GENEVA, June 21 (Xinhua) -- Watching Olympic cycling competitions is the best opportunity for fans to experience the landscape beauty of the city of Paris, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) president David Lappartient said on Friday.
"I'm expecting something amazing at the Paris Olympic Games. Paris is a very iconic city. It's an open museum. The Olympics will give the fans an opportunity to see Paris," Lappartient said in an interview with Xinhua.
Lappartient, 51, was born at Pontivy, northwest of France.
"We have all these disciplines in very, very iconic places. Only cycling competitions can give their fans the opportunity to see all these good scenes in Paris," the president added.
The BMX competition of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games will be held at the Place de la Concordes, the largest square in the center of Paris and is located north of the Seine River.
The road cycling routes start at the Trocadero and take in famous Parisian sights including the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower.
"A lot of cycling disciplines are in a very, very iconic place of Paris, and also the road cycling is free. That is why I say it's a kind of open museum. You will see all the iconic building. So I say cycling is one of the only sports with which you can really see the city," he said.
The only concern for Lappartient is the weather in Paris. But he's not worried about the athletes, but about the fans.
"The athletes will ride whatever the weather will be. It will be less difficult for the athletes because a run is only one minute. But for the fans or the spectators, with no roof, it will be probably more difficult," the French said.
There are five disciplines for cycling competitions at Paris 2024, including road cycling, track, mountain bike, BMX racing and BMX freestyle. As one of the most historical events, which was featured from the very first edition of the modern Olympic Games in 1896, cycling is developing fast among youth fans after BMX was introduced to the Games.
The BMX racing appeared at Beijing 2008 for the first time and BMX freestyle has its inaugural showpiece at Tokyo 2020.
"We are modernizing our disciplines and also bring new disciplines. Cycling and bicycles are more popular after the COVID time because they are sustainable. We are facing many challenges like environment and transportations, and bicycle is a solution to many problems," said Lappartient.
A total of 514 cyclists will compete at the five disciplines of cycling competitions at Paris 2024, and most of the qualifications have finished except the Olympic Qualifier Series (OQS) in Budapest.
"The qualification process is close to the end. We have more than 500 athletes in Paris. We are the third biggest at Olympics regarding the number of athletes.
"And also more specifically, cycling is the French hiking version. We have the biggest federation in France in terms of activities. They have a solid experience with all the disciplines and the venues in Paris are just wonderful. We believe that's a big, big opportunity for cycling. We are ready to deliver the best games as we can know," Lappartient vowed. ■
