a successor to the earlier Lotus 108 bicycle he'd ridden to victory at the 1992 Olympic Games. South African company Aerodyne Technology built the frame. Boardman set the UCI Absolute record of in 1996, using another position pioneered by Obree, his arms out in front in a "Superman" position. This too was considered controversial by the UCI, and while the record was allowed to stand, the position was banned making Boardman's record set in 1996, it was thought, effectively unbeatable using traditional bike position. The record stood as a best human effort until October 2022, when Filippo Ganna unified the records, beating Boardman's best human effort record (and Daniel Bigham's official UCI Hour record) on a traditionally shaped, though uniquely manufactured, bicycle. 1997 UCI rule change With the increasing gap between modern bicycles and what was available at the time of Merckx's record, the UCI established two records in 1997: UCI Hour Record: which restricted competitors to roughly the same equipment as Merckx, banning time trial helmets, disc or tri-spoke wheels, aerodynamic bars and monocoque frames. Best Human Effort: also known as the UCI "Absolute" Record in which modern equipment was permitted. As a result of the 1997 rule change, all records since 1972, including Boardman's in 1996, were moved to Best Human Effort and the distance of Eddy Merckx set in 1972 once more became the official UCI benchmark. In 2000, Boardman attempted the UCI record on a traditional bike, and rode , topping Merckx by , an improvement of 0.02%. In 2005, Ondřej Sosenka improved Boardman's performance at using a 54×13 gear. However, Sosenka failed a doping control in 2001 and then again in 2008, the latter resulting in a career-ending suspension which puts in doubt the validity of his record. All women's records from 1986 to 1996 were recategorized to Best Human Effort. Hour record holders (men's) Hour record holders (women's) UCI unified hour record (2014–present) Unified rule change (2014) In 2014, the UCI unified the two classifications into a single classification in line with regulations for current track pursuit bikes. Records previously removed for Chris Boardman and Graeme Obree were returned, however the benchmark record would remain at set in 2005 by Ondrej Sosenka, even though that was not the farthest distance. Under the new regulations riders may use any bike allowed by the UCI standards for endurance track events in place at the time of