docus - SPORTS: CYCLING

A documentary film that looks at the racing and private life of professional road and track bicycle racer Eddy Merckx and which is one of the pillars of films about cycling.

The film follows the French Paris-Roubaix spring classic, notorious for the hellish paves or cobbled roads of the north "which are no longer used for traffic but only for transporting cattle - and for cycle races". We are there from the dawn preparations and rituals on the outskirts of Paris and through the rigours of the race with special focus on a number of prominent cyclists to the final outcome on the Roubaix cycle track - followed by the filthy riders taking their showers. There is also an eye for life among the spectators and the media event as such. The film alternates among different kinds of shot with a view to establishing the most suitable view of the narrative: shots from motorcycles, which are able to convey the motion of the race and provide close ups of the riders in the style of television cycle race reporting; fixed cameras stationed at strategically important points along the route, where viewers can watch riders passing in real time and thus gain a clear overview of the distance between the leaders and the main field: and the Olympian eye of the helicopter shots.

The images from the Tour de France in the television production Eddy Merckx in the Vincinity of a Cup of Coffee may be seen as a small sketch for the fully unfurled epic cycling drama Stars and Watercarriers. The film follows the 1973 Giro d'Italia and in his commentary Leth explains the fascination exerted by the great cycle races: "The most beautiful, most pathetic images cycling can give us involve extreme performances in classic terrain." The action literally emerges on the move and the riders readily assume the roles tradition and epic necessity allocate to them, with the central conflict between the accustomed winner and greedy Belgian legend Eddy Merckx and the Spanish mountain specialist José Manuel Fuente. Stars and Watercarriers was created by a small film unit that use a vivid, documentary style to describe the race from close up and sometimes quite from within. The film consist of ten sections, each with a title such as "A road of pain" and "A peaceful day"; thus it alternates between dramatic and more peaceful passages, which Leth's commentary leads the viewer through soberly, empathetically and humorously. The chapter "The trial of truth" stands out with its focus on the Danish star Ole Ritter, his technical, physical and psychological preparations and his performance in the time trials. Ritter is lauded with words such as "power, cycle and style in the simplest manifestation possible", and aesthetically, too, the section stands out: there is no background music or ordinary real sound. Instead, a sound close up of the chain as it seems to sing emphasises the utter concentration of Ritter's venture. Throughout the film Gunner Møller Pedersen's music supports the dramatic and aesthetic aspects of the race and thus sets the mood. The music mimics the light tread of the mountain specialists when they are in focus and seems to indicate the beat as we watch the more powerful riders.

Lance Armstrong prepares for his third Tour de France victory with the coaches and athletes of the 2001 USPS Pro Cycling team.

Main protagonists Jamie Paolinetti and Graeme Miller campaign with camaraderie, wisdom, an oily rag budget and mainly first year pro riders. A phenomenological view into the tunnel vision of pain to become a successful pro cyclists

A look behind the scenes of the toughest cycling race in the world on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France.

Profound and penetrating insight into the hermetically closed world of professional cycling. With former pro rider, Tour de France winner Bjarne Riis as the protagonist, the documentary follows him and his new Team CSC as they strive for the impossible: to become the world's best and win the Tour de France.

Discovery Channel Pro Cycling Team's Lance Armstrong has not won every Tour de France since 1999 simply because he puts in extra miles of training, watches what he eats or even because he's dodged major injuries over his long career. People have gone to great lengths to explain away Lance Armstrong's greatness as an athlete. Some look for explanations in his physiology. Some say his will is just stronger than most. Others say he's ruthlessly demanded no less than excellence from his teammates. The truth lies somewhere in a combination of these factors, and few aspects of his story are less than fascinating. He leaves his career at the top of his game, with an unprecedented six Tour de France wins under his bike. But what's truly amazing is he's done this after being issued a near death sentence. In 1998 he was diagnosed with stage 3 testicular cancer that had metastasized in his lungs and brain. True to form, he battled the disease like a champion, and like most other mountains that have slowed Lance's forward motion, he eventually conquered it. But this is by no means a mountain he's left behind. Cancer was something that galvanized his resolve, both on and off the bike and contributed to his evolution as an athlete and as a man. After beating cancer, he began to take a serious look at training and became committed to improving his physiology. He also dedicated himself to chasing down even the slightest improvements in technology, living by the philosophy of "every second counts." From the communication system used by the team, the Nike clothing he wears, to the Trek bicycles he rides, no detail that would improve his chances on the bike is left untested. Lance has also embraced science in what may be the most important way possible. He's dedicated himself to conquering the disease that nearly destroyed him by raising research dollars through the Lance Armstrong Foundation. His athleticism and fighting spirit have become an inspiration to not only people battling cancer, but to anyone who appreciates a shining example of the indomitability of the human spirit. And as he rides into history to try and achieve his 7th Tour de France win, the world cheers him on. Because Lance Armstrong crosses the starting line a winner.

