CyclistOpinion: This Olympic Road Race might actually be worth watchingWhat do Jan Ullrich, Greg Van Avermaet and Richard Carapaz have in common? Yes, theyve all worn the yellow jersey and won Grand Tour stages, but more importantly at least for the purposes of this piece theyre all Olympic Road Race champions. Its a strange sort of accolade, because while in most sports an Olympic gold medal would be the peak of achievement, in cycling its met by fans with little more than a shrug.All too often an Olympic Road Race course is a dull procession designed to show off tourist sites rather than promote exciting racing, and the standard of an Olympic peloton is usually so low that the outcome can (allegedly and wholly indemonstrably) be decided by a simple chat, handshake and promise of a bottle of vino on the way to The Mall. Related Posts Five of the best cycling moments from the Tokyo Olympics Who are the British cyclists competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics? Paris 2024 Olympics Cycling: Events, schedule, TV guide and everything you need to know Everything leads towards the Olympics: Josh Tarling Q&A Just look at the womens road race in Tokyo 2021, when nobody not least Annemiek van Vleuten seemed to appreciate that there was still one plucky escapee up the road. Take nothing away from Austrias Anna Kiesenhofer, a worthy champion who had the guts to attack early and the strength to hold on, but the whole event reeked of the amateurism for which the Games were once fabled.However, that could all change this summer with a route that not only mirrors a Flemish Classic, but one that simultaneously scratches an itch while showcasing the scope Paris has to offer for bike races beyond its usual playground of the Champs-lyses.Richard Carapaz of Team Ecuador celebrates winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021Michael Steele/Getty ImagesStarting in the plush Trocadro neighbourhood, the mens race is 273km long and takes in ten climbs in a winding loop southwest of the French capital, including one segment that crams six ascents into 40km. But its the final hour of racing where things get spicy, with three loops of a city circuit in the famous hilltop district of Montmartre.Back in the 1940s, cyclocross races were held annually in this rundown artists enclave in northern Paris, where the likes of Picasso, Van Gogh, Monet, Degas and other Belle poque giants lived and worked a brush stroke away from the red light district of Pigalle. Scores of riders including 1947 Tour de France champion Jean Robic would run up the 280 steps alongside the funicular to the basilica of Sacr-Coeur before freewheeling down some of the narrow, twisting roads and past the famous Moulin Rouge via other various off-road challenges. I highly recommend seeking out videos of these races on YouTube.Tim de Waele/Getty ImagesGranted, the Olympic course isnt quite as gnarly, but on three occasions the riders both men and women will tackle the kilometre-long drag up the partially cobbled Rue Lepic with its Les Deux Moulins cafe (of Amlie fame) and then sweep past the basilica towards two more punchy ramps to the east of the Canal Saint-Martin and back.If that part is a gritty circuit that takes the riders off the well-trodden tourist track, then the third ascent of the Cte dAmlie is followed by a fast and technical drop back through the traditional heart of Paris, past the Opra and Louvre, before a flat run along the Seine ahead of a finish in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. Its bold, its brave and it could be won by some of the best riders in the business.World Champion Mathieu van der Poel, his big rival Wout van Aert and Grand Tour winners Remco Evenepoel are said to be going for gold along with punchy specialists such as Mads Pedersen, Michael Matthews, Michael Woods, Jhonatan Narvez and Britains own Tom Pidcock.In the womens 158km race, the deadly Dutch trio of Demi Vollering, Marianne Vos and Lorena Wiebes will come up against Belgiums Lotte Kopecky and Italys Elisa Longo Borghini to name a few.These are, for the most part, riders at the peak of their powers, not in search of a retirement plan or the novelty of riding a gold bike for four years. We should be in for a treat that outdoes even the best of Parisian patisseries. Just as the Nice finale at this years Tour shows there can be a future for finishes outside Paris, the use of the Butte Montmartre at the Olympics may give ASO ideas beyond the Champs-lyses. This gruelling attritional race will be the antithesis of the usual Paris procession that caps the Tour.Finally well have an Olympics worth watching, one that delivers and ups the ante ahead of Los Angeles 2028, which will have no option now but to head up into the Hollywood Hills. This article originally appeared in issue 155 of Cyclist magazine. Click here to subscribe Related Posts Five of the best cycling moments from the Tokyo Olympics Who are the British cyclists competing at the Paris 2024 Olympics? Paris 2024 Olympics Cycling: Events, schedule, TV guide and everything you need to know Everything leads towards the Olympics: Josh Tarling Q&A The post Opinion: This Olympic Road Race might actually be worth watching appeared first on Cyclist.