Cycling Has Never Missed an Olympics

Cycling is one of the few sports present at every modern Summer Games since 1896. While it began with simple road and track speed races, it has now evolved to include gravity-defying freestyle BMX stunts.

Since the inaugural games in Athens, cycling has remained a permanent fixture of the Olympic program. For over a century, the sport focused exclusively on pure speed and endurance. That all changed in 2020 when BMX freestyle introduced subjective judging, rewarding athletes for creativity and style rather than just crossing a finish line first. This shift highlights how the Olympics continues to adapt its oldest sports for modern audiences.