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Harvard grad Kristen Faulkner wins historic Olympic cycling gold

Harvard grad Kristen Faulkner wins historic Olympic cycling gold

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It took Kristen Faulkner just three years to go from full-time professional cyclist to Olympic champion.

The Harvard University graduate first tried cycling in 2017. In 2021, he quit his investment banking job to pursue the sport full time. And in 2024, he won Olympic cycling gold for the United States for the first time in 40 years.

Faulkner, a star rower at Harvard, made the U.S. road cycling team only as an alternate. On Sunday, the 31-year-old came out on top, beating favorites Lotte Kopecky and Marianne Vos.

Here’s what you need to know about Kristen Faulkner and her historic victory.

Who is Kristen Faulkner?

Kristen Faulkner is a cyclist who won a gold medal in the women’s road cycling event at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Although originally from Homer, Alaska, Faulkner has ties to Massachusetts. He attended Phillips Academy, a boarding school in Andover, and graduated from Harvard in 2016 with a degree in computer science.

Faulkner started cycling after taking a lesson in Central Park in 2017. He joined the professional cycling team Tibco–Silicon Valley Bank in 2020 and left his investment banking job to pursue the sport full time in 2021.

How Kristen Faulkner made history

Kristen Faulkner’s gold medal in the women’s road cycling race at the 2024 Olympics was the first medal won by the United States in that event in 40 years.

No American had won a medal in cycling since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, when Americans Connie Carpenter and Alexi Grewal won gold in that event.

Why was Kristen Faulkner chosen as a reserve?

Kristen Faulkner almost didn’t compete in the race she won the gold medal in.

Faulkner finished second in the road cycling Olympic trials held in the United States earlier this year, failing to qualify for the Paris games.

However, first place winner Taylor Knibb withdrew from the race in July, choosing to focus on her area of ​​expertise, triathlon.

Faulkner, who was preparing to compete in the Olympics in velodrome racing, was brought in to replace Knibb.