7 Factors That Allow Pro Cyclists To Maintain 45+ km/h in Olympic Road Races

Photo by Rob Wingate on Unsplash

by Danny G

I’ve seen the Olympic road races—those five-hour spectacles that are as much about pain as they are about glory. You sit there, gripping the edge of your seat, watching these guys float past at 45-50 km/h, and your mind does a double-take.

How do they do it? I can barely manage a blistering 35 km/h on the flat with a breeze at my back, yet these men are holding 50 km/h for hours, miles, the sun beating down, the pavement moving beneath them like a cold promise.

What sort of body does it take to maintain such speed?

Here are the seven factors that make that possible:

1. Aerodynamics: Cutting Through the Wind Like a Knife

Forget about your average weekend warrior trying to fight against a headwind. The real pros are in a whole different league.

You’ve heard of drafting, right? It’s when you sit in the slipstream of the rider ahead of you, saving precious energy by letting them take the brunt of the wind.

A simple trick—but one that can shave off significant effort. The real magic happens when you get multiple riders together, each taking turns up front, sheltering the rest from the brutal winds. The result? You can ride faster, longer, without burning out.

It’s not just about the effort; it’s about using the wind like a tool. A well-timed pull can mean the difference between riding at 40 km/h and 50 km/h. And don’t even get me started on how efficient a group can be in maintaining those speeds.

FactorBenefitNotes
AerodynamicsSaves energy, increases speedBy drafting, you’re reducing wind resistance significantly.
Bike PositioningLowers air resistanceCycling in a tucked, streamlined position maximizes efficiency.

2. The Legs (And The Power They Produce)

Let’s not sugarcoat it. You don’t maintain 50 km/h on your Sunday ride by simply wishing it into existence. You need legs built for torture. These guys generate over 300 watts of power, hour after hour.

They’re not just spinning those pedals—they’re crushing them. The pros have the ability to push their muscles beyond what we mere mortals can fathom.

Take a look at the average wattage of a Tour de France rider or a top-level Olympic cyclist. It’s staggering. You’d be lucky to hold even 200 watts for more than a couple of minutes, but these pros are holding 350 watts for hours.

The power is in the legs, sure, but it’s also in the mind—the ability to block out that screaming muscle fatigue and keep pushing.

FactorBenefitNotes
Power OutputEnables sustained high speedsCyclists generate upwards of 300-350 watts over hours of effort.
Muscle EfficiencyDelays fatigue, increases enduranceConditioning the legs to maintain power longer with minimal fatigue.

3. VO2 Max: The Silent Beast

Then there’s VO2 max. This is the volume of oxygen your body can use during intense exertion. For most of us, the body hits a wall well before we even come close to what a pro can do.

A top-level cyclist can burn through oxygen at a rate most of us would pass out trying to keep up with. The higher your VO2 max, the more oxygen your muscles can get, and the longer you can keep pushing at that insane speed.

Pros are operating at the top of this scale, where their bodies act like finely tuned machines. And that’s where the advantage comes from: They can take in oxygen, transport it, and use it more efficiently than any of us could dream of.

4. Training Hours: Like Living in a Sauna

It’s not all just talent and good genetics. No, these pros put in hours—thousands of hours. They train year-round, rain or shine, in conditions that would make most people run for cover.

You can’t just jump on a bike and expect to do what they do. You need to be on that saddle, day in, day out, for hours at a time. We’re talking about riding 200 kilometers in a single day, sometimes over 30 hours a week.

A well-structured training program develops the endurance and power needed to hit these speeds and keep going. If you want to get anywhere near that 50 km/h mark, you’re going to have to forget what you think you know about training and dive into the grind.

5. Nutrition: Fuel for the Furnace

You think they’re downing a can of soda and hitting the road? Think again. Pro cyclists know their food. And it’s not just about loading up on pasta the night before a race.

Their diets are carefully crafted to fuel those long rides and quick bursts of power. Specialized nutritionists keep them topped up with the right balance of carbs, proteins, and fats.

The magic lies in knowing exactly when to fuel, when to hydrate, and what to put in their bodies for maximum efficiency.

Forget about the burgers and beers after a race. These guys are living machines that need the perfect mix of ingredients to keep running.

6. Mental Toughness: The Will to Suffer

Let’s face it: cycling at those speeds is brutal. The body screams for relief, the muscles twitch with lactic acid, the mind cracks under the pressure of hours spent in the saddle.

But the pros? They thrive on that pain. It’s part of who they are. They’ve got a mental fortitude that the rest of us just can’t imagine. That’s what separates the champions from the amateurs.

It’s not just about physical ability—it’s about the relentless drive to keep going when every fiber of your being is begging you to stop. And they don’t. They dig deeper, suffering longer, pushing harder.

7. The Equipment: A Bike That’s More Than Just a Bike

At the end of the day, they’ve got gear that’s designed to be as fast as possible. From aerodynamic frames to super-light carbon wheels, these machines are built to slip through the air like a bullet.

The smallest details count—the shape of the handlebars, the position of the saddle, even the kind of tires they run. And let’s not forget the technology—the power meters, the race computers, all syncing together to keep track of their efforts in real-time.

Without the right bike, none of this would matter. A pro rider with a top-tier machine can do things that would make a regular cyclist drop their head in defeat.


Conclusion

So, how do they do it? It’s a mix of genetics, years of grueling training, mental strength, top-tier equipment, and the ability to suffer more than anyone else.

And maybe that’s the key—knowing that, if you want to get anywhere near those speeds, you’ll need to put in the same kind of work. The hours. The suffering. The sacrifices.

But maybe you can get a little closer to the pro’s world. At least, in spirit. Because let’s face it—most of us will never hit that 50 km/h mark. But we sure as hell can try.


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