National Treasure
She is one of our country’s most decorated cyclists, yet name association has greatly overshadowed her accomplishments. Then again, Kristin Armstrong may just prefer it that way.
To the casual observer, Kristin Armstrong’s story is chock full of enough plot twists to merit a page turning autobiography. But she will be the first to remind you that she is just an average person who put her mind to something and stayed focused. And it is perhaps in this regard that her story is so compelling. Extraordinary exploits juxtaposed against genuine humility have made Kristin Armstrong a role model in sport and in life, and one of America’s greatest national treasures.
Born into a military family of four in 1973, Kristin spent the majority of her early childhood outside of the United States. The military lifestyle and structure, devoid of some of the common trappings that seem to plague many of America’s youth, seemed to suit Kristin as she began to not only compete in sports but also excel in them. By the time she was 17, she had become a Junior Olympian in swimming. And like the other Armstrong, Kristin was also a stand out runner and triathlete. She would go on to compete in the Hawaii Ironman World Championships and vie for a spot on the 2000 US Olympic Triathlon Team.
At the height of her triathlon career, however, Kristin would be diagnosed with osteoarthritis. She was 27 years old. Her choice was to undergo hip replacement surgery at an early age or stop competing. She chose the latter, took a step back from sports and focused her energies into project management at an advertising agency.
But once an athlete always an athlete; Kristin found a less impactful alternative in cycling to help fill the competitive void created by her condition. Cycling wasn’t completely foreign to Kristin because of its significance in triathlons, but the sport of cycling was an eye-opener. Besides triathlons and using a bike as a mode of transportation at the University of Idaho, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Sport Physiology, Kristin didn’t even know you could race bicycles let alone make a living from doing so. But, what started out as her “therapy” sport soon turned into a real passion.
In a short amount of time she would be tapped to represent the United States at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. She competed and finished 8th in the Olympic road race, but Kristin was merely a spectator for the time trial, as that opportunity went to someone else. And two years later, Kristin claimed the Elite Women’s Time Trial title at the UCI World Championships in Salzburg, Austria.
The Alchemist
Luck, it has been said, is when preparedness meets opportunity. In that regard, the 35-year old from Boise, Idaho might be the luckiest Olympic gold medalist around, as her preparation for the Women's Individual Time Trial in Beijing left nothing to chance.
And three weeks ago, Kristin was able to turn the disappointment of Athens into a footnote. In perhaps her greatest sporting achievement to date, she won a gold medal at the Games of the 29th Olympiad in Beijing in the Individual Time Trial. She became the first US woman to take home a gold medal in cycling since Connie Carpenter-Phinney did so in 1984.
As she prepares for the 2008 World Championships in Varese, Italy, I had the opportunity to speak with Kristin Armstrong. In Part I of my interview with the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games Champion, we discuss being a role model, the Olympic Games, and why politics is better left to the politicians and not athletes.
Granny's 30 (G): Coming from a swimming and triathlon background, who were some of your athletic role models growing up?
Kristin Armstrong (KA): When I was growing up my parents and my family had the most influence me. My father was in the military, and I moved from town to town. From kindergarten through my senior in high school, I lived in the United States for only three years. When you’re going to school overseas television is limited so I didn’t grow up watching sports; I was just out there playing them. So I think that the lifestyle and the way my parents brought me up is what really influenced me.
I talk about role models a lot and wanting to be a role model for kids around me because I didn’t have that growing up. In some of my interviews two weeks ago, I was asked about my gold medal. Honestly, the first time I had ever seen a gold medal was when I was given a gold medal. When I think back to that first week of the Olympics, there were about 27 gold medals given to Americans and 8 of them were to Michael Phelps. I was told that there are about 900 gold medal winners in American Olympic history. When I thought about the number 900, I wondered how many kids that are influenced by a gold medal ever get to see a gold medal. What I thought was really neat was that I’ve already had a couple hundred kids touch my gold medal.
Growing up I didn’t have access to gold medals or gold medal winners. I lived in military bases, all over. So depending upon what sports you are in growing up, the Olympic Games are kind of just in your head. Growing up with a swimming background I just always followed the Olympics. As you saw in the first week of the Olympics, it’s been all about two sports, swimming and gymnastics. Some sports are maybe a little bit more European, such as cycling, and maybe the World Championships become more important, or the NBA Championships are maybe more important for some of the pro basketball players.
But if there were any people who were my role models I would just say it was my family’s influence and the family and the kids around me. There were just some great sports programs that I was so lucky to have growing up in the military life.
