Placed on a bicycle, two models with the measurements of Sébastien Vigier and Benjamin Thomas pedal frantically.
The sprinter and the chaser (also a specialist in the middle distance) are not there, but “their double” works on air resistance within the aerotechnical institute of Saint-Cyr-l'École (Yvelines).
We are only a few pedal strokes from the national velodrome of Saint-Quentin (where the Olympic titles will be awarded this summer) and this is where future performances are partly built.
Here, in the heart of a wind tunnel built in 1974 for the automobile industry, the FFC has been working for more than three years in the shadows, on three “priority research programs” (PPR), supported by the national agency for research and funded by the State, to the tune of two million euros each.
Concretely: teams of engineers and teachers from ten major schools (ENS Lyon, INSA Lyon, Polytechnique, etc.), take care of the smallest details.
Subscribe
Already subscribed?
To log in