Skoda Puts Aerodynamics Lab To Use For Olympic Cyclist

Skoda, the Czech brand with a history linked to cycling and bicycles, has not forgotten where it started off and helped a fellow cyclist improve his stance.

Evidently, Skoda did not help your "average Joe," as wind tunnel tests are expensive, so the brand lent a helping hand for Mr. Pavel Kelemen, an Olympic cyclist.

Pavel Kelemen is specialized in racing on the Olympic bike track, which is an indoor event that takes place on an oval. Since every little bit of science can bring an extra edge in competition, he rode his racing bike in Skoda’s wind tunnel while 150 high-definition cameras were taking pictures.

While used to having his picture taken while riding, the Czech cyclist’s photos were not made for publishing, but for generating a 3D model of him and his competition partner.

Skoda engineers then evaluated the data using a computational fluid dynamics simulation. The same kind of simulation is applied to vehicles when an automaker wants to perfect its aerodynamic coefficient.

Careful examination of the 3D models of Kelemen on his bike revealed that there is room for improvement, so the Czech athlete was advised to revise his riding position.

While technical details of the change were not provided, there is little one can do when it comes to riding a competition-specification bicycle. Still, as we mentioned before, every little bit counts when you are racing, so the knowledge gained has been integrated into his training.

Skoda hopes that the Czech cyclist will benefit from their joint effort and win a medal in the Olympics thanks to the improvements they developed.

Mr. Kelemen will compete in the men’s cycling sprint challenge, as well as the “keirin” event. The latter involves a gradually accelerating electric motorcycle, which acts as a pace vehicle before stepping aside for the actual race.