Who is Kristen Faulkner? Everything about the American cyclist who was a rower and venture capitalist before winning gold medal at Paris Olympics 2024

Modified Aug 04, 2024 18:04 GMT

Kristen Faulkner, the racing cyclist from the US, soloed across the line and claimed the women's road race Olympic victory under the Eiffel Tower in Paris. She launched an attack and produced an acceleration with just 3.4km to go, with the three women who trailed ending in a three-up photo finish. Marianne Vos of the Netherlands claimed silver, Lotte Kopecky took the bronze and Blanka Vas of Hungary missed the podium.

Kristen Faulker recently rides for the UCI Women's Continental Team EF–Oatly–Cannondale. She competed in varsity rowing during her years in the Harvard University, where she set the Harvard's record for the fastest 2k erg time for lightweight women. She also competed in varsity swimming and running besides rowing.

After graduating to Harvard, Kristen Faulker was employed at Threshold Ventures as an investment associate. In 2016, Faulker developed a penchant for cycling after hitting the roads of New York. Having moved to San Francisco Bay Area in 2018, the 31-year-old kicked off her racing journey with Team TIBCO-Silicon Valley Bank.

After joining the UCI Women's Continental Team EF–Oatly–Cannondale for the 2024 season, the racing cyclist competed in her maiden Olympiad in Paris. She successfully outpaced the racing top guns at the Trocadero and clocked 3:59:23 for the win. Her victory marked the first women's road race Olympic victory for the USA since Connie Carpenter achieved it in 1984.

Kristen Faulkner - "My goal was to make the team for track"

In 2024, Kristen Faulkner clinched the silver in Team Trial at the United States National Road Race Championships and top finish in the Road Race. However, the podiums didn't qualify her for the Paris Olympics by default. Since she finished behind Taylor Knibb at the Nationals, she vied for the last Olympic spot in a final selection camp for the US track team in Zolder.

Her dream just turned to reality and she couldn't contain her excitement, saying:

"My goal was to make the team for track, and that has been the goal since last fall. In May], I flew from USA National Champions directly to Zolder. Some news outlets were saying that track was my backup and it was only because I didn't make the TT nationals, but I had been planning to go to Zolder all year. Team Pursuit is and has always been my number one priority," said Faulkner to Cyclingnews.

Kristen Faulkner will next compete alongside Chloe Dygert in the Women's Team Pursuit, with the qualification rounds starting August 6 at the quadrennial Games.