Seasoned cycling viewers tuning into the Olympic road races this weekend may be in for a bit of a shock. Rather than the 170-plus peloton we’re used to, around 90 riders will line up in the men’s and women’s events in Paris. To be specific, the provisional start lists show 88 riders for the men’s race, and 95 for the women's.
This is not part of a plan to make road racing more exciting, just down to strict restrictions on the number of athletes allowed at the Olympics. The IOC caps the overall number allowed, and sports like cycling have been impacted. However, it might just be the perfect way of making the road races exhilarating.
