Sport is now big business and most conceivable sports are professional. However, it is considered a poor show if professional athletes stretch the rules in order to succeed. The Tour de France cycling race has suffered in recent years because of the numerous drug scandals. This has had a very detrimental effect of professional cycling. Drugs and stimulants have no place in sport. Their use is simply outrageous cheating.
We all get addicted really easily to things we love. Some of those may be more addictive than others. I can't really tell what is like to be addicted to alcohol, cigarettes, drugs or anything like that since I never tried to. So when I am trying to write about addiction is not really addiction, although some scientists are reporting that athletes with hard working training sessions are addicted and can't live without the bike.
Road Racing is the most famous form of cycle racing. The idea behind a road race is very simple. A bunch of cyclists start at the same place and the first among them to cross a finish lines win. This type of race is called a mass start. There are however a ton of different formats of races that are available that are a lot more complicated then just your basic mass start.
Competitive cycling at the highest level is dominated by European based professional teams, complete with masseurs, coaches, cycling managers, directors, PR officials and of course highly conditioned cyclists who earn their living racing for a team sponsor.