This year I started watching the Tour de France whilst I was in Europe and was able to see the end of the Tour on SBS on my return to Australia last week.
The SBS coverage of the Tour has been outstanding this year. The images from the race, particularly from the helicopter cameras, have added to the excitement of Cadel Evans’ achievements.
From a performance point of view I have been interested to read about and listen to what is being written and said about the youngest winner of the Mountain Bike World Cup in the late 1990s and the oldest winner of the Tour since 1922.
I noted in particular:
- Cadel’s early sport activities and choices.
- The recognition of his ability and talent in 1998.
- The support and belief of a small number of people in his ability.
- The lessons of resilience.
- The coming together of a supportive team.
- The role of a charismatic coach in Cadel’s flourishing.
It is fascinating (and exhilirating) how all these came together in 2011 and provide, I think, a great opportunity to explore the interaction between fitness for purpose, readiness to perform and the magic of success.
Photo Credits
Cycling Central website front page (accessed 26 July)
Cadel Evans wins the Tour de France 2011
Keith, do cyclists use video analysis for performance? I couldn’t think of a reason it’d help very much; putting aside competitive analysis. Maybe for team cycling they could review their lead-cyclist swaps or something I suppose.
Giri
An interesting question! I have been involved in a number of cycling video projects. Two of these are directly relevant to your question:
1. The monitoring of lead out and wheel positioning from aerial images of elite men’s races.
2. The attempt to use a drone for races not covered by broadcast television. This was an exciting project.
More generally I think a great deal of importance has been attached to course profiling particularly for Olympic courses.
I have been using video to look at critical incidents too in order to develop profiles of performance.
Thanks for calling by!
Best wishes
Keith