Kristen Faulkner, a 2016 graduate, achieved a remarkable victory by winning the gold medal in the Women’s Cycling Road Race on Sunday, August 4. The former rower for Harvard-Radcliffe made a stunning comeback to secure first place, marking Team USA’s first women’s cycling medal in 40 years since Connie Carpenter-Phinney’s win at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Faulkner completed the race in 3:59:23, finishing 58 seconds ahead of the second-place competitor. She topped a field of 93 cyclists, breaking away with three kilometers remaining to claim gold in Paris.
Originally from Alaska, Faulkner rowed at Harvard-Radcliffe for two years, from 2015 to 2016. During her time there, she was part of the first varsity boat throughout the season and helped her team earn a bronze medal at the IRA National Championship, sitting in the five seat of the 1V. The team also achieved a second-place finish at Eastern Sprints earlier that year.
Faulkner took up cycling only four years ago, beginning her riding journey in Central Park, New York. After working in venture capital in California, she made the decision to pursue a career as a professional cyclist. Initially, she was focused on track cycling for the Olympics, but the USA team needed a replacement for Taylor Knibb, who opted out of the road race to concentrate on the time trial and triathlon events.
The Harvard-Radcliffe alumna is scheduled to compete in the Team Pursuit events later this week. The US Olympic Track Cycling events will be available for streaming on Peacock, with the Women’s Team Pursuit Qualifying set for 11:30 AM ET, followed by the First Round at 6:45 AM ET and the Finals at 11:30 AM ET.