U.S. star cyclist Chloe Dygert battled through an early crash to secure the bronze medal in the women's individual time trial, finishing in 41:10.70. Dygert missed out on silver by less than a second.
Dygert, the 2023 World champion, has battled through excruciating obstacles on her journey to her third Olympic Games, including a terrifying crash in September 2020 that nearly ended her career. Dygert also underwent heart surgery, suffered from Epstein-Barr virus and battled through foot and Achilles injuries.
"I could've lost my leg four years ago," Dygert said. "To be here, and to be competeing against the best, I'm just so grateful and blessed. This is a huge day for us."
Still, Dygert entered the race as a gold-medal favorite. But she crashed on the slippery road, and her gold-medal chances slipped away. She was limping after the race.
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“I don't show up to a race to lose,” Dygert said. “I'm not going to be a sore loser, but everybody shows up to win. Everybody who shows up who isn't on the top step is going to say the same thing. I've just got to be better.”
Dygert was one of four competitors to slip and fall on Saturday. As rain continued to pound Paris, competitors were crashing early and often on the soaked course. Taylor Knibb, who is competing in both cycling and triathlon in Paris, also fell. She finished 19th with a time of 43:03.46.
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With Dygert's medal, the U.S. has edged in front of the Netherlands with a sixth medal in the women's individual time trial. That stands as the most in Olympic history, breaking a 5-5 tie.
Australian Grace Brown blazed through the streets of Paris and dominated to win her first Olympic medal. Brown scorched her competition with a time of 39:38.24, a full minute and a half faster than any other cyclist.
The victory is sweet relief for the 32-year-old Brown, who finished fourth in the time trial at the 2020 Tokyo Games and has now secured Australia’s first medal of the Paris Olympics and first-ever medal in this event. Brown is finally at the mountaintop after also finishing second in each of the last two World Championship time trials.
Next on the women's road cycling docket is the women's road race Sunday, Aug. 4.
