Olympic cycling changes drafting rules
Olympic cycling changes the way triathletes compete
during the bike event of the triathlon. Drafting has long been grounds for
penalty yellow cards and disqualification during the bike event. With some
competitions, for elite and junior triathletes, the drafting rule has been
eliminated. The summer Olympics is one such event.
Drafting includes the following behaviors:
• cycling within 5 meters of someone’s back wheel
• cycling next to somebody within 2 meters of them
• taking longer than 15 seconds in somebody’s draft area in an attempt to
overtake them.
Triathlon tradition of disqualifying bike drafters over?
What happens is that a draft marshal, if they think you were drafting, will
call your number out and tell you that you are being called out for drafting.
You have to pull your bike over to the side, dismount with both feet, and raise
the bike off of both wheels. Then you have to show your number to the marshal.
If you are called a second time for drafting during the bike event, you are
disqualified from the triathlon.
Now that there are so many competitions where triathletes are not monitored for
drafting, one must wonder about the future of drafting during the bike event. An
interesting side note: drafting in swimming is legal (swimming in somebody’s
wake but not doing that to a vessel).
Be part of the TEAM...shop USOlympicShop.com!!
Related Article(s)
see also
Olympic
events
|
