Olympic Cyclists



CJ Smith

New Member
Sep 11, 2006
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ROAD

GEORGE HINCAPIE
  • Nominated to his fifth Olympic team, Hincapie becomes the only five-time Olympic cyclist in U.S. history after competing in 1992, 1996, 2000, and 2004.
  • He earned a discretionary nomination to the Summer Games in Beijing by USA Cycling based on his capability to medal or otherwise enhance team performance and create a medal capable environment.
  • He is one of only four Americans in history to wear the Yellow Jersey in the Tour de France (Greg LeMond, Lance Armstrong, & David Zabriskie).


· Two-time USA Cycling Professional Road Race National Champion

· (1998, 2006)

· Yellow Jersey – 2006 Tour de France, Stage 1

· 1st place – 2005 Tour de France, Stage 15

· 1st place – 2006 Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne

· 1st place – 2001 Gent-Wevelgem

· 1st place – 2007 Tour of Missouri

· 1st place – 2005 Grand Prix Ouest France

· 1st place – 2001 San Francisco Grand Prix

· 1st place – 1999 First Union Classic

· 2nd place – 2005 Paris-Roubaix

· 2nd place – 2006 Tour de France, Prologue

· 3rd place – 2006 Tour of Flanders

LEVI LEIPHEIMER
  • He was the only automatic U.S qualifier to the Summer Games in Beijing as a result of a top-three finish in a UCI Grand Tour between July 1, 2007 and July 1, 2008.
  • Leipheimer placed third overall at the 2007 Tour de France.
  • An Olympian in 2004, Leipheimer will represent the United States in his second Olympic Games.
  • As the youngest member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Cycling team at 30, Leipheimer was a last-minute replacement for Lance Armstrong.
  • He competed in the men's road race, but did not finish.
JASON McCARTNEY
  • Earned a discretionary nominations to the Summer Games in Beijing by USA Cycling based on his capability to medal or otherwise enhance team performance and create a medal capable environment.
  • McCartney was a member of the 2004 squad on the road course.
  • McCartney is one of only three Americans to win a stage of the Vuelta a EspaNa with a victory in stage 14 in 2007.
CHRISTIAN VANDE VELDE
  • Earned a discretionary nomination to the Summer Games in Beijing by USA Cycling based on an athletes capability to medal or otherwise enhance team performance and create a medal capable environment.
  • Vande Velde was a member of the U.S. track squad at the 2000 Games in Sydney when he finished 12th in the individual pursuit.
  • In 1999, Vande Velde wore the white jersey in the Tour de France as the Best Young Rider.
  • Earned a spot on the U.S. Team for the 1994 World Championships and the 1995 Pan Am Games.
DAVID ZABRISKIE
  • Zabriskie will be making his first Olympic appearance this summer in Beijing after receiving a discretionary nomination from the USA Cycling to fill one of the two start positions in the race against the clock.
  • A silver medalist in the time trial at the 2006 UCI Road World Championships, Zabriskie also won two Grand Tour time trials: stage 1 of the 2005 Tour de France and stage 8 of the 2005 Giro dE Italia.
  • He has also appeared on the podium in three additional Grand Tour time trials since 2005 and has captured two consecutive USA Cycling Professional Time Trial titles (2006-07).
  • Was the 2004 USA Cycling Elite Time Trial National Champion.
  • Holds the record for the fastest time trial in Tour de France history, averaging 33.97 mph over the 19-kilometer stage one of the 2005 Tour and beating Lance Armstrong by two seconds.
KIRSTEN ARMSTRONG
  • Considered one of the best cyclists in the nation and likely to find her way to Beijing.
  • Qualified for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens by winning the 66-mile road race at the Olympic trials in 3 hours, 26 minutes, 12 seconds.
  • Was the 2004 U.S. Elite National champion and won bronze at 2003 Pan Am Games.
AMBER NEBEN
  • Neben will compete in the road race portion of the Olympic Summer Games in Beijing.
  • Her No. 9 ranking was the best of any U.S. woman on the road circuit.
  • Neben is one of the most decorated American cyclists on the international circuit.
  • Over the course of the last three years, she either won or placed in most major UCI races across Europe.
  • Placed fourth in the time trial and 16th in the road race at the 2007 World Championships.
  • Finished second at 2004 team trial, missing a spot on the U.S. Olympic team by eight seconds.
  • Won the U.S. national road race in 2003.
  • A few months back, Neben tested positive for cancer. A suspicious mole on her back turned out to be melanoma, but the mole and a sizable chunk of flesh were removed. Doctors subsequently have given Neben the all-clear.
CHRISTINE THORBURN
  • Representing the U.S. at her second Olympic Games, Thorburn will compete in both the mass start road race and the individual time trial in Beijing.
  • Was a member of the 2004 U.S. Olympic team in the women's road race.
  • In 2006, Thorburn captured a bronze medal in the time trial at the UCI Road World Championships. In 2007, she returned to the world championships to place fifth.
  • Was a 2004 Elite national time trial champion.
 
