Biciklizam / CYCLING
Od guranja nogama do Tur de Fransa Biciklizam kao sport počinje gotovo istovremeno kad nastaje i sam bicikl kao praktično prevozno sredstvo. Iako nije moguće pripisati izum bicikla samo jednoj osobi, prvi prepoznatljivi prototip pojavio se početkom 19. veka. Nemački baron Karl fon Drajz je 1817. godine napravio vozilo bez pedala koje se guralo nogama, što se smatra jednom od preteča modernog bicikla. Prvi ozbiljniji bicikli sa pedalama pojavili su se sredinom 19. veka, a to je dovelo i do prvih takmičarskih susreta. Zvanično se smatra da je prva biciklistička trka održana 31. maja 1868. godine u parku Sent-Klud kod Pariza, na stazi dugoj oko 1.200 metara. Taj dan se često navodi kao momenat kada biciklizam postaje organizovan sport, jer je trka imala ciljnu liniju, rekordere i definisano nadmetanje. Tokom kasnog 19. veka biciklizam brzo dobija sportsku strukturu. U Engleskoj i Evropi osnivaju se prvi biciklistički klubovi i savezi, koji organizuju redovne trke i definišu pravila. Sport brzo evoluira u više disciplina, a drumski biciklizam ulazi u program prvih modernih Olimpijskih igara 1896. godine u Atini, gde su biciklisti vozili trasu dugog atletskog maratona. Od tada se biciklizam, u različitim disciplinama,
redovno pojavljuje na Olimpijskim igrama. Velike međunarodne trke poput Tur de Fransa i Điro d’Italia postaju simboli profesionalnog biciklizma. Ove trke sa etapama koje traju desetine dana i prelaze stotine ili hiljade kilometara, privlače najbolje profesionalce sveta i milione gledalaca. Pored drumske vožnje, razvile su se i druge takmičarske forme: pistovni biciklizam na zatvorenim velodromima, ciklokros – vožnja po kombinovanim terenima sa preprekama, kao i planinski biciklizam (MTB), koji je izrastao iz rekreativnih ruta u ozbiljan sport tokom 1970-ih i 1980-ih, da bi se od 1996. godine našao i na programu Olimpijskih igara. Tu su i specijalizovane, ali značajne varijante sporta poput BMX-a, koji se razvio 1970-ih u SAD kao trka na kratkim, tehnički zahtevnim stazama. FROM PUSHBIKES TO THE TOUR DE FRANCE Cycling began developing as a sport almost as soon as the bicycle itself emerged as a practical means of transport. Though it isn’t possible to attribute the invention of the bicycle to a single person, the first recognisable prototype appeared early in the 19 th century, when – in 1817 – German
inventor Baron Karl von Drais created a two-wheeled vehicle, without pedals, that was propelled by foot. This machine is considered one of the earliest forerunners of the modern bicycle. Pedalled bicycles first appeared in the mid-19 th century, which also led to the first competitive races. The first official bicycle race is considered as being one held on 31 st May 1868 in the Parc de Saint-Cloud near Paris, with the course covering a distance of around 1,200 metres. That date is often cited as marking the birth of cycling as an organised sport, because the race featured start/finish lines, timekeepers and defined competition. Cycling quickly acquired a sporting framework during the late 19 th century. Around England and across Europe, the first cycling clubs and associations were established and began organising regular races and defining competition rules. The sport evolved rapidly to include several disciplines, and road cycling was included in the first modern Olympic Games in Athens in 1896, with cyclists riding the route from Athens to Marathon and back. Cycling has since regularly appeared at the Olympic Games, in various disciplines. Major international races like the Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia developed to become symbols of professional road cycling. Such races, which can last several weeks, include multiple stages and cover hundreds or thousands of kilometres, attract the world’s top professional cyclists and millions of spectators. Alongside road cycling, other forms of competitive cycling also developed: track cycling, raced on closed velodromes; cyclo-cross - riding over combination terrain with obstacles; and mountain biking (MTB), which grew out of recreational cycling routes to become a serious sport during the 1970s and ‘80s, only to be included in the programme of the Olympic Games since 1996. There are also specialised but significant variants of the sport, such as BMX (bicycle motocross), which developed in the U.S. in the 1970s for racing over short, technically demanding dirt tracks.
Cycling » Biciklizam | 111
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