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war on wheels; inside keirin and japan's cycling subculture by justin mccurry. pursuit books hardback 264pp illus. £16.99

war on wheels - justin mccurry

following its admission as an event to the olympics in 1996, the men's keirin first took place in the millennium summer olympics, with the women's version arriving twelve years later. it's an event most western cycling fans will know from chris hoy's medal-winning spree, becoming the first brit in a century to win three golds in the 2007 olympics, one of which was achieved as victor in the keirin. however, at the risk of seeming to denigrate the latter event as 'simply' yet another competitive track race, despite hoy's best efforts, those 21 years are as nothing compared to the seventy-three years since the sport's inauguration in japan.

and like many aspects of japanese culture, keirin racing goes a lot deeper than yet another means of watching cycle-racing. despite the country's legal aversion to betting, keirin, along with a select number of other sports, such as boat and horse racing, it's one that benefits from a technical 'blind eye' being turned by both government and the population. according to this excellent and thoroughly researched new book from the guardian newspaper's japan and korea correspondent, it might not be too much of an exaggeration to state that keirin almost single-handedly saved the nation following their defeat in the second world war.

the bicycle arrived in japan in the late nineteenth century, following a period of insularity where foreign goods were subject to heavy tariffs. the backlash resulted in the arrival of american warships in the 1850s, forcing the country to "...finally face outward." the japanese population was initially only allowed to rent bicycles, a business that flourished in the 1880s, and by the 1890s, bicycle ownership began to beget cycling clubs in the principal cities. the first track race was held in 1894, confined solely to visiting americans, and the first road race two years later, with entry once again confined to american competitors. as will be seen later, it was war that provided a boost to japan's nascent bicycle industry, the 1904-05 conflict demanding greater numbers to supply the japanese army.

over forty years later, the second world war provided the impetus for the popularisation of keirin track racing. "The end of the Pacific War in August 1945 signalled an explosion in interest in newly-legalised forms of sports gambling. [...] It was keirin, though, that would later force government officials to rethink their initial enthusiasm for betting on sports." The eventual introduction of a not universally popular bicycle race law, allowed betting on keirin racing to take place in venues across japan. the revenue received by the government would eventually be employed in the rebuilding of a country that had suffered from the devastation incurred by the world's first two atomic bombs.

"The Japan of the late 1940s desperately needed funding for new factories, homes, roads, bridges and other infrastructure that would return a semblance of civic normality..." thus was born japanese keirin racing, a cycle sport that initially attracted crowds of up to 55,000, betting 20 million yen at a single track meet.

author, justin mccurry has made excellent use of his domicile in japan, as a correspondent for the guardian newspaper, to write this excellent volume on a sport that most westerners know only from the word of track racing, a version of the sport that is but a superficial copy of its japanese inspiration. as with many historical matters, there is, of course, counter claim as to where keirin actually originated, with some purporting that it truly began in denmark. however, missing from this alleged european ancestry was the all-important derny.

the word keirin translates literally as 'compete wheel' or 'racing cycle' and, as a sport, it's currently worth a not insignificant annual $5.6 billion. mccurry has strategically divided war on wheels into four sections, subtitled anatomy of a race, parts i, ii, iii, iv. these examine the gambling aspect of the sport, the school from which all competitors must graduate before being allowed to earn what can be a long and lucrative career. and, to incorrectly paraphrase lord voldemort, 'it's all about the bike', a chapter in which the author visits the all but anonymous workshop of japan's most revered keirin framebuilder, yoshiaki nagasawa.

"I had come to learn more about what goes into building a keirin bike from scratch."

the phrase 'greater than the sum of its parts' could have been invented for this book. having watched chris hoy, and subsequently, jason kenny, excel at the olympic discipline, along with shouting "derny!" every time a small motorbike passes during the sunday ride, i thought i knew keirin racing, and that reading 'war on wheels' would be a prospect similar to a busman's holiday. how wrong can a smug scotsman be? there is literally not a single nook or crannie of the sport that mr mccurry has left unexplored. but even better than that, his obvious enthusiasm for the subject is impeccably translated to the printed page.

japanese keirin racing, however, is on the decline. audiences have decreased, as have gambling revenues, and several critics have argued that the sport needs to be opened up to the dreaded foreigner. though men's keirin still takes place aboard all-steel, craftsman built frames, the women's events have acceded to the world of carbon. revered framebuilder, ryu yukuwa has been quoted as saying, "The keirin authorities will have to completely change the system to make sure it lasts another seventy years."

however, in the author's afterword, he points out that, with the olympics due to take place in japan beginning 23 july this year, "After the most tumultuous year in modern Olympic history outside wartime, keirin could finally be coming home." you have around a month to read and find out why. a superb book.

'war on wheels' by justin mccurry is published by pursuit books on 24 june.

wednesday 23 june 2021

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................