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You are in: Other Sport: Cycling |  |
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The race of truth | |
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Around the Academy: |
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Can she add an Olympic medal to her collection?
The Olympic road race is unlikely to finish with a solo winner. If everyone's prepared well there should be between five and 10 riders there at the finish. It's not like running events where you can often anticipate the finish because of the times people have clocked in the past. In cycling there are a lot of tactics involved. It all depends on who attacks and when. That's where the team aspect comes into it.
You rely on your team mates to chase down attacks for you or lead you up the group so you can launch an attack. You need to get to the end of the race in a position to win. You have to keep an eye on your rivals and learn the best place to position yourself in the bunch.
That all comes with experience so be prepared to learn from your mistakes. The ability to sprint is also essential. You've got to be able to maintain high bursts of speed for long periods. The time trial is a different kettle of fish. It's called the race of truth because it's you against the clock.
The riders set off at separate intervals to cover the course as quickly as possible. You've got to pace yourself carefully. It's important not to do too much too soon and burn out. The physical attributes you need are similar for both races, they're both based on endurance. You need to be mentally tough too. You've got to be able to push through the pain barrier. Luckily, that's something I'm quite good at dealing with. Knowing I'm doing something I really enjoy pulls me through.
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