9 Best Cycling Documentaries...

...that every serious cyclist should watch

Planning a cosy night in?

Hopefully you'll find one or two documentaries below, you haven't come across before. Some are available free, in their entirety, on YouTube. We've placed a link in the name to help get you started.

1. A Sunday in Hell (1976)

Directed by Jørgen Leth, this iconic documentary provides a poetic and unflinching chronicle of the 1976 Paris-Roubaix race, known as the "Hell of the North" for its brutal cobblestone sections. Through innovative slow-motion cinematography and intimate perspectives from riders like Eddy Merckx, Roger De Vlaeminck, and Francesco Moser, as well as organizers and spectators, it captures the raw beauty, suffering, and chaos of professional cycling, including a dramatic protest that halts the race, cementing its status as a timeless masterpiece of sports filmmaking that elevates the sport to epic artistry.

2. The Armstrong Lie (2013)

Alex Gibney's gripping exposé follows Lance Armstrong's disgraced comeback in the 2009 Tour de France, blending behind-the-scenes footage, interviews with teammates, doctors, and journalists, and archival clips to unravel the doping scandal that stripped him of seven Tour titles. Initially intended as a triumphant return narrative, the film evolves into a profound examination of deception, ambition, and the culture of lies in elite cycling, offering a haunting look at how one man's charisma masked systemic cheating and its devastating fallout on the sport.

3. Icarus (2017)

Bryan Fogel's Oscar-winning documentary begins as a personal experiment in performance-enhancing drugs to boost his own amateur cycling prowess but spirals into an international thriller when he enlists Russian anti-doping expert Grigory Rodchenkov, uncovering Russia's state-sponsored doping program across multiple sports. With thrilling investigative twists, whistleblower confessions, and geopolitical intrigue, it exposes the fragility of global anti-doping efforts, transforming a niche cycling inquiry into a riveting indictment of corruption that earned it the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

4. Slaying the Badger (2014)

This David Temperley-directed film delves into the intense 1986 Tour de France rivalry between American newcomer Greg LeMond and his French teammate Bernard Hinault, both riding for La Vie Claire amid whispers of betrayal and sabotage. Through archival footage, interviews with the protagonists, and dramatic reenactments, it portrays the psychological warfare, tactical genius, and cultural clashes that defined LeMond's breakthrough victory, offering a compelling narrative on mentorship turned rivalry and the pressures of cycling's grandest stage.

5. Stars and Watercarriers (1973)

Jørgen Leth's early masterpiece immerses viewers in the 1973 Giro d'Italia, following the Belgian Waties team from domestiques to leaders like Eddy Merckx, with orchestral scoring and peloton-embedded cameras that blend beauty and brutality. Capturing the grueling mountain stages, team dynamics, and the unglamorous realities of support riders who "carry water" for stars, it humanizes the Giro's epic scale, predating modern docuseries and establishing Leth's signature style of poetic sports storytelling.

6. Hell on Wheels (2003)

This raw behind-the-scenes look at Team Telekom's tumultuous 2003 Tour de France—the centenary edition—features Jan Ullrich's comeback amid doping suspicions, with candid interviews, finish-line drama, and the unglamorous grind of professional racing. Directed by the team itself, it exposes the physical toll, internal conflicts, and high-stakes pursuit of glory, providing a gritty, unfiltered portrait of the peloton's darker underbelly just before the sport's major scandals erupted.

7. Road to Roubaix (2015)

Focusing on the 100th edition of the 2016 Tour of Flanders (De Ronde), this documentary shadows underdog riders, fans, and organizers through the cobbled chaos of Belgium's Spring Classic. With fly-on-the-wall access to teams like Etixx-Quick Step, it highlights personal sacrifices, tactical battles, and the race's cultural significance, blending humor, heartbreak, and high drama to celebrate one of cycling's most revered monuments as more than just a race—it's a national ritual of endurance and passion.

8. Tour de France: Unchained (2023–present)

Netflix's multi-season docuseries, produced by the creators of Drive to Survive, grants unprecedented access to eight teams during the 2022 and 2023 Tours, featuring stars like Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard in exclusive interviews, strategy sessions, and raw emotional moments. It demystifies the race's inner workings—from crashes and comebacks to off-bike tensions—while appealing to newcomers and fans alike, transforming the Tour into a binge-worthy saga of sacrifice, rivalry, and the sport's evolving global allure.

9. Inspired to Ride (2019)

This motivational film chronicles ultra-endurance cyclists tackling the Trans-America Bicycle Trail, a 4,200-mile unsupported journey from Oregon to Virginia, following diverse riders including veterans and newcomers as they battle sleep deprivation, weather, and isolation. With stunning landscapes, personal testimonies on mental fortitude, and insights from race director Mike Hall, it celebrates the self-supported spirit of adventure cycling, inspiring viewers to push personal limits beyond competition into profound self-discovery.

Happy riding and racing!

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