Schedule Of Mountain Bike Cycling

Stony paths, fiddly climbs, complicated descents - watching the riders fighting these odds are nothing less than exciting. The challenges thrown for mountain bike riders in Olympic Games are plenty. A young sport, its popularity has grown increasingly worldwide, much like BMX. Mountain biking includes categories such as cross country, trail riding, downhill, trail riding, free ride, trails and dirt jumping. Quick, furious and horrifying, the origin of this sport can be dated back to Northern California during 70's. However, the world keenly watched its emergence from the low-key beginnings to its first official championship in 1990. Having a huge fan following all across the globe, it made its debut in Atlanta Olympics. At London Olympics, mountain bike competition will take place in Essex at Hadleigh farm. The course in London, which is newly constructed, will serve one of the toughest tests for competitors all through the world. Get ready to watch this thrilling adventurous sport, which will be once in a lifetime event.

Mountain Bike Cycling Schedule London 2012 Olympics

11 Aug 2012, Saturday
12:30 - 14:30
Competitions held will be Women's Cross Country, and Women's Cross Country Medal Ceremony.

12 Aug 2012, Sunday
13:30 - 15:30
Competitions held will be Men's Cross Country, and Men's Cross Country Medal Ceremony.

Cycling Programme
Two events of cycling programme will be held with eighty athletes competing including 50 men and 30 women.

Olympic Circuit
The circuit for Olympics in London is located in Hadleigh town, which is one-hour distance towards the east of London, overlooking the River Thames Estuary. An open and rolling land, the course is absolutely man-made. The organizers have constructed a five-kilometre loop, which makes the riders go up and down the hills multiple times. They have built plenty of rock garden sections throughout the circuit. You can see that the surface has crushed gravel that also includes grass and dirt sections. The course is expected to be television and spectator friendly, with thousands of people watching the performance from a single vantage point.

Few Basics
London Olympics mountain bike competitions generally take place on hilly countrysides and rough areas. The procedure is such that all the racers begin together and complete a definite number of laps of the course. It lasts for one hour and forty-five minutes for both men and women. The races are around 40 or 50 kilometres long for men and 30-40 kilometres for women. For both events, all the competitors begin together and the first rider who crosses the finishing line wins the gold. This sport is equally brutal on the limps as well as on the bikes. This is the only Olympic sports, which include fallen trees as the challenge. Those bicycles, which are used in mountain bike events, are built for sturdiness, swiftness and comfort. It is not at all a cakewalk, provided the toughness of the variety of terrain. Both the bicycles and the competitors must be swift enough to climb the uneven terrain and sturdy to manage the descents at tremendous speed.

Interesting Facts