Lifestyle: In this country everyone should be familiar with the Olympic variant of the keirin. With the Olympic silver medalist Maximilian Levy, Kristina Vogel and many others, the German team is actually quite well positioned. But the combat sprint, as known by the UCI World Cycling Association in its rules, is only an adaptation of the original variant.
Keirin was born in Japan after World War II, specifically on Kyûshû, one of the country's four main islands. Since then, the sport, which is also a lifestyle in Japan, has developed enormously. There are now several schools and numerous railways spread across the country.
The various schools register more than 1000 applicants every year – for just under 30 places. The two top German athletes Miriam Welte and Stefan Bötticher are currently finding out what it means to ride a keirin in Japan. The latter reports on his experiences in an exclusive blog on Velomotion. [Link] However, they will not compete with the top Japanese athletes. These then live again in one something different world.
In Japan, keirin driving is a staple of the sports betting world. Converted to more than 7 billion euros are turned over per year. So you can imagine how the discipline was shaped by that. "If only the strongest would win", say some "then that would make no sense in terms of the game, i.e. betting." Nevertheless, the athletes have to train hard. "It's a tough sport for us, although the competitions are often open and there are alliances between the drivers."
An insight into the world of the game, of which Keirin is part of Japan, grants this along with the Japan Keirin Association created documentation.