The men's
Keirin event at the
2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
took place on 7 and 8 August 2021 at the
Izu Velodrome
The Izu Velodrome is a velodrome in Shizuoka, Japan. It has a 250-metre cycling track and spectator facilities for 3,600 people. It was opened in 2011, and was selected as the venue to host the track cycling events at the 2020 Summer Olympics i ...
.
30 cyclists from 18 nations competed.
The medals were presented by
Yasuhiro Yamashita,
IOC
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
member
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* Military jury, referred to as "Members" in military jargon
* Element (mathematics), an object that belongs to a mathematical set
* In object-oriented programming, a member of a class
** Field (computer science), entries in ...
,
Olympian
Olympian or Olympians may refer to:
Religion
* Twelve Olympians, the principal gods and goddesses in ancient Greek religion
* Olympian spirits, spirits mentioned in books of ceremonial magic
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* ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'', fiction ...
, 1
Gold Medal
A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture.
Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
; and the medalists' bouquets were presented by
Dato' Amarjit Singh Gill,
UCI Management Committee Member,
Malaysia.
Background
This will be the 6th appearance of the event, which has been held at every Summer Olympics since its introduction in 2000.
The reigning Olympic champion is
Jason Kenny of Great Britain; Great Britain has won three consecutive titles in the event (
Chris Hoy
Sir Christopher Andrew Hoy MBE (born 23 March 1976) is a former track cyclist and Racing driver from Scotland who represented Great Britain at the Olympic and World Championships and Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.
Hoy is eleven-times a wor ...
was the winner in 2008 and 2012). The reigning (2020) World Champion is
Harrie Lavreysen
Harrie Lavreysen (born 14 March 1997) is a Dutch track cyclist who competes in sprint events. He is two-time Olympic gold medalist, having won the sprint and team sprint event at the 2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also kn ...
of the Netherlands.
Russia, Germany, China, Great Britain, Australia, and the Netherlands are traditionally strong track cycling nations. A preview at Olympics.com also identified
Azizulhasni Awang
Dato'
Muhammad Azizulhasni bin Awang (born 5 January 1988) is a Malaysian professional track cyclist. Nicknamed "The Pocket Rocketman" due to his small stature, he is the first and the only Malaysian cyclist to win a medal at the Summer Ol ...
of Malaysia, the 2016 Olympic bronze medalist and 2017 World Champion, as a significant contender.
Qualification
A
National Olympic Committee
A National Olympic Committee (NOC) is a national constituent of the worldwide Olympic movement. Subject to the controls of the International Olympic Committee, NOCs are responsible for organizing their people's participation in the Olympic Games ...
(NOC) could enter up to 2 qualified cyclists in the men's Keirin. Quota places are allocated to the NOC, which selects the cyclists. Qualification is entirely through the 2018–20 UCI nation rankings. The eight nations that qualify for the team sprint event may enter two cyclists each in the Keirin (as well as the individual sprint). The nations that qualify a cyclist through the individual sprint rankings may also enter that cyclist in the Keirin. Finally, seven places are allocated through the Keirin rankings.
[ Because qualification was complete by the end of the ]2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships
The 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships were held in Berlin, Germany from 26 February to 1 March 2020.
Schedule
20 events were held:
''All times are local (UTC+1).''
Medal summary Medal table
Men
Women
*Shaded events are no ...
on 1 March 2020 (the last event that contributed to the 2018–20 rankings), qualification was unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Competition format
Keirin races involve up to 7 cyclists each (though the 2020 format has no races with more than 6). The cyclists follow a pace motorcycle for 3 laps (750 m); the motorcycle then pulls away and the cyclists race for another 3 laps. These distances are changed from the 2016 Games, shortening the paced section from 5.5 laps and lengthening the unpaced sprint from 2.5 laps. The motorcycle starts at 30 km/h and increases speed to 50 km/h before it pulls off.
The tournament consists of four main rounds (up from three in 2016) and a repechage:
Schedule
All times are Japan Standard Time ( UTC+9)
Results
First round
;Heat 1
;Heat 2
;Heat 3
;Heat 4
;Heat 5
Repechages
;Heat 1
;Heat 2
;Heat 3
;Heat 4
Quarterfinals
;Heat 1
;Heat 2
;Heat 3
Semifinals
;Heat 1
;Heat 2
Finals
Final A
The Keirin final was won by Jason Kenny in what would be his last race, riding in position one behind the derny, and taking advantage of the nervous Matthew Glaetzer
Matthew Glaetzer (born 24 August 1992) is an Australian track cyclist.
Career
He competed in the team sprint event at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and won the 2012 World Championship in the team sprint with Scott Sunderland and Shane Perkins.
G ...
in second wheel to create a gap of a few bike lengths over the field as the derny prepared to pull off. Kenny then launched a highly unusual and ferocious breakaway attack immediately as the derny left the track, putting half a lap into his rivals before they were fully aware what had happened. Despite a frenzied chase led by Dutch sprint and team sprint gold medalist Harrie Lavreysen
Harrie Lavreysen (born 14 March 1997) is a Dutch track cyclist who competes in sprint events. He is two-time Olympic gold medalist, having won the sprint and team sprint event at the 2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also kn ...
, seeking to replicate the sprint 'triple crown' previously won by Kenny in 2016 and Chris Hoy
Sir Christopher Andrew Hoy MBE (born 23 March 1976) is a former track cyclist and Racing driver from Scotland who represented Great Britain at the Olympic and World Championships and Scotland at the Commonwealth Games.
Hoy is eleven-times a wor ...
in 2008, Kenny was able to hold off the field, winning the event by the length of a straight. The gold medal made Kenny the most successful British Olympian, and the most successful Olympic cyclist, in history.Sawao Kato
Sawao (written: 沢男 or さわお in hiragana) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include:
*, Japanese gymnast
*, Japanese musician
{{given name
Japanese masculine given names ...
.
Final B
See also
* Cycling at the 2020 Summer Olympics – Women's keirin
* Keirin
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cycling at the 2020 Summer Olympics - Men's keirin
Men's Keirin
Cycling at the Summer Olympics – Men's keirin
Men's events at the 2020 Summer Olympics