Keirin in Colwood, British Columbia, July 2006. |
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| Highest governing body | Union Cycliste Internationale |
|---|---|
| First played | 1948 in Kurume, Fukuoka, Japan |
| Clubs | JKA Foundation (Japan Regulating Body) |
| Characteristics | |
| Categorization | Track cycling |
| Olympic | 2000 |
Keirin (ケイリン) is a track cycling event in which racing cyclists sprint for victory. Keirin originated in Japan in 1948; the first Olympic competitions in the sport occurred in 2000.
A keirin race is a mass-start race with 6-9 sprinters riders and a paced start. Riders draw lots to determine starting positions and start as the pacer (usually a motorcycle, a derny, or a tandem bicycle) approaches. The riders are required to remain behind the pacer, which starts at the deliberately slow speed of about 25 km/h, gradually increasing in speed and leaves the track approximately 600–700 meters before the end, at a speed of about 50 km/h. The first cyclist to finish the race is the winner (sometimes finishing at 70 km/h). Keirin races are about 2 kilometers in length (eight laps on a 250m track, six laps on a 333m track, and five laps on a 400m track).
In competitions, this event is often conducted in several rounds in order to reduce the number of competitors to one "final" round of 6–9 riders. Eliminated cyclists may get the opportunity to try again in the repechages.
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Keirin has been a UCI men's World Championship event since 1980. It has been a UCI women's World Championship event since 2002. Danny Clark was the first male UCI world champion and Li Na of China was the sport's first female UCI world champion. The current men's and women's world champions are Shane Perkins (2011) of Australia and Anna Meares of Australia (2011), respectively.
| Olympics | (Men's) Champion |
|---|---|
| 2000 | Florian Rousseau (FRA) |
| 2004 | Ryan Bayley (AUS) |
| 2008 | Chris Hoy (GBR) |
Keirin was admitted into the Olympics in December 1996.[1] A BBC News investigation, reported in July 2008, found evidence that following the sport's admission into the Olympics, the Union Cycliste Internationale required (in writing) that the Japan Keirin Association support UCI projects in "material terms"; over a period of time the association subsequently gave three million dollars to UCI in consideration of "the excellent relationship the UCI has with representatives of the Olympic movement."[1]
Men's keirin became an event at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
Professional cycling (競輪 keirin) began as a betting sport in Japan in 1948, and has since become very popular there. In 1957, the Nihon Jitensha Shinkōkai (NJS; also known in English as the Japanese Keirin Association) was founded to establish a uniform system of standards for the sport in Japan. Today keirin racing is regulated by the JKA Foundation.
Aspiring professional keirin riders in Japan compete for entrance into the Japan Keirin School. The 10 percent of applicants who are accepted then undergo a strict, 15-hours per day, training regimen. Those who pass the graduation exams, and are approved by the NJS become eligible for professional keirin races in Japan.
Koichi Nakano (中野 浩一 Nakano Kōichi) is the all-time winning cyclist on the Japan Professional Keirin circuit. One of the first Japanese keirin athletes to compete outside of his native country, Nakano holds the best record as a track cyclist at the UCI Track World Championships with a record of ten consecutive professional Sprint World Track Cycling Championship wins from 1977–86 against mostly western European pro track cyclists, although he never won the Keirin World Championship. At that time, many leading sprint riders were from the Eastern bloc countries and competed in separate "amateur" events.
Hiroyuki Murakami (村上 博幸 Murakami Hiroyuki), a keirin competitor from Kyoto, is the defending champion of the Keirin Grand Prix. In 2010, Murakami earned nearly ¥238 million in prize money (US$2.9 million), which ranks second on the all-time list behind the ¥244 million earned by Yūji Yamada (山田 裕仁 Yamada Yūji) in 2002.
Murakami is also the defending champion of the six-day Japan Championship meet that is held every March.
Keirin races in Japan begin with all nine cyclists parading to the starting blocks, bowing as they enter the track and again as they position their bikes for the start of the race. Every participant is assigned a number and a colour for identification and betting purposes.
At the sound of the gun, the cyclists leave their starting blocks and attempt to gain position behind the pacer, a keirin bicyclist wearing purple with orange stripes. As the pace quickens, the pacer will usually depart the track with between one and two laps remaining, but the actual location where the pacer leaves varies with every race.
