bicycle racing or cycling, an internationally popular sport conducted on closed courses or the open road. Track racing takes place at a velodrome, usually a banked 1,093.6 ft (.333 km) oval. Olympic medals are awarded in individual and team track events, including the sprint, which features a duel between two finalists. Another track event is the pursuit, in which racers begin at opposite sides of the circuit and attempt to catch each other. The Olympics include road races, but the best-known road events are grueling multiday races, especially the Tour de France (begun in 1903), which covers some 2,500 mi (4,000 km) in more than twenty daily stages. Tour de France cyclists ride for teams that share prize money and employ various strategies to aid each other, but an individual winner emerges from both time trials and races over varied terrain, including downhill mountain rides at speeds above 70 mph (113 kph). In 1996 mountain biking, featuring varied off-road events (cross-country, hill climb, slalom), debuted as an Olympic event. Cyclocross, long popular in Europe and gaining in the United States, involves racing around an obstacle-filled course. In recent years, professional bicycle racing has been marred by revelations of the use of performance-enhancing drugs. Several favorites were barred from the 2006 Tour de France as a result of doping charges, and the winner that year, American Floyd Landis, tested positive for high testosterone levels (and presumed testosterone use). In addition, the long-dominant Lance Armstrong was suspected of doping.

Use of the bicycle in competitive sport or in recreation. The classic professional races are held mainly in Europe; the first was held in Paris in 1868. There are basically two types of race: road races and track races. The first U.S. cycling competition, a six-day race, was held in 1891. Six-day racing was reintroduced to Europe as a two-man team event in the 20th century, but it has largely died out in the U.S. The first Tour de France, the premier race, was held in 1903. Cycling has been part of the Olympics since the first modern games in 1896. Events include a variety of open-road and circuit races for both men and women.

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