Haley Batten faced a fine from the Olympic mountain bike judges for breaking a rule on the final lap of her race Sunday, but the penalty hardly overshadowed her achievement. Batten’s silver medal marked the best finish ever by an American rider in the event.
Batten was battling for second place with Sweden’s Jenny Rissveds, well behind eventual champion Pauline Ferrand-Prevot, when she went through a lane reserved for taking on food and drink or stopping for mechanical problems. Judges reviewed the footage and determined Batten had done neither, thus breaking a race rule.
She was fined 500 Swiss francs, or about $565, for “failure to respect the instructions of the race organization or commissaires,” though the judges deemed the infraction not serious enough for disqualification.
This did not dampen the celebratory mood for Batten, who finished ninth at the Tokyo Games three years ago.
“I knew before Tokyo that this was the race I was focusing on,” she said. “I’ve known for a long time that I could be good here and Tokyo was — I wanted to be on the podium there, but I wasn’t quite ready to be honest. I prepared much better to be the best I’ve ever been. For me, preparation has been in the details, studying and building every single year.”
The 25-year-old from Park City, Utah, has been leading a new wave of American mountain bike talent, including her 25-year-old teammate Savilia Blunk, who finished 12th on Sunday, and 26-year-old Christopher Blevins and 22-year-old Riley Amos, who will compete in the men’s race on Monday.
Batten’s performance at Elancourt Hill, just outside of Paris, was not unexpected. She demonstrated her elite status by winning this year’s World Cup race in Araxá, Brazil.
However, Batten had to overcome significant obstacles, including a concussion that sidelined her from last year’s world championships in Scotland and a minor Achilles injury during the World Cup short-track event at Crans-Montana in the Swiss Alps.
Batten faced adversity in Sunday’s race as well. After puncturing a tire, she was fortunate to be near the U.S. team mechanics, who quickly changed it and got her back in the race. Despite slipping back to sixth, Batten rallied, swapping positions with Rissveds on the final lap before securing the silver medal.
The only other medals won by Americans in Olympic mountain biking were bronze, earned by Susan DeMattei in 1996 and Georgia Gould in 2012.
“Being able to perform on one day is really challenging, and everybody at the Olympics is the best in the world,” said Batten, who is partly coached by Kristin Armstrong, the three-time Olympic time trial champion. “Everybody’s strong, everybody’s fit. Everybody’s well-prepared and can ride at their best. So for me to mentally be able to clear my mind and be ready and race at my best, regardless of challenges before the race and during the race, it’s amazing.”
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