Individual Pursuit (4,000 metres), Men

The competition format of the individual pursuit had changed since the last Olympics, dropping the semi-finals, a change which had also been made recent World Championships. The 17 starters rode a qualifying round against the clock, with the eight fastest finishers advancing to an elimination round of four heats. The two fastest winners in the elimination round competed in a gold medal race, while the two slowest winners in the elimination round competed in a bronze medal race. Places 5-8 were determined by the times of the losing riders in the elimination round. The last three World Champions had been Bradley McGee (AUS-2002), Bradley Wiggins (GBR-2003), and Sergi Escobar (ESP-2004). They all made it thru qualifying and were three of the winners of the elimination round, joined in the medal matches by Rob Hayles (GBR), fourth at the 2000 Olympics. The gold medal race matched the Bradleys, McGee against Wiggins, with Wiggins winning by over four seconds. In the bronze medal race, Escobar relegated Hayles to a second consecutive, disconcerting fourth-place finish.