Zurich-born Hugo Koblet was the first international cycling star of the post-war period. He was a stylist on the bicycle and in life, and a huge heartthrob. Koblet had a meteoric rise and won the Giro d'Italia in 1950. Once he had reached the zenith of his career, Koblet was put under pressure by overly ambitious officials and ended up ruining his health with drugs. In 1954, he married a well-known model and they became a celebrity dream couple. After his athletic career ended, Koblet began to lose his footing. Threatened by bankruptcy, he crashed his Alfa into a tree.
Year after year hundreds of thousands of fans line the route of the Tour de France, cheering on their heroes and willing them to victory, while millions of viewers worldwide tune in on their televisions. Academy Award-winning director Pepe Danquart, fascinated by the spectacle of the three week race, chose to focus on the courage, the pain and the fear of the riders of the Tour. Training his lens on German superstar sprinter Eric Zabel and his loyal domestique Rolf Aldag, Danquart captures the thrill of the race and the teamwork behind the stars of the peleton. He also shines light on the Tour's supporting cast - the director sportifs, masseurs, and, of course, the wildly enthusiastic fans. Reveling in the stunning landscape - from the Alps to the Pyrenees to the Massif Central to Paris - and with a nice dollop of Le Tour's history, HELL ON WHEELS transcends the sport it celebrates to reveal an astonishing human endeavor.
From his humble beginnings in his hometown of Sheffield, England, Steve Peat has established himself as one of the worlds most iconic cyclists. Peaty has been competing at the top level in his chosen sport of downhill mountain bike racing for the past 23 years, longer than the lifetime of many of his current competitors. Through 20 years of archival footage and photos and intimate interviews with Steve, his family, close friends and competitors, Won’t Back Down takes viewers on a captivating tour of the history of the sport of downhill mountain bike racing and offers a never-before-seen view into the life and legacy of this enduring icon.
When the heavy scent of autumn starts filling the air, the falling leaves and inevitable showers announce one of the toughest cycling classics. With its winding roads and steep slopes of 14% maximum, the Giro di Lombardia also known as the 'classic of the falling leaves' is pro cycling season's grand finale. The century-old race in the Italian hills surrounding Lake Como has been won by Italian cycling heroes Coppi, Bartali and Moser. And also legends like Merckx, Hinault and Kelly made it to the podium. The 1962 edition is by far the toughest in the history of the race and was won by Dutchman Jo de Roo. Still every year Dutch pro cyclists participate to be a part of this great cycling tradition and in the end to gain victory. Just with one simple camera Dutch director Johannes Sigmond and producer Robert Jan van Noort visited the race from 2006 to 2010. They filmed and talked to Dutch participants in an effort to capture the soul of this legendary Italian bike race.
Detour de France offers a fascinating look inside the world's biggest annual sporting event. The film focuses on three Australians reporting on the world famous cycling event. All three bring a larrikin humour to their antics, which propels the film from mere reportage to something more akin to attending a sporting event with 'the boys'.
Documentary looking at a century of cycling. Commissioned to mark the arrival of the 2014 Tour de France in Yorkshire, the film makes full use of stunning British Film Institute footage to transport the audience on a journey from the invention of the modern bike, through the rise of recreational cycling, to gruelling competitive races. Award-winning director Daisy Asquith artfully combines the richly-diverse archive with a hypnotic soundtrack from cult composer Bill Nelson in a joyful, absorbing watch for both cycling and archive fans.
The North Shore mountain biking movement began early 1980 in Vancouver BC. Since then it's essential features of pushing limits in extreme conditions, philosophies, politics and extensive product developments have been adopted and become the main stream into every facet of professional and recreational mountain biking to date. A documentary not about entrepreneurs striving to make a buck. The true essence of creative freedom and what can happen when you put your hands and skills to it. This is the history of the North Shore.
"Go Further" explores the idea that the single individual is the key to large-scale transformational change. The film follows actor Woody Harrelson as he takes a small group of friends on a bio-fueled bus-ride down the Pacific Coast Highway. Their goal? To show the people they encounter that there are viable alternatives.
Závod míru 1954
A compelling British documentary following ten amateur athletes as they train for and compete in Ironman 70.3 Swansea. With themes of resilience, inclusion, and mental strength, the film is directed by Raymond Mouzon and edited by 18-year-old autistic filmmaker Sean Smith.
A chronology of the 1976 Paris-Roubaix bicycle race from the perspective of participants, organizers and spectators.
Time Trial takes us into the final races of cyclist David Millar’s career, leading up to his last encounter with the Tour de France. We go inside the peloton, we’re pushed up impossible climbs and forced down rapid descents, we lie alongside him in his hotel room in post-race agony. We ride in the support car, the source of comfort, supplies and fleeting relief from the cold. And we know that every mile traveled is a mile closer to the end.
A personal examination of the rise and fall of Lance Armstrong.
A solo bikepacking adventure across Iceland.
A portrait of the man behind the greatest fraud in sporting history. Lance Armstrong enriched himself by cheating his fans, his sport and the truth. But the former friends whose lives and careers he destroyed would finally bring him down.
Mezinárodní závor míru Praha – Berlín – Varšava 1953
An exploration of cycling culture through the eyes of Ayesha McGowan who rose through the ranks of the New York City underground cycling world to break barriers as the world's first African American woman to become a professional cyclist.
We live for the pursuit of the unknown. The anticipation of what the future holds. The untapped potential of what lies ahead. The finish line is only a starting point for a new adventure. What happens in between is where the real action is. Our mission is to document the future of mountain biking as it unfolds in real time. We capture the true lifestyle that intersects our lives as professional mountain bikers, builders and filmmakers, concocting a unique chemistry of filmic goodness. Many past films, riders, and locations have inspired us. Some of those locations are now our backyards, and some of those riders are now our friends. From the Inside Out is our adventure to the places we've always wanted to ride, and our expression of the lines and styles that have influenced us. This is freeride mountain biking. This film is from us – the riders.
During the week, they are white-collar professionals with responsible jobs, families and mortgages. Come the weekend, they transform into Lycra-clad super heroes; road warriors on expensive carbon framed bikes traveling in packs and competing with other males for dominance in the group. MAMIL is a feature length documentary that dares to enter this secret world of middle-aged men to uncover the reasons they take to the road.
Documentary following former professional cyclist and journalist Paul Kimmage as he discusses the blight of doping in cycling and the toll whistleblowing has taken on him personally.