| The majority of Olympic athletes train their entire | | | | never before. Their routine consisted of up to seven |
| lives for a shot at competing in front of the world. | | | | hours on the road every day. The grueling schedule |
| Only the absolute best make it that far. Every little | | | | and merciless drive to succeed were somewhat |
| thing matters when you're going for the gold: diet, | | | | tempered by the luxurious surroundings during part of |
| training, mindset, and support. | | | | their training. |
| In the 2008 Summer Olympics, the British Cycling | | | | The luxurious period of the team's Olympics training |
| Team was more successful than even they could | | | | was spent in Majorca; a Balearic Island known for its |
| have hoped. The team that once didn't have enough | | | | hospitality and near-perfect weather. |
| money for proper uniforms took home an astonishing | | | | For the British Cycling Team, though, it meant long |
| eight gold medals out of a total of 19 for Great | | | | days of grueling training. The team had a favourite |
| Britain. | | | | area of tough hills where they would ride until they |
| Under careful and constant leadership, the British | | | | simply couldn't go any longer. This is a far cry from |
| Cycling Team worked very hard to shake off the | | | | the vacations most people spend in Majorca. But if |
| team's humble history and climb to the top of their | | | | you have to push yourself to the edge of your |
| game in Beijing. Following their promising performance | | | | physical endurance and strength, there's no lovelier |
| in Athens in the 2004 Olympics, the team was | | | | place to do it. |
| dedicated to training hard, improving every aspect of | | | | The British Cycling Team isn't the only group of |
| their performance, and taking home a pot of gold. | | | | cyclists using Majorca as an idyllic backdrop to their |
| Part of their training equation was superior leadership | | | | training. Several other groups of amateur cyclists |
| and teamwork. The entire British Cycling Team, from | | | | make their way to the island every winter and spring |
| the helpers in the pit to the team's performance | | | | to train in the beautiful setting. They may not be |
| director Dave Brailsford, worked tirelessly to hone | | | | headed to the Olympics right away, but among those |
| the cyclists' abilities. Through training and the | | | | amateur cyclists could be another great British Cycling |
| heartening results of the World Cup, the British team | | | | Team in the making. |
| pushed themselves to a new level of greatness. | | | | All of the elements present in the training of this |
| One of the highlights of the team's ascent was their | | | | record-breaking team came together to create |
| performance in the 2007-2008 UCI Track Cycling | | | | something wonderful. Whether it was the brilliant |
| World Cup Classics series. Over the course of the | | | | leadership of Dave Brailsford, the tough but effective |
| five rounds, the British team showed incredible skill. | | | | daily workouts or the overall positive chemistry of |
| But even more than that, they showed admirable | | | | the team, one thing is certain. The British Cycling |
| team cohesiveness. | | | | Team of the 2008 Summer Olympics will go down in |
| In order to get where they were during the World | | | | the country's history as national heroes, and enthuses |
| Cup series, and where they are now after the Beijing | | | | Britain to the London 2012 Olympics. |
| Olympics, the British Cycling Team had to train like | | | | |