Watching Races via Kodi

Kodi cycling

You’re looking forward to another season packed with racing, right? But actually watching it can be problematic. Often a race may be on TV somewhere but there’s no way to watch it from your home or work so you resort to a dreaded pirate stream, complete with whack-a-mole pops ups and more viruses than a kindergarten. There’s a better way: Kodi.

Or at least this technology is promising but there seem to be frustrations along the way. Here’s an introductory explainer and it’d be great to hear feedback from any users in the comments.

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Why Show The Whole Race?

Why was Paris-Roubaix live on TV from start to finish? Pose the question and the answer isn’t immediately obvious.

It’s to do with advertising, the media landscape in France and technology. More and more people are watching normal programs with a delay, either recording the show or using catch-up streaming services, says Daniel Bilalian, the head of sports at France Télévisions in an interview with L’Equipe’s print edition last Saturday.

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What Would Desgrange Do?

Cycling has to change. Too many races resemble each other and don’t attract the audiences they did 20 years ago. The economic model isn’t strong enough. Teams and races are struggling. We need change.

This could be a synthesis of Oleg Tinkov’s pinot noir induced Twitter rants but it could also sum up the state of cycling over a century ago. The Tour de France was born out of desperation, the mother of all newspaper promotion stunts and the event launched by Henri Desgrange in 1903 has become the greatest asset in pro cycling. Why? Because it makes people dream.

If you’ve got the post-Tour blues, it’s normal. July is what we want cycling to be, a summer party with the best riders and saturation coverage. August reminds us what pro cycling really is, with small races, patchy coverage and the white noise of scandal and bickering over money.

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World Tour Reforms Rejected

The UCI and Tour de France owners ASO are clashing over reforms to the sport and even the UCI has its splits after its President Brian Cookson has reportedly been overruled by his own Management Committee.

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Old News: Bio Passport isn’t Watertight

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News that the athlete bio-passport isn’t foolproof has been doing the rounds after France Télévision’s Stade 2 show took some athletes, “microdosed” them with EPO and their values didn’t ring alarm bells on the AMPU bio passport system.

News? Actually no it’s been set out in academia since 2011 and in the same year Italian pro Leonardo Bertagnolli was telling the police just the same. Still since the report has got some traction so here’s a quick look at the issues.

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No More Pirates

Liege Bastogne Liege 1983 TV

March is a busy month for pro cycling. Even if you had the free time and inclination trying to watch as many races as possible it would not be easy, you’d need determination and several screens. Races are spread over several channels and for many fans there’s sometimes no legal way to watch a race because it’s not on TV.

The internet’s changed expectations leaving fans wanting to watch every race going and thanks to the web it’s often possible, at least if you resort to so-called pirate feeds. But there’s a better way: use a VPN.

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The Tour de France’s TV Guarantee

Tour de France

There’s been talk that the Tour de France could be up for sale, various journalists have published pieces saying the Amaury family have held discussions with potential buyers, often concluding that a sale seems unlikely.

The Tour de France is a very valuable asset but not the money-spinner some might take it for. A little-known government decree prevents the owners from maxxing out on the TV rights. However the changing media landscape could see the race become more valuable as more channels hunt for an audience.

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The On-board Camera Guide

Jérémy Roy FDJ Tour Down Under camera

Many saw my videos from the on-board cameras during the Tour Down Under and I’m grateful for it. Now I’ll explain how it was done, writes Jérémy Roy of FDJ.

This is the translation of a piece on Roy’s informative website jeremyroy.fr and he has approved its use here.

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Tour de France iCal


With just over two weeks to go here’s a downloadable calendar of the Tour de France for your electronic diary or smartphone.

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Different Viewpoints for On Bike Cams


The clip above is from last Sunday’s final stage of the Tour of California but it’s also a glimpse of the future. We get a new angle of racing and an additional soundtrack too.

For the devoted fan any extra footage is good but there’s plenty of work to be done before on bike cams and race footage from the peloton becomes essential viewing.

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