With 1½ laps remaining, officials begin sounding a bell or gong, increasing in frequency until the bicyclists come around to begin the final lap of the race.
The race is monitored by four referees, each located in a tower next to one of the four turns (referred to as corners). After every race, each referee will wave either a white or red flag. A white flag indicates that no infractions occurred in that area. A red flag, however, signals a possible infraction and launches an inquiry into the race. Judges then examine the race on videotape to decide if a participant committed a rules violation; if so, he is disqualified and retires from the remainder of the meet.
Keirin ovals are divided into specific areas: The two straightaways (homestretch and backstretch), the four turns (corners), and two locations called the "center", referring to the area between corners 1 and 2 (1 center) and corners 3 and 4 (2 center).
Most keirin events are run at the standard distance of approximately 2,000 metres (6,600 ft),[2] with the highest-caliber events contested at a longer distance. The Keirin Grand Prix, for example, is run at 2,825 metres (9,268 ft), or seven laps around a 400-meter course.
There are a total of six rankings that competitors can obtain in Japanese keirin racing. SS is the highest ranking, followed by S1, S2, A1, A2 and A3. All new keirin graduates begin their careers with an A3 ranking and work their way up by competing in keirin events.
The color of the shorts worn by each keirin competitor indicates rank. Those in A-class (A1, A2, A3) wear black shorts with a green stripe and white stars. S-class competitors (S1 and S2) wear a red stripe instead of a green stripe. Those in the elite SS class wear red shorts with a black stripe, white stars and special insignia. Introduced in 2007, the SS ranking is assigned by the NJS every December before the Grand Prix to the best keirin athletes, who retain the ranking for a period of one year.[3]
A race meeting at any given keirin velodrome in Japan is assigned a grade. The highest graded events are GP, GI (G1), GII (G2) and GIII (G3), reserved only for S-class riders. Underneath those are FI (F1) events, which are open to both S-class and A-class riders. The lowest graded events, FII (F2), are reserved for A-class riders.
The GP grade designation is reserved for the Keirin Grand Prix, a three-day meet held at the end of December for the year's top keirin competitors. The meet ultimately concludes with the Grand Prix race itself, which determines the annual Keirin racing champion.
As of December 2008, the nine competitors for the Keirin Grand Prix race are determined in the following order of priority:[4]
Once the Grand Prix field is determined, the nine competitors are assigned the SS rank and retain it for one year. The next nine competitors that are ranked under this system also receive the SS rank and compete in the GI SS Cup held one day prior to the Grand Prix. Also part of the Grand Prix meet is the GII Young Grand Prix, which is open to the best of those that have begun competing in Keirin within the last three years; it is the only Keirin race of the year in which both S-class and A-class compete in the same race.
Another prestigious event on the annual keirin racing calendar is the GI Japan Championship. Held every March over a period of six days, it is the longest single race meeting of the year.
Each of the keirin velodromes are generally permitted to host one event per year of either GI, GII or GIII designation. The remaining events at each track consist of a combination of FI and FII races for a total of approximately 70 race days per year. On average there is one GI or GII event every month and one GIII meeting per week on the annual calendar.
