11 September • In the first two rounds of the 2000 metre sprint, the
United States and
Italy made their cycling debuts, as did the Olympic-debut nations
Belgium and
Bohemia.
Germany, which had won a silver medal four years earlier, and
France, with 4 golds, a silver, and a bronze, were the returning nations. • Bohemia's lone cyclist was eliminated in the first round. The Belgian cyclist was eliminated in the second round of the day, the quarterfinals. Germany's trio fared no better, with all having dropped out by the end of the day.
Antonio Restelli was the only one of Italy's 7 to move on. He was joined by the sole American
John Henry Lake and by 7 Frenchmen.
13 September • The semifinals and the final of the sprint were held on the 13th. • The semifinal round pared the 9 remaining cyclists down to 3, with the winners of each of the semifinals guaranteed a medal in the three-man final. Restelli took second place to
Fernand Sanz, dropping Italy from contention. Lake won his semifinal, joining Sanz and
Georges Taillandier in the final. • Taillandier and Sanz reaffirmed French dominance of the sport, taking the top two spots in the final. Lake took the United States' first medal in cycling.
15 September • The 25 kilometres was held on the 15th. Frenchman
Louis Bastien, Briton
Louis Hildebrand, and American Lake were the primary contenders, with Bastien the favorite. Lake was unable to keep pace with Hildebrand, however, and dropped out of the race. Bastien won, followed by Hildebrand and
Auguste Daumain. Future Tour de France winner
Louis Trousselier was among the rest of the pack. • The amateur points race, or "Course de Primes", was also held on 15 September. It was a 5 kilometre race — 10 laps of the track — with points awarded at the end of each lap. ==Participating nations==