Individual pursuit

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The individual pursuit is a track cycling event where two cyclists begin their race from a stationary position (nowadays held by gates, in the past, riders were supported by track officials until the starting gun fired) on opposite sides of the track. If one cyclist manages to catch the other, the successful pursuer is declared the winner, otherwise, the first one to complete the required distance (usually 4000 metres for men, 3000 metres for women) is declared the winner.

Competitions are decided on a knock-out format, with the competitors with the best recent results seeded so that they do not meet each other until later rounds.

Notable performers in this discipline include:

British professional Hugh Porter (four times world professional champion - over 5000 metres)
Frenchman Roger Rivière (three times world professional champion, 1957-1959)
Chris Boardman
Graeme Obree
Bradley Wiggins, Olympic champion and three times world champion
six time women's champion Rebecca Twigg
five time women's champion Beryl Burton
Sarah Ulmer from New Zealand