| Month | Grade | Event | Host Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| February | II | East/West Championship (東西王座戦) |
2011: Toyohashi Velodrome, Aichi 2012: Kōchi Velodrome, Kōchi |
| March | I | Japan Championship (日本選手権) |
2011: Nagoya Velodrome, Aichi 2012: Kumamoto Velodrome, Kumamoto |
| April | II | Kyodo News Service Spring Cup (共同通信社杯 春一番) |
2011: Takeo Velodrome, Saga |
| May | I | SS Series (SSシリーズ風光る) |
2011: Matsudo Velodrome, Chiba |
| June | I | Prince Takamatsu Memorial Cup (高松宮記念杯) |
Ōtsu Biwako Velodrome, Shiga |
| July | I | Prince Tomohito Cup (寛仁親王牌・世界選手権記) |
2011: Yahiko Velodrome, Niigata |
| July | II | Summer Night Festival (サマーナイトフェスティバル) |
2011: Matsuyama Velodrome, Ehime |
| August | I | All-Japan Selection (全日本選抜) |
2011: Kishiwada Velodrome, Osaka |
| September | I | All-Star Keirin (オールスター競輪) |
2011: Gifu Velodrome, Gifu |
| October | II | Kyodo News Service Autumn Cup (共同通信社杯 秋本番) |
2011: Matsusaka Velodrome, Mie |
| November | I | Keirin Festival (競輪祭) |
Kokura Velodrome, Kokura |
| December | II | Young Grand Prix (ヤンググランプリ) |
2011: Hiratsuka Velodrome, Kanagawa |
| December | I | SS Cup Minori (SSカップみのり) |
2011: Hiratsuka Velodrome, Kanagawa |
| December | GP | Keirin Grand Prix (KEIRINグランプリ) |
2011: Hiratsuka Velodrome, Kanagawa |
Keirin velodromes follow the same basic schedule of races when conducting a race meeting. On the first day of competition, the better keirin competitors are assigned to races of higher caliber, while others are assigned to low-caliber races. Keirin racers are guaranteed to compete on each day of the meeting unless they are disqualfied from a race or retire from the meet for any reason - in which case alternate competitors are called up to fill in the lower-caliber races.
Below is a schedule of races conducted during a typical three-day FI event (open to both S-class and A-class riders).[5]
DAY 1
After six races, S-class riders compete, advancing to the next day's races in the same manner as the A class:
DAY 2
S-class riders advance to the final day in a similar manner:
DAY 3
As a result of the parimutuel gambling that surrounds keirin racing in Japan, a strict system of standards was developed for bicycles and repair tools. There are currently 50 velodromes in operation that hold races where annually over 20 million people attend and place bets amounting to over ¥1.5 trillion($15 billion) .[6] Since so much money is at stake, the Nihon Jitensha Shinkōkai (Japanese Bicycle Association or NJS) - now under the JKA Foundation - requires that all keirin racers in Japan ride and use equipment that meets their standards. All riders use very similar bicycles, so that no rider will have any advantage or disadvantage based on equipment. In addition, all riders must pass strict licensing requirements.
Those who wish to race in Japan must attend the Japan Bicycle Racing School where they learn the necessary rules, etiquette, and skills. The school typically accepts only 10% of applicants. Those who pass final examination must still be approved by the Japan Keirin Association.[6]
All bicycles and equipment must be built within strict guidelines set by the NJS, by a certified builder using NJS-approved materials. The products are then stamped by NJS and only equipment bearing this stamp may be used. The NJS standard is to ensure that no rider will have any advantage or disadvantage based on equipment and does not necessarily relate to quality or standard of manufacture.[7][8] For example, 36 spoke wheels are allowed but not 32, although 32 spoke wheels are typically lighter, and frames must be built by a very limited number of approved builders.
NJS approved equipment often sells for more than comparable equipment because of its specific use, build requirements, and limited manufacturers.[7] Popular manufacturers include Samson, Nitto, Bridgestone, 3Rensho, Shimano, Nagasawa, Panasonic, Hatta, MKS, Kashimax, and Sugino. Because the NJS's main objective is supporting the Japanese cycling market, its bureaucracy is notoriously critical of foreign manufacturers attempting to enter the Japanese market. The Italian cycling equipment manufacturer Campagnolo has, though, received NJS certification.[8]
NJS-approved equipment is not required for keirin races outside Japan.
Bets that can be made on Keirin races include:
Some Keirin velodromes accept the following wagers over the internet:[9][10]
The money wagered in the K-5 and BIG DREAM pools can carry over if there are no winning tickets.
In extraordinary circumstances, races have been declared no-contests, forcing velodromes to refund millions of yen in bets. Such results are generally known as a failure (不成立 fuseiritsu). A race at Shizuoka velodrome on January 2, 2008 was declared a failure when the back wheel of the pacer's bicycle nicked the bicycle of an actual competitor, causing him to fall.[11] In a race at Iwaki-Taira Velodrome on December 14, 2008, separate infractions resulted in the disqualification of the entire field; all but one of the competitors were handed a one-year suspension by the velodrome after the race.[12][13] The suspensions were lifted four months later.
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