TRACK


MICHAEL BLATCHFORD
  • Received an automatic nomination to the 2008 U.S. Olympic team and will compete in the team sprint event in Beijing.
  • Blatchford also turned in the fastest time and was the only American sprinter to advance from the qualifying round in the match sprint at the 2008 UCI Track World Championships last March.
  • Won the 2006 under-23 sprint national championship and was also a member of the team sprint champions.
  • Won bronze at the 2005 Pan American championships.
ADAM DUVENDECK

An Olympian in 2004 as a member of the three-man team sprint squad, Adam Duvendeck is looking to qualify for his second Olympic Games. The former kilometer time trial specialist recently refocused his efforts on other sprint events such as the keirin, sprint and team sprint after the international governing body removed the four-lap race from the Olympic program for 2008. As a multi-sport athlete growing up, Adam competed in baseball, soccer, tennis and volleyball, but began his cycling career as a mountain biker at the age of 13. After just one year of off-road racing, Adam purchased his first road bike and eventually made the switch to track cycling under the guidance of 1984 Olympian Rory O’Reilly. At the age of 17, Adam made a splash on the national level with a surprise victory in the kilometer time trial at the 1999 USA Cycling Junior Track National Championships. Since then, Adam has illustrated his versatility as a solid all-around sprinter, winning elite national titles in the keirin (2006), team sprint (2003), kilometer time trial (2000) and sprint (2000). Following the 2004 Olympic Games, Adam semi-retired from the sport to pursue an education from Santa Barbara City College. Upon his return to competitive cycling in 2006, Adam re-emerged as one of the nation’s fastest sprinters, winning a national title in the keirin that October.



1st place – 2006 USA Cycling National Championships, Keirin

1st place – 2003 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Team Sprint

1st place – 2000 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Kilometer Time Trial

1st place – 2000 USA Cycling Track National Championships, Sprint

2nd place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships, Sprint

2nd place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Team Sprint

2nd place – 2007 Pan American Championships, Team Sprint

2nd place – 2002 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Kilometer Time Trial

3rd place – 2004 Pan American Championships, Kilometer Time Trial

3rd place – 2007 Independence Day Grand Prix, Keirin

4th place – 2007 Pan American Championships, Keirin

MICHAEL FRIEDMAN

A solid all-around athlete who excels at endurance events and can sprint, Mike Friedman has found his niche as both a road and track specialist. A full-time road pro in the summer with his Slipstream/Chipotle teammates and U.S. National Team track member in the winter, Mike is quickly gaining experience and collecting results as one of America’s most notable up-and-coming cyclists. As a track and field athlete and wrestler at Pittsburgh’s Peters Township High School, Mike had already given up on his first choice of competitive sports – BMX racing. After suffering a serious crash in junior high school that resulted in a broken collarbone, Mike took up road cycling and later became the youngest person to win a USA Cycling U23 road race national title at the age of 18. He went on to compete for the Penn State University Cycling Team, but later left college to pursue a full-time racing career, despite being only two semesters away from earning his degree in Biology. The move seemed to pay off as Mike quickly began collecting national titles, world cup medals, and victories on USA Cycling’s National Racing Calendar. After earning a gold medal in the scratch race at the Beijing World Cup last December, Mike further proved his strength as a dual-discipline cyclist by earning a spot on Slipstream/Chipotle’s roster for Paris-Roubaix, arguably the toughest and most prestigious single-day road race in the world.



