5 of the Best Cycling Documentaries to Watch on Netflix

Cycling is one of the most versatile sports you can take up. Whether you’re out for a leisurely ride, speeding by your competition, or taking an adventure off the beaten path, it’s an awesome workout — great for both mind and body. It’s been a popular mode of transportation and exercise for two centuries, and the basis of one of the most popular athletic competitions in the world — the Tour de France.

Because of the fiercely competitive nature of professional cycling, there is a darker side to the sport. Even before Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal, the use of performance-enhancing drugs was a hot topic amongst athletes and spectators alike.

Since cycling has captured so many people’s attention, it makes sense that there are plenty of documentaries focused on it. Some are cast a historical lens on cycling stars from the past, while others are in-depth explorations of how doping has shaped the sport. Still more take you alongside bikers as they venture out on exhilarating thrill rides. No matter how much you know about cycling, these five documentaries are guaranteed to inspire you to get on your bike and ride.

Source: ABC Commercial

**1. Stop at Nothing (2014)**

He’s the most famous cyclist in our lifetime — and his tragic fall from grace is one of the most memorable cautionary tales of all time. Lance Armstrong made headlines when he beat cancer and went on to win the Tour de France a record-breaking seven times. Then, he was in the news again — because he’d been caught doping, despite vehemently denying he’d ever been involved in the practice. Stop at Nothing: The Lance Armstrong Story focuses a bit on this legendary athlete’s victories, but dwells mostly on his downfall. It’s a fascinating look at his legal struggles, and the way that Americans tried to grapple with finding out about their hero’s transgressions. Even though it’s a documentary, the pacing and narration in Stop at Nothing make it feel almost like a true crime thriller, which makes this already compelling story something you can’t stop watching.

Source: ESPN

**2. Slaying the Badger (2014)**

Cycling is, in many ways, a solitary sport — but it’s also one that breeds tremendous rivalries. One of the most famous cycling rivalries in history is captured in riveting detail in 30 on 30’s Slaying the Badger. This documentary chronicles the tumultuous and ultimately antagonistic relationship between American Greg LeMond and French Bernard Hinault. Slaying the Badger shows them first as allies — five-time champion Hinault as a potential mentor for the ambitious LeMond. But the meatiest part of the documentary focuses on their fierce competition during the 1986 Tour de France, after their tentative partnership had soured. Interspersed between the drama is more than enough gripping footage of their historic race.

Source: First Run Features

**3. Clean Spirit (2014)**

John Degenkolb and Marcel Kittel don’t just stand out in the cycling world because of their out-of-this-world talent. They’ve been very vocal about their decision to forgo using performance-enhancing drugs — and their determination to win, anyway. Clean Spirit follows their Tour de France team during the 2013 race, and painstakingly brings to the screen the epic, adrenaline-fueled highs and road-weary lows of professional cycling. And it’s hard not to be inspired by their love of the sport and commitment to bringing honor back to cycling in the wake of so many recent scandals.

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**4. Rising from Ashes (2012)**

In Rising from Ashes, professional cycler Jock Boyer moves to Rwanda to help genocide survivors convene a national cycling team. It’s no easy feat, but Boyer’s dedication to helping a handful of young men renew their spirits in the wake of so much tragedy. Rising from Ashes is part inspirational story, part exploration of the rigorous training involved in becoming a successful cyclist. It focuses on five aspiring athletes, and the way they transformed their suffering into hope for a better life, and you can’t help but become invested in their outcomes and wish along with them that they can achieve their dreams.

Source: Free Ride Entertainment

**5. Where the Trail Ends (2012)**

There’s bold, and then there’s traveling to the far corners of the world in search of untrodden mountain biking terrain. That’s exactly the goal of the subjects of the exhilarating documentary Where the Trail Ends. The film focuses on nearly a dozen freerider mountain bikers as they crisscross the Earth in search of the next great site to perform their daring tricks. Where the Trail Ends is enlightening, with a fleshed-out narrative that focuses on the culture that’s sprung up around this particular discipline. It’s also a visual treat, as the camera follows Cameron Zink, James Doerfling and other famous freeriders along their treacherous downhill journeys.

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