G: Many athletes have stated that there is no greater honor than representing your country in the Olympic Games. How does it stack up in comparison to representing your country at Worlds?
KA: The sport of cycling isn’t as big here in America. I think most of the interest in cycling came when Lance Armstrong was winning all those Tours. Americans really tuned in at that time. Other than that, I think Americans tune in once every four years. So for me the Olympics were very special. For one, because I’m an American representing the country in the sport of cycling for that one day was very special to me, but also because women don’t have a Tour de France and we don’t have as much coverage.
As far as World Championships and representing America, it’s definitely very special especially being based out of Europe for part of my year. Cycling is a European sport, where 10-year-olds are growing up on a bike just like we were growing up playing soccer or football. In Europe, when you win the World Championships and you earn those rainbow stripes to those people it’s the pinnacle of sport, it’s the top. If you’re into the sport of cycling and you want to name World Champions you can always name World Champions, but if you want to name the top three in the Olympics from four years ago I think most people would have a tough time. But, if you’re from America, and I’m guessing Australia is very similar and probably the UK, I think it’s very special to represent your country in the Olympics. I can wear the rainbow stripes in America as World Champion, but most people don’t know what those are.
When I walked off the plane on Friday, it was different. People in my town always said hi to me and they knew who I was before the Olympics because it’s part of being in a small town, but now that I have a gold medal, I felt like I needed a bag over my head when I went to the grocery store yesterday. It’s a great feeling but…
In Europe, if I was Italian and I walked around the street with the World Championship stripes it would be the same kind of thing; everyone knows you ⎯ you’re the World Champion. And I learned that when I was World Champion in 2006. The next time I was in the peloton I had a different respect ⎯ everyone respected me. I thought to myself, I’m just wearing stripes, I’m not a different person, I’m still a good competitor. But you get treated differently. Its just like that in America with the Olympics when you not only have a medal but a gold medal all of a sudden people come out of the wood work and you’re treated a little bit differently. I guess that’s where my personality is, that’s where I just can’t get used to all this.I’m just…there are a lot of people, stars and real successful people. Maybe it’s because of the money in the sport [of cycling], where men have million dollar contracts and maybe they have a reason to walk around like they’re it; this is everything. I don’t know if its because women’s cycling…I have just done it because I love the sport, I haven’t made millions off of it so maybe that’s why I just feel like a normal person, I just feel regular, so that when I walk out of my house now with people requesting autographs in the middle of Albertson’s aisles. I realize that I did go to the Olympics and did come back with a gold medal, but this is all strange. Somebody pinch me please, because I’m just here on my couch at night watching the Olympics now like everyone else in the world.
The outside people probably think this is this and now you’re this and that because of what happened, but for me I’m just normal. People still don’t believe that I’m from Idaho. I know this is going to change my life in quite a lot of ways but one of the most important ways is that although I’ve always been a role model now I guess I’m a legitimate role model.
Where I live, the population is about 300,000 but with the suburbs it’s close to half a million. They call it the Treasure Valley and it’s a really great place for families to bring up kids and there are lots of group activity and not a lot of crime. It’s a really safe place and I’m glad I’m in town and can be an influence on these kids and what they want to do in their lives. It’s fun. But I’m not the kind to go out and tell people 'Oh yeah I’m a gold medalist.’
In the time that I’ve been home and the support I’ve had from this community I wonder what other Olympians do when they come home. I can’t imagine what all the Olympians from San Francisco or the Bay area came home to because the homecoming parades that they’ve had back here I was really taken aback by the whole thing. I think its all part of the experience and I know you have to enjoy the experience and the journey, and I think I am. So it’s really neat.
G: You experienced a gambit of weather in Beijing. Were the conditions as “bad” as some were anticipating?
KA: The first few days were pretty smoggy. It was pretty funny because you’d wake up and you’d actually forget it was smoggy. You’d just think there was a marine layer. Essentially you’d wake up and just think it was cloudy today, but after a while you would be thinking those clouds are never going to break. When we arrived on Monday it was pretty much like that.
By midday Saturday it was pretty hot and smoggy, but on Sunday we had the torrential downpour race and it really cleared up the skies, which we were very lucky and fortunate to have for Wednesday’s time trial. Once it cleared out, it was beautiful. Our venue was very beautiful, we saw the Great Wall. The pictures that came out after the time trial were really pretty.