1st place – 2007 UCI Track World Cup, Beijing, Scratch Race

1st place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Individual Pursuit

1st place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Team Pursuit

1st place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships, Madison

1st place – 2006 Independence Day Grand Prix, Scratch Race

1st place – 2006 International Cycling Classic, Stage 9

1st place – 2006 Madison Cup, Madison

1st place – 2007 International Tour de ‘Toona, Stage 4

1st place – 2005 USA Cycling Collegiate Track National

Championships, Points Race

2nd place – 2006 USA Cycling Track National Championships,

Points Race

5th place – 2008 UCI Track World Cup, Los Angeles, Madison

BOBBY LEA
  • Received an automatic nomination to the Summer Olympic team in Beijing.
  • Lea qualified as the fastest endurance rider to meet a pair of time standards in a 3,000-meter mass start test at USA Cycling's selection camp in June. His marks of 29.525 seconds at the 500-meter mark and 3:17.648 at the finish translated into an automatic nomination to contest both the points race and Madison in Beijing.
  • Was a member of the 2005 World Championship Track team.
  • Placed first at the 2004 National Pursuit championships.
GIDDEON MASSIE

Giddeon was born the son of a professional baseball player, so athletic ability came naturally. He played baseball for a while, but took on a love for cycling while was in the Air Products Development Program in Trexlertown from 1991-1992. He began cycling in T-town at age nine, and finished his junior career fifth in the world in the Olympic Sprint. He earned two national titles, and top finishes at the World Cup and the World Cup Championships. He went on to become a resident athlete of the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

2004
Gold medal - Pan American Championships, Keirin
11th


UCI World Track Championships, Team Sprint
8th - UCI Track World Cup, GBR, Team Sprint
7th - UCI Track World Cup, AUS, Team Sprint

2003
USCF National Team Sprint Champion
USCF National U-23 Sprint Champion
Gold medal, Pan American Games, Keirin
Silver medal, Pan American Games, Sprint
4th, World Cup Qualifier #1, Men's Keirin Final
2nd, World Cup Qualifier #2, Men's Keirin Final
5th, World Cup Qualifier #3, Men's Keirin Final

2002
USCF National Team Sprint Champion
USCF National U-23 Sprint Champion
2nd - USCF National Track Championships, Sprint
4th - USCF National Track Championships, Keirin
2nd - USCF National Championships, Match Sprint
8th - World Cup, Monterrey, MEX, Olympic sprint
12th - World Cup, Moscow, RUS, Olympic sprint
22nd - World Cup, Moscow, RUS, Sprint
6th - World Cup, Cali, COL, Kilo Time Trial
10th - World Cup, Kumming, CHN, Kilo Time Trial
2nd - American Velodrome Challenge, Sprint
2nd - American Velodrome Challenge, Keirin

TAYLOR PHINNEY
  • One of the youngest riders in U.S. cycling, Phinney earned a spot in the Beijing Summer Games in January when he eclipsed a time standard at the third round of the 2007-08 UCI Track World Cup Classics series at the ADT Event Center in Los Angeles.
  • First at the U.S. national championship in Track, Pursuit, and Elite.
  • Son of former Olympic gold medal cyclist Davis Phinney and speed skater Connie Carpenter-Phinney.
SARAH HAMMER
  • Earned an automatic nomination to the 2008 Summer Games for claiming a medal at the world championships where she won a silver in the 3000-meter individual pursuit.
  • Hammer is the reigning pursuit champion and part of the U.S. endurance squad.
  • She won gold in the 2006 world championships.
JENNIE REED
  • Reed earned an automatic nomination to the Summer Games in Beijing after finishing third in the match sprint event at the world championships.
  • Qualified for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens in both the sprint and 500-meter time trial.
  • Was No. 1 in the overall 2004 World Cup rankings.
 
BMX

KYLE BENNETT
  • Became the first person to ever qualify for the U.S. Olympic team in BMX for the Beijing Summer Games in August by the making the finals of a recent World Cup event in Denmark this month.
  • Currently ranked third in the world and a serious medal contender along with U.S. star Donny Robinson, who is likely to earn a spot on the U.S. squad for the Beijing Games as well.
  • A three-time world champion (2002, 2004, 2007).
  • Has twice finished in second place at the Summer X Games.
  • Is the stepson of pro racer John Purse, which makes them the only father-son tandem to win BMX times on either the professional or amateur circuits.
  • Nicknamed "Butter".
MIKE DAY

Date of birth: October 9, 1984
Hometown: Santa Clarita, CA

At 6'3" Mike Day casts an impressive shadow from the starting gates at the top of the Supercross ramp. But it's not until he descends onto the track with seemingly superhuman speed that his true dominant nature is exposed. The tallest member of the GT team and one of the top contenders for a spot on the Beijing bound Olympic BMX Race team, Mike picked up his first BMX bike on his ninth birthday in an effort to be more like his older brother. However, he excelled as quickly as he grew, and soon overtook his brother to find himself on the way towards BMX super stardom.

