Cycling at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Cycling at the 2012 London Olympics featured 18 events across five venues.
The 2012 London Olympics featured cycling events from July 28 to August 12, spread across five different sites. Track cycling and BMX were held at the London Velopark, while mountain biking took place at Hadleigh Farm in Essex. The road races began and ended on The Mall in central London, with a route heading into Surrey, and the time trials started and finished at Hampton Court Palace in Richmond upon Thames. In total, 18 events were contested, with roughly 500 athletes taking part. Cycling has been a part of every Summer Olympics since the first modern Games in 1896, alongside athletics, artistic gymnastics, fencing, and swimming.
The track cycling program saw several changes from the 2008 Beijing Games. The men’s and women’s individual pursuit and points race, as well as the men’s Madison, were dropped. New events for women included the team sprint, team pursuit, and keirin, while the Omnium was introduced for both men and women. A new rule limited each country to one entry per track event, a move widely seen as targeting the British team, which had won two medals in four different track events in 2008. Despite this, Britain dominated the cycling competitions once again, taking eight gold medals—the only nation to win more than one gold in the sport.
The original plan for Olympic road racing had placed it in Regent’s Park and Hampstead Heath, but the actual route started and finished on The Mall, heading southwest to include loops around Box Hill in Surrey. Paralympic road racing was held at Brands Hatch. For mountain biking, the course at Weald Country Park was deemed “too easy” by the UCI in July 2008, so the event moved to Hadleigh Farm. There had been talk of building a course in Wales, and a location in Kent was also considered. Cyclists from 74 nations competed in the 2012 Games.
- Events
- 18
- Athletes
- around 500
- Participating nations
- 74
- Venues
- 5 (London Velopark, Hadleigh Farm, The Mall, Hampton Court Palace, Surrey course)
- Dates
- 28 July to 12 August
- Dominant nation
- Great Britain (8 gold medals)
Lore & Background
Compared to the cycling at the 2008 Olympics, there were many changes in the Olympic track cycling programme. The men's and women's individual pursuit and points race, and the men's Madison were removed. Team sprint, team pursuit and keirin were added to the women's programme, while Omnium was a new race for both men and women. Countries were restricted to one entry per track event, a restriction which seemed to be directed at preventing the British team from double-medalling in the same event as they had in four events in 2008, thus lowering their medal chances.
Reader's Guide
The 2012 Olympic cycling programme marked a significant shift in track events, removing several traditional races and introducing new ones such as the women's team sprint, team pursuit, keirin, and the Omnium for both sexes. The restriction of one entry per country per track event was widely seen as an attempt to curb British dominance, as the British team had won multiple medals in four track events in 2008. Despite this, the British team again dominated, winning eight gold medals—the only nation to win more than one gold in cycling. The road races started and finished on The Mall, while the time trials used Hampton Court Palace. The mountain bike event was moved to Hadleigh Farm after the UCI deemed the original course at Weald Country Park too easy. The Paralympic road races took place at Brands Hatch. Cyclists from 74 nations participated.
Did You Know?
- The road races started and ended on The Mall in central London and headed out into Surrey.
- The mountain bike event was moved to Hadleigh Farm after the UCI labeled the course at Weald Country Park 'too easy' in July 2008.
- Countries were restricted to one entry per track event, a restriction seemingly aimed at preventing the British team from double-medalling.
- The British team won eight gold medals, the only nation to win more than a single gold medal in cycling.
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