Then there were reports that it hadn’t rained in a while and it was building back up. So the mountain bike races were probably very hot because of the smog and their 3 o’clock start.
G: Although you had previously raced against a number of the women in the road race, there were also some unknown quantities in the field. Was it analogous to being in a P/1/2/3 race? Did it make you a bit more tentative, especially with an early crash in the circuits?
KA: I think there is a little confusion around the sport in the Olympics. I’ve raced on a team and look at cycling as a team sport. That’s what it’s supposed to be. Women are used to racing with six teammates in any race. But at the Olympics, the top 15 countries are limited to three spots and then it goes down, some countries get two and some get one. All of a sudden it’s very difficult for all teams to be a team. 'How do you race as a team with 1 person?'It makes it difficult and there are different levels of experience. It’s a good analogy when you’re racing at the pro level and you have a Cat 3 in there with you. The Olympics is all about representing your country and about being part of the whole experience. Some of these countries don’t have the opportunity that we do to get this experience. But unfortunately it does create a little bit of danger for everybody. Just like you saw in the road race, the Korean rider comes right across. She just goes right across the peloton and takes them [and Kristin] all out. Those are the types of moves that are just amateur. It wasn’t even about crossing wheels; it was that she went from one side of the road to the other. I think she just wanted to go up the side but she went from like the middle to the left. She just went straight across. I was thinking that move is only done when you want to get out because we were getting ready to go up the climb
It was really weird because the first 70k was dry and we were getting reports to be ready in 10k because it’s a torrential downpour and it’s not going to let up. Not only that, but the temperatures had dropped. I had an ice vest on before the race started and then by the time we were going into the circuit it was pouring rain. Then there was the crash and everything changed. I couldn’t see a thing out of my sunglasses, and then I tried to take them off, and I still couldn’t see because it was pouring. I crashed and I came back up. Christine [Thorburn] pushed the pace to try to make things hard so I had to use some energy to get back on. There were a couple descents and a climb. Once you crash, you just start thinking you can go down at any time. It was hard. It was really hard to refocus at that point. And then Amber [Neben] had mechanicals. It wasn’t team USA’s day. That’s for sure. That’s the road racing world.
That’s why I love having the time trial as well because it’s you against the clock and a lot more controlled. Nicole Cooke was strong and she won the road race, but the next day it was probably going to be somebody else whereas in a time trial, that’s not necessarily the case. Maybe two weeks later it might be someone else because you might be peaking at a different time, but the next day its going to be the same person. With road racing it’s just all up in the air.
G: There has been some speculation that the Beijing Olympic Games may be used by some athletes or fans as a political platform for certain interest. What, if any role, do athletes have in raising awareness of issues outside the athletic realm, and is the Olympic Games an appropriate place to do so?
KA: [Laughs] You know anytime that I had been asked about the political issues I just tried to ignore them.
I don’t think that the Olympic games are a good place to bring up any political issues because it should be about the athletes and about coming together. This year’s motto was One World, One Dream and to take that away it’s just not a good time.
Another thing that bothered me was people asking if Beijing was a good place, if it was safe, and about all the pollution. The bottom line is that Beijing was chosen, I don’t know how many years ago, but if it was a problem it should have been a problem back when it was chosen.
As a nation, China, is one of the most powerful countries around and if anyone can make something happen, if anything is in their control and they can make things happen and make things the best and look at their country as a beautiful place to come visit and our people are great they’re going to do it. I feel like everything that hasn’t been perfect over there is out of their hands. They’ve done everything they can to make it perfect. The volunteers were amazing, just amazing people, very nice and accommodating. Here we aren’t even close to accommodating. As Americans, we always have this attitude where we visit other people’s countries and we get mad when they don’t’ speak our language. The problem is they are trying and we haven’t even tried. We may know how to say hello and thank you in Chinese, but if you ask us to say any other word we wouldn’t be able come up with it. So I think people should take a look at what China has tried to do and how far they’ve come rather than focus on their problems.
There have been a lot of positive stories that have come out from Beijing. I was glad to be part of these Olympic Games because it may be a turning point and one that was definitely on show.
Being in Athens and now Beijing was historic. As much as I’d like to have the Olympic games in the US so that my family can come watch, I’ve gotten to go to Athens and Beijing.
In Part II of my interview with Kristin Armstrong, we discuss the state of Women’s Cycling and the differences of cycling in Europe, and we even tackle the frequently asked Armstrong question.
Photos: Courtesy Kristin Armstrong (top, middle); AP (bottom)
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