Both scenic and challenging, the 245.4 km Olympic road race course begins at the Yongdingmen Gate and incorporates many of Beijing’s most notable and historic landmarks including the Temple of Heaven, Tian’anmen Square, the Forbidden City, Yonghegong Palace and the Lama Temple before entering the Badaling Highway. After 78.8 relatively flat kilometers, the peloton reaches the Juyongguan section of the Great Wall of China where the riders began the first of seven hilly, 23.8-kilometer circuits between Juyongguan and Badaling. Each circuit included a 12-kilometer ascent to Badaling followed by a descent back into Juyongguan.

During a preview of the road race course a year ago as part of an official Olympic test event, several top cyclists said it would be one of the most difficult courses in Olympic history.

The race is schedule to start at 11:00 Beijing Time and finish at 17:30.

Here are the Team Garmin-Chipotle H3O riders who will be representing their respective countries in the road race:

Julian Dean, New Zealand
Ryder Hesjedal, Canada
Christian Vande Velde, USA
David Zabriskie, USA