PARK CITY, Utah, July 28, 2024 (Gephardt Daily) — Park City native Haley Batten overcame a broken wheel to win the silver medal and post Team USA’s best-ever finish in mountain biking.
Batten, 25, broke a wheel in the first half of seven-lap, roughly 30-kilometer race at Elancourt Hill — the highest point in the Paris region — but fought back into medal contention.
“This course is relentless,” Batten said following the cross-country race. “There are sneaky rocks that can give you a flat tire. I broke my wheel today, somewhere I can’t remember where; I think it was maybe lap four. You have to adapt from all the unpredictable circumstances and just race your best and try not to make mistakes.”
The two-time Olympian finished just under three minutes behind gold medalist Pauline Ferrand-Prévot of France. Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds finished third for the bronze.
Batten, who started cycling at age 9 and turned pro at 17, previously competed at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she finished ninth.
“I knew before Tokyo that this was the race I was focusing on,” she said. “I’ve grown a lot since then. I’ve prepared much better. I’m one of the best athletes in the world, and I know I’m the best I’ve ever been. For me, the preparation has been in the details. Steady building every single year, just one step at a time. It takes time, you can’t rush it, but I really believed in myself today.”
Unlike her Olympic debut in Tokyo, where spectators weren’t allowed due to the pandemic, Batten had friends and family cheering her on in Paris.
“To have my family here to truly experience what the Olympics is and to share this moment with me is so special,” she said. “I saw them before the start of the race. They mean everything. They make this possible, and I’m so grateful for them.”
Batten earned just the third medal and first silver for Team USA since women’s mountain biking made its Olympic debut in 1996. American mountain bikers previously won bronze medals in 1996 and 2012.
