Early-morning abuse rings out across the velodrome as punters throw their betting slips to the ground, exasperated. "Idiot, why did you ride that line?" Up on the stadium screen, winnings are projected for all to see, tormenting the losers, egging the winners on for the next race.
It's a crisp morning and the cyclists look fantastic as they complete their warmdown, between them wearing a full iPod lineup of colored uniforms, the spotless steel frames of their brakeless, fixed-gear bikes glinting in the sun. "You know bicycles are meant to make you faster, right?"
This is keirin: Japan's premier cycling competition, an Olympic sport since its debut in the 2000 Sydney Olympics and — alongside horse racing, speedboat racing and motorbike racing — one of four sports in Japan that allow gambling.
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