The Art of Cycling

Saturday, August 3, 2024

Paris Olympics 2024, Men's Road Race: Two Chasing

With a group up the road, both Christophe Laporte (France) and Matteo Jorgenson (USA) knew they had to try and get across. They had only another 23 kilometers to race through Paris and at this point all of the Olympic medals were up the road. Laporte was taking a risk pulling another rider up to his teammate, but Madouas wasn't the designated man for the French team. I'm not sure why they didn't have faith in him, he had just raced an excellent Tour de France two weeks ago. And now, the man they were riding for, Julian Alaphilippe, wasn't in the mix anymore. It should be noted that these two ride on the same pro team, Visma-Lease a Bike, so they well know the other's strengths and weaknesses.

This is a small 4x6 inch original watercolor painting that is available through my website at greigleach.com or you can simply follow the direct link at the end of the post to purchase the painting above. Since it is an original work of art, it is a first come first served reality. The work sells for $95 USD including shipping, but, yes, international shipping is both available and extra.

"Two Chasing PO24-56" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Men's Road Race: Who Do We Have Now?

Valentin Madouas (France) looks over his shoulder to see who is in this chase group with him. He finds a dangerous Remco Evenepoel (Belgium) along with Stefan Kung (Suisse), Marco Haller (Austria), and Fred Wright (Great Britain). The group has built a bit of an advantage over what is left of the main peloton with another 34 kilometers to race through the streets of Paris. They are still chasing on man, Ben Healy (Ireland) who is still holding them off by about thirty seconds.

Since there won't be another painting of Madouas today, I should tell you that he was able to take the Silver Medal for France, making that the third Silver in this event in the history of these Games. They have yet to win a Gold Medal.

"Who Do We Have Now? PO240-55" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Men's Road Race: Atop Montmartre

As the peloton crested the climb up Montmartre, it was Mathieu Van Der Poel (Netherlands) going on the attack with Wout Van Aert (Belgium) in front of the Cathedral of Sacre Coeur. The site was a perfect stage for a bike race with a long, wide staircase between this stretch of the racecourse and the art nouveau cathedral. Belgium had the perfect setup for this race. They could send either Van Aert on an attack or Evenepoel, both of whom are fully capable of winning on this racecourse. Then they also have Teisj Benoot who is the man for pulling back any breakaways or counterattacks. This seems to be their race to lose. It is nice that the fans had both the Belgium and Dutch flags out on the barriers to cheer their countrymen on.

"Atop Montmarte PO24-54" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Men's Road Race: Sorry About That

While looking back to see who was chasing them, Alexey Lutsenko (Kazakstan) brushed into his breakaway companion, Ben Healy (Ireland). Lutsenko reached out and tapped the shoulder of the Irishman to let him know he was sorry for the momentary lapse of focus. He could be pardoned for the goof, they have been racing for just under two hundred kilometers and the real racing hasn't really started yet. They were building up an advantage on the peloton in search of the five guys up the road.

"Sorry About That PO24-53" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Men's BMX Racing: A French Sweep

The French went into these Olympics having never won a medal in BMX Racing. They have come on strong this year, with the current world champion amongst their team. All three of the French team made it into the final along with an Aussie, two Swiss, a Columbian, and an American. As they went into the first turn, Romain Mahieu (France) squeezed out the Australian who crashed into the barrier who took out one of the two Swiss guys. The two other members of the French team pulled away led by Joris Daudet, who was chased by Sylvain Andre. They stayed off the front with Daudet having time to look back to see his teammates as he crossed the line for the Gold Medal. Andre easily took the Silver and Mahieu outsprinted the remaining Swiss rider for the Bronze. So, the French went from no medals in this sport to winning three, not bad, not bad at all.

"A French Sweep PO24-52" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Friday, August 2, 2024

Paris Olympics 2024, Women's Gymnastics Individual All Around: Full of Joy

In her post event interview Suni Lee (USA) was asked about her performance after winning the Bronze Medal. She had some troubles in the early rotations, so her response was a lesson to us all. "I was sure I had no chance for a medal, so I just went out and enjoyed myself." It showed. She has had many setbacks that I wrote about earlier, so I imagine that the possibility of not winning an individual medal was a big issue to her. My hat is off to her to remain that cool, and to do it with that many cameras clicking and whirring away in the background. Not to mention the TV cameras everywhere, the fans and celebrities filling the venue and all of us watching on various media outlets. And all that, and she still came away with the Bronze. Not too shabby.

"Full of Joy PO24-51" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Women's Gymnastics Individual All Around

Alice D'Amato (Italy) personifies the idea of artistic gymnastics. It was most evident in her floor exercise were her grace and movement really had a chance to shine. As I now look at this painting, I should have added some shadows on the mat just to help you see where she is in space. I imagine that is a problem for many of these athletes as they flip themselves high above the gym floor. She had that horrible fate of just missing the podium and doing so by a mere 0.132 points. Still, it was a brilliant performance worthy of both art and our praise.

"Artistic Gymnastics PO24-50" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Women's Gymnastics Individual All Around: Just Four Inches

Many things amaze me about women's gymnastics, many, but the balance beam just boggles my mind. Just four inches wide and just over three feet in the air, it seems a strange place to do such feats of aerobatics. And then here is Simone Biles (USA) spinning around three times on one foot atop this narrow expanse. Her routine enabled her to take the lead in this rotation, a lead she never gave back up! She has again won the Gold Medal as the world's best female gymnast! She truly is the G.O.A.T. It was fun to notice that she was wearing a silver goat as a necklace in her post event interview. Perhaps someone will get her a new gold one.

"Just Four Inches PO24-49" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Women's 200 Breaststroke

Shortly before the race was to begin, the announcer on NBC teased the race by saying, "When we return, we will have the women's 200 breasts." My inner pubescent boy just found that rather amusing. In the pool, it was Kate Douglas (USA) touching the was first for a Gold Medal. Silver went to Tatjana Smith (South Africa) who was the odds-on favorite in the race. And it was Tes Schouten (Netherlands) rounding out the podium for Bronze.

"A Stroke of Gold PO24-48" (Original art by Greig Leach)

Paris Olympics 2024, Women's Gymnastics Individual All Around: Catch and Release

I suppose I should title this "release and catch," but I was going for a play on the uneven bars skills and fishing action. I know, it is a bit of a stretch, but I enjoy it. I also enjoy watching Rebeca Andrade (Brazil) as a gymnast. She has both athleticism and an infectious movement and joy in all that she does. Her second rotation on this discipline was flawless and gave her the lead at the end of the second rotation. She did drop at the end of the night, but that meant that she will be taking the Silver Medal back to her home in Rio.

"Catch and Release PO24-47" (Original art by Greig Leach)