With a string of successes over the last three years including the 2005 NBL #1 Pro, 2005 UCI Worlds 2nd Place, 2006 UCI Worlds 3rd Place, and the 2007 UCI Supercross 1st Place, Mike has been on a tear leading up to Olympic qualification. The fastest rider on Olympic style tracks, Mike has won every time trial on the UCI Supercross circuit for the last year and a half. Crediting his monster speed to his longer than average legs, Mike also clocked the fastest time of any athlete on the Beijing Supercross track during last year's test races. To say he has an advantage there would be an understatement.

Currently living and training at the Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA, and sitting in 3rd place in UCI North American ranking points, Mike has his sites set firmly on a berth to Beijing. Despite his ultra competitiveness, Mike is a laid back gentle giant who likes to golf and chill with his bulldog Tater when's he's not ripping it up on anything with two wheels. As stylish as he is fast, a breakout performance from Mike could easily guarantee gold for the US.



Accomplishments

2005 NBL #1 Pro
2006 UCI Worlds 3rd Place
2005 UCI Worlds 2nd Place
2007 UCI Supercross 1st Place Salt Lake City
Currently sitting 3rd in UCI world ranking points.

DONNIE ROBINSON
  • Currently the No. 1 ranked rider in the world and an early favorite to win gold at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing.
  • Won the first race on the 2008 Olympic course in August.
  • Won the Elite men's title in 2007.
  • Was the 2006 UCI/NBL North American champion.
JILL KINTER
Kintner earned an automatic nomination to the Summer Games in Beijing as the top-ranked athlete in USA Cycling 2008 BMX rankings.
  • Is considered the top women's rider in the country on both the BMX and Mountain bike circuits.
  • Won the 1997 UCI BMX world championship and is a two-time 4-cross world champion in mountain biking.
  • Finished fifth at the 2007 UCI Supercross World Cup race on the Beijing course.
 
MOUNTAIN BIKING


GEORGIA GOULD
  • Gould earned her automatic nomination to the Summer Games in Beijing as the athlete with the highest cumulative placing in her three best 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup performances.
  • Gould had a pair of fifth-place finishes in the season’s first and third World Cups.
  • Won gold at the Pan American championships in 2007.
  • Became only the second woman ever to sweep the NMBS series.
  • Was the 2007 national cross country calendar champion.
  • Considered one of the country's top medal hopefuls for the 2008 Summer Games.
MARY McCONNELOUG
  • McConneloug will join Georgia Gould on the two-woman cross country mountain bike squad for Team USA at the Summer Games in Beijing.
  • A true veteran of the sport, she qualified for the 2004 Olympic team where she finished ninth at the Athens Games.
  • Currently the highest-ranked American in the world in 10th, McConneloug has been a model of consistency on the 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup circuit, placing 14th, 15th, 16th, 17th and 18th in the five World Cups to date.
  • Won silver at the 2007 and 2004 Pan Am Games.
  • Won the 2004 U.S. national cross country championship.
ADAM CRAIG
  • Was selected as a discretionary nomination to the two-man U.S Olympic team for the Summer Games in Beijing.
  • Craig was the only other American to record a top-10 finish in a World Cup race this season, placing eighth at the second round in Offenburg, Germany. Additionally, he was the only other U.S. rider to place in the top 20 of four World Cups this year.
  • At No. 16, was the highest-ranked U.S. rider in the UCI Mountain Bike rankings.
  • A three-time U.S. National Cross-Country champion.
TODD WELLS
  • Qualified for the 2004 Summer Games in Athens by earning the highest cumulative placing in his best three 2008 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup events.
  • Was the 2002 U.S. national champion in STXC and the cyclo-cross in 2001.
 
(about the road team): why are there motivations about the picks? Isn't there a coach choosing the riders to create the team? What is a discretionary nomination? :eek:
 

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