Road To Roubaix is a documentary on the most prestigious one-day cycling race in the world, Paris-Roubaix. First held in 1896 and now in its 105th edition, the race is a grueling contest over 160 miles of narrow, cobbled farm roads in the Picardie and Norde-Pas-de-Calais regions of France with a finish in the historic Roubaix velodrome. Road to Roubaix is a visual narrative of an old-school, bare-knuckle clash of the finest athletes in the world with each other and one of the world's most unforgiving sporting environments. The filmmakers tell the story of the riders, the fans, the mechanics, and the unpredictable landscape that is the setting for the Paris-Roubaix.

The story of the 2009 Leadville Trail 100 Mountain Bike Race will inspire you to 'Dig Deep'. At 10,000+ feet, against the misty backdrop of a former mining town, Leadville, Colorado, 1228 cyclists start the grueling 100 mile race. Racers include seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, six-time defending champion Dave Wiens and three-time World 24 hr Champion Rebecca Rusch.

Documentary following the progress of Team Columbia-HTC throughout the 2009 Tour de France including race footage interspersed with interviews, archive clips and brief history of the Tour.

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.

Following Leopard Trek and the Schleck Brothers, focusing upon the team's participation in the prestigious 2011 Tour de France and upon their physical and mental preparation for the biggest cycling event in the world.

Bradley Wiggins talks about the year he won the Tour De France.

The impossible triumph of Team Rwanda.

A documentary chronicling sports legend Lance Armstrong's improbable rise and ultimate fall from grace.

Investigate one of sports' most high-profile scandals in Cycling's Greatest Fraud. This one-hour special dissects the story of the science and scheming behind what's been called "the most sophisticated and successful doping scheme in all of sports". Piece together eyewitness testimonies and delve into the illicit science to discover how the USADA says the doping plot began and then mushroomed in its complexity. With new interviews from key members of his inner circle, see how Armstrong went to great lengths to protect his secret and his legacy, by using all the powers at his command to silence and attack critics, while assuring the public that his blood was as clean as his public image. But, in the end, his empire collapsed, as the scheming unravelled and the science finally caught up with Armstrong.

2013, the 100th edition of the Tour de France. But what if the greatest race of all times has yet not taken place? The King of Mont Ventoux pits five cycling heroes against each other during the Tour de France in an unprecedented race beyond the bounds of time. Crossing the verge of sports, the documentary explores the extraordinary evolution of competitive cycling over the last 40 years. Who will become the king of the Mont Ventoux ? Merckx, Bernard, Virenque, Pantani or Garate ?

L'Ultimo Chilometro is a film totally dedicated to a passion, an emotion, a sport: Cycling. The movie follows the story and an entire cycling season of "the old" Davide Rebellin, 41 years old and still fighting in the peloton after many victories and scandals, and "the young" Ignazio Moser, promising 20 years old son of cycling champion Francesco Moser. The famous italian journalist Gianni Mura, Tour de France correspondent since 1967, helps us to discover what cycling was and what it has become today, after doping scandals, passion, epic, richness and decadence. Finally, a bit of madness and insane joy is brought into the movie by Didi Senft, better known as "El Diablo", a living and metaphorical symbol of all cycling fans, with their passion and their enthusiasm. L'Ultimo Chilometro is a portrait of cycling.

The Tour - The Legend of the Race sheds a new light on the last 100 years of the Tour de France, now considered one of the world's most popular sporting events. The Tour has lived through a century of rich history, with ups and downs, triumphs and scandals, continually evolving with the times. Throughout it all one key characteristic has remained the incredible power of identification the public has with the Tour cyclists, mythical figures that seem accessible and inaccessible at the same time. In order to reflect this human dimension of the Tour, the film tells the story through a selection of its emblematic heroes. Emblematic of the Tour, but also emblematic of an era, embodying in the film their generation: Coppi, Bobet, Anquetil, Poulidor, Merckx, Hinault, Indurain, Armstrong... Fully archive-based and colorized, "The Tour" cleverly weaves together all these individual stories with the story of the Tour de France itself, with the goal of creating a timeless and epic sports saga.