increases its speed gradually before pulling off the arena with two-and-a-half laps to go leaving riders to sprint frantically to the finish.

Riders again jostle for position before the derny breaks away (and not permitted to overtake, remaining behind the back wheel of the derny) meaning that during the last laps the fast and furious race incurs many crashes!

Track time trial

A pretty straightforward race, the track time trial is a race against the clock from a standing start. Riders need to have strength, stamina and speed and judge their pace to not run out of steam at crucial points of the race.

An explosive start is required to get ahead of the clock; however, if riders go too fast they will burn out too soon and miss out on completing timed checkpoints.

Team sprint

Two teams, consisting of three riders, start on opposite sides of the velodrome track. The race is three laps long, and at the end of the first lap, the leading rider pulls up leading the second rider to lead for the next lap, with the third rider leading for the third lap.

All the time the team must keep a perfect team shape and not be too far from each other. The first rider must have the speed of a sprinter, with the second rider power to pull away from the opposing team and the third rider with endurance taking the team home to (hopefully) win the race.

The team crossing the finishing line first wins the race.

Track cycling endurance races

Individual pursuit

In the Individual Pursuit, two competitors start from the opposite side of the velodrome track, intending to catch each other up. Should this not happen, the cyclist covering the distance in the fastest time will win the race.

As with most endurance races, an explosive start is not always required, rather the ability to ride at high speeds for the entire of the race. Riders must be adept in pacing themselves to win the team pursuit.

Madison

The Madison takes its name from New York City’s famous Madison Square Garden. The race is a whopping 50 km long on the velodrome track and is a team event, not an individual one.

The Madison begins with all riders on the track; however, only one rider from each team is permitted to race at any given time. The rider’s teammates circle the track resting themselves until their teammate brings them back into the race with a hand-sling motion – grabbing their teammate’s hand and propelling them along the track to continue the race in their place.

Riders are attempting to lap their opponents and obtain points for doing so plus for specific sprints along the race. The team with the most points at the race’s end is the winner.

Omnium

Competitors in the Omnium each ride five events, all of which must be completed:

• 15km points race
• 200m flying time trial
• 5km scratch race
• 1km time trial
• 3km individual pursuit

Points are given in reverse order, so winning riders obtain one point and the lowest rider getting more. The rider with the least amount of points will be declared the winner.

Omnium riders require a combination of bunched racing, sprinting and time-trialling.

Points race

A points race is a combination of endurance and a sprint race, with the race being 25-40 km depending on the rider’s gender.

It is scored similarly to the Madison, except that the Points Race is a solo and not a team event. Once again, the primary aim is to gain a lap on the rest of the field. If a rider does this, they win the race. This is a very tactical race, with distance riders looking to lap the rest of the field and sprinters looking to burst to score more points during sprint sections of the race.

For each sprint finish, the first four riders that cross the line will be awarded points with double points awarded on the last lap.

Team pursuit

The Team Pursuit, like the Individual Pursuit, has two sets of competitors starting on the opposite sides of the track, except rather than solo riders, there are four in each team covering over 4,000m.

The primary aim of the race is for the teams to catch each other or complete the race in the fastest possible time, with each rider taking turns to lead for half-laps or full laps.

Crucially, teams cannot afford to lose any of their riders during the race because it is the third rider crossing the line that counts as the final finishing time.

Team Pursuit participants require colossal stamina levels and excellent inter-team riding skills – the wheels of each team member’s bikes are only a few centimetres apart.

Bicycle Motocross (BMX)

BMX has several stunt events that are highly popular within the sport, containing overtaking moves and big jumps. However, within the summer Olympics, only the

‘Race’ has been given official recognition for the sport’s inclusion. The BMX race involves eight or fewer competitors competing around a track.

Unlike typical BMX bikes, the race bikes are much longer and lighter, enabling riders to maintain high speeds and remain stable on the track. The race is simple, whoever wins the race is the winner, with competitors attempting to overtake one another along the designated course.

Cycling techniques and strategies

Success in cycling depends on mastering a range of techniques and strategies tailored to the demands of each discipline.

In a road race, riders must combine physical endurance with tactical awareness, working within a team to control the pace, respond to attacks, and position themselves for a sprint finish.

Mountain biking requires a different skill set, with riders relying on upper body strength, balance, and quick reflexes to navigate technical trails, steep descents, and sudden jumps. Cyclo cross blends elements of both, challenging riders to dismount and carry their bikes over obstacles before remounting and continuing the race.

Strategies can vary widely—even within a single event—depending on factors like terrain, weather, and the presence of other competitors. For example, a rider facing strong headwinds in a road race may draft behind others to conserve energy, while a mountain biker must constantly adjust their line to avoid rocks and roots.

Adaptability, situational awareness, and precise bike handling are essential for riders aiming to excel in any form of bicycle racing.

How to bet on cycling: know the game

Cycling is far more than just who crosses the finish line first. With multiple disciplines—road, track, BMX, mountain, and cyclo-cross—each format brings its own betting angles, pacing, and tactics. This guide will help you understand the essentials, so you can confidently follow and bet on the sport’s most popular events.

Road cycling is the most widely bet-on format, particularly stage races like the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, and Vuelta a España. Track events, such as the Omnium or Sprint, feature heavily in Olympic schedules, offering short, tactical bursts of action.

What to consider when betting on cycling:

• Team tactics: Riders often work in support of a team leader. Understanding a team’s strategy is essential.
• Stage profiles: Flat, hilly, and mountainous stages suit different rider types.
• Weather conditions: Wind and rain can dramatically affect outcomes.
• Rider form: Past performances in similar conditions or terrains offer useful insights.

Common cycling betting markets:

• Stage winner
• General classification winner
• King of the Mountains / Points jersey
• Head-to-head rider matchups
• Top 3 / Top 10 finishes

For informed bets, explore advice from proven betting tipsters or use arbitrage betting software to find the best odds across bookmakers.

Whether it’s sprinting for the line or grinding up Alpine climbs, cycling offers variety, strategy, and a unique betting experience for those ready to engage with the sport.