Cycling

The 18 events

Men: Track (seven events): Individual sprint, team sprint, individual 4km pursuit, team 4km pursuit, points race, madison and keirin, road (two events): Individual road race and individual time-trial, Mountain biking (one event): Cross-country, BMX (one event): Individual race (2008 debut).

Women: Track (three events): Individual sprint, 3km individual pursuit and points race, Road (two events): Individual road race and individual time-trial, Mountain biking (one event): Cross-country, BMX (one event): Individual race (2008 debut).

Milestones

1816: The "Draisienne", the ancestor of the bicycle, is invented by the German Karl Friedrich Drais.

1880: The first bike chain appears and the back wheel becomes the motor of the bike.

1887: The tyre is invented by John Boyd Dunlop.

1896: Cycling is included in the programme for the first modern Olympiad.

1903: First Tour de France.

1937: Gears become standard on most cycles.

1953: A Californian student, James Finley Scott, creates a prototype which enables cross-country riding. The mountain bike is born.

1996: Professionals are authorised to compete at the Atlanta Games.

1996: Mountain biking debuts at the Atlanta Games.

2008: The BMX event makes its Olympic debut in Beijing.

Stars

Fausto Coppi (Italy): The Campionissimo. Twice winner of the Tour de France, five time winner of the Tour of Italy, including two doubles in 1949 and 1952 (TDF and Tour of Italy). World road race champion (1953) and world pursuit champion (1947, 1949). The Italian also won one Paris-Roubaix, five Tours of Lombardy, one Flèche Wallonne and three Milan-San Remo races. One of the greatest of all time and also held the 1hour record for 14 years.

Eddy Merckx (Belgium): The Cannibal. Fifty victories on average between 1970 and 1973. Five Tour de France (between 1969 and 1974), five Tours of Italy, three world road racing titles, seven Milan-San Remo, five Liège-Bastogne-Liège, three Paris-Roubaix, three Paris-Nice, three Flèche Wallonne, 1hr record - the greatest record in the sport.

Daniel Morelon (France): King of the track. Three Olympic gold medals, seven amateur world speed champion titles.