Omnium
An omnium (from Latin: of all, belonging to all) is a multiple race event in track cycling. Historically the omnium has had a variety of formats.
History
The omnium was re-introduced into the World Championships as a five race format for men in 2007 and for women in 2009. The omnium was changed in 2010 by the UCI to include the elimination race and the distances of the events were lengthened to favor endurance cyclists.[1]
The omnium replaces the individual pursuit, the points race, and the Madison at the Summer Olympic Games beginning in 2012. The change received some criticism from cyclist Rebecca Romero, who was left unable to defend her Olympic title.[2]
Current omnium
Currently, and at the 2012 Olympics, the omnium as defined by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) consists of the following six events:
- Flying lap (against the clock)
- Points race
- 30 km for elite men, 20 km for elite women, 15 km for junior men, 10 km for junior women
- Elimination race
- Individual pursuit
- 4,000 metres for elite men, 3,000 metres for junior men and elite women, and 2,000 metres for junior women
- Scratch race
- Time trial
- 1 km men, 500 metres women[3]
Points are awarded in reverse order. The rider who finishes first in an event receives one point, the second rider will get two points and so on. The rider with the fewest points after all events is the winner. When two riders are tied on points, the combined time of the three time trials will break the tie amongst the riders. A rider must have completed every event in the omnium.
References
- ↑ Birnie, Lionel (17 December 2009). "Olympic omnium format unveiled". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ↑ "Romero and Wiggins lose out in Olympic cycling shake-up". BBC Sport: Cycling. 10 December 2009. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ↑ "§ 6 Kilometre and 500 metres Time Trial". Part 3: Track Races. UCI Cycling Regulations. p. 21. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
External links
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Look up omnium in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. |
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