Connie Carpenter-Phinney

Who is Connie Carpenter-Phinney?

Connie Carpenter-Phinney in the late 1970s and early 1980s. She also won the gold medal in the cycling road race at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, as well as twelve U.S. national championships. She remains the youngest American woman to compete at the Winter Olympics.

Before turning to cycling, Carpenter was a speed skater, one of many athletes who excelled in both sports. As a speed skater, she competed in the 1972 Winter Olympics where she finished 7th in the 1500m---she was fourteen years old at the time, making her the youngest American female Winter Olympian. In 1976, she won the U.S. national overall outdoor title, but an injury prevented her competing in the Olympics that year.

Carpenter had trained on a bicycle during the off-season, and after the ankle injury in 1976, she began racing on the bike. In 1976, 1977, and 1979, she won the U.S. national road and track pursuit championships. Later, she added a pair of national criterium championships to her resume before winning the Olympic gold medal in 1984. She won the race in a sprint over fellow American Rebecca Twigg.