Christine Thorburn (born September 17, 1969, in Davenport, Iowa) is a retired American professional road cyclist. She became the

U.S. The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

women's

individual time trial An individual time trial (ITT) is a road bicycle race in which cyclists race alone against the clock (in French: ''contre la montre'' – literally "against the watch", in Italian: ''tappa a cronometro'' " stopwatch stage"). There are also track ...

champion in 2004, and later represented the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

in two editions of the Olympic Games (2004 and 2008), where she narrowly missed the podium twice in the same event. Before retiring to pursue her medicine and

rheumatology Rheumatology (Greek ''ῥεῦμα'', ''rheûma'', flowing current) is a branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and management of disorders whose common feature is inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Rheumatolog ...

career in 2008, Thorburn rode for the Webcor Builders Cycling Team in the women's elite professional events on the UCI Women's World Cup and on the

UCI World Championships The UCI world championships are annual competitions promoted by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to determine world champion cyclists. They are held in several different styles of racing, in a different country each year. Championship winne ...

, where she took home the bronze medal in 2006.

Racing career

Before her professional cycling career, Thorburn had been a cross-country runner at

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...

in her native state Iowa, where she earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree in chemistry. Thorburn discovered competitive cycling when she enrolled as a graduate student at Stanford University School of Medicine. An old knee injury that sidelined her running career turned her sights to cycling, and eventually, she was encouraged by some of her friends to join the university's club team. In 1998, she helped Stanford mount a second-place finish at the USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships. After receiving her medical degree from Stanford in 1999, Thorburn took a break from competitive cycling to undergo a professional residency in internal medicine. Upon returning to a relatively leisure schedule from her limited medicine studies, Thorburn started riding for the Webcor Builders Women's Amateur Cycling Team in 2002. She established an early breakthrough by joining the U.S. team at the

and by scoring her first ever triumph at the U.S. Championships in 2004, which handed her an Olympic selection. An official member of the

USA Cycling USA Cycling or USAC, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, is the national governing body for bicycle racing in the United States. It covers the disciplines of road, track, mountain bike, cyclo-cross, and BMX across all ages and ability level ...

team, Thorburn made her worldwide debut at the 2004 Summer Olympics in

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

, where she finished fifteenth in the women's road race (3:25:42), and fourth in the women's time trial (32:14.82), narrowly missing out the Olympic podium by twenty seconds. At the 2006 UCI World Championships in

Salzburg, Austria Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

, Thorburn joined her teammate

Kristin Armstrong Kristin Armstrong Savola (; born August 11, 1973) is a former professional road bicycle racer and three-time Olympic gold medalist, the winner of the women's individual time trial in 2008, 2012, and 2016. Before temporarily retiring to start a ...

to stand on the podium for the first time in the event's history, as she delivered the Americans a bronze-medal time in 35:34.25. Two years later, Thorburn qualified for her second U.S. squad, as a 38-year-old, in women's road cycling events at the 2008 Summer Olympics in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

by receiving one of the nation's three available berths from the UCI World Cup and by being finally chosen to the USA Cycling team. In the women's road race, held on the second day of the Games, she successfully completed a grueling race with a fifty-second-place effort in 3:41:08, surpassing New Zealand's Catherine Cheatley by a few inches. Three days later, in the women's time trial, Thorburn missed another chance to claim an Olympic medal by three seconds after finishing with a fifth-place time in 35:54.16. Shortly after her second Olympics, Thorburn announced her official retirement from competitive cycling to focus on her full-time medical career as a

rheumatologist Rheumatology (Greek ''ῥεῦμα'', ''rheûma'', flowing current) is a branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis and management of disorders whose common feature is inflammation in the bones, muscles, joints, and internal organs. Rheumatolog ...

at the Palo Alto Medical Clinic. She also currently resides in

Menlo Park, California Menlo Park is a city at the eastern edge of San Mateo County within the San Francisco Bay Area of California in the United States. It is bordered by San Francisco Bay on the north and east; East Palo Alto, Palo Alto, and Stanford to the south ...

with her husband Ted Huang, a prominent Mistral windsurfer and a former two-time Olympian (1996 and 2000) from Chinese Taipei.

Career highlights

;2004 : 1st MaillotUSA

U.S. Championships (ITT), United States : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall,

Cascade Cycling Classic The Cascade Cycling Classic was the longest running elite road bicycle racing stage race in the United States (1980–2019), with 2018 being the only year the race was not held. The race took place in the Central Oregon region and was based in ...

, United States : 1st Stage 3,

Tour of the Gila The Tour of the Gila is a cycling stage race for both men and women located in New Mexico, United States. It is sponsored by the component maker SRAM. The "Gila" began in 1987. Beginning in 2012, the men's Gila has been added to the UCI Americ ...

, United States : 2nd U.S. Championships (Road), United States : 3rd Overall,

Redlands Bicycle Classic The Redlands Bicycle Classic is a cycling stage race located in Redlands, California, United States that has been held since 1985. It consists of three road races, an individual time trial and a criterium A criterium, or crit, is a bike race ...

, United States :: 2nd Stage 2 :: 3rd Stage 1 : 3rd Overall,

Sea Otter Classic The Sea Otter Classic is a bicycling and outdoor sports festival and exposition held each spring since 1991 at the WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway ...

, United States :: 3rd Stage 1,

Laguna Seca Raceway Laguna Seca Raceway (branded as WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, and previously Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca) is a paved road racing track in central California used for both auto racing and motorcycle racing, built in 1957 near both Salinas and ...

:: 3rd Stage 2,

Salinas Valley The Salinas Valley is one of the major valleys and most productive agricultural regions in California. It is located west of the San Joaquin Valley and south of San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley. The Salinas River, which geologically ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

: 3rd Stage 1,

, Tyrone, New Mexico (USA) : 3rd Stage 2,

, Mogollon, New Mexico (USA) : 4th

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

( ITT),

(GRE) : 15th

(

Road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

(GRE) ;2005 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall,

, United States :: 1st Prologue,

Mount Rubidoux Mount Rubidoux is a mountain just west of downtown in the city of Riverside, California, United States, that has been designated a city park and landmark. The mountain was once a popular Southern California tourist destination and is still the s ...

:: 1st Stage 1, Oak Glen, California : 1st Stage 1a, Tour du Grand Montréal,

Lachine, Quebec Lachine () is a borough (''arrondissement'') within the city of Montreal on the Island of Montreal in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It was an autonomous city until the municipal mergers in 2002. History Lachine, apparently from the French term ' ...

(CAN) : 2nd Pan American Championships (Road), Mar del Plata (ARG) : 2nd Overall,

Tour de Toona The International Tour de Toona was a stage bicycle race held in Central Pennsylvania in July from 1987 until 2011. The event became the largest pro-am cycling event in North America and had stages spanning Blair, Cambria, Bedford, and Somerset C ...

, United States :: 1st Stage 3,

Altoona, Pennsylvania Altoona is a city in Blair County, Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the Altoona Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The population was 43,963 at the time of the 2020 Census, making it the eighteenth most populous city in Pennsylvania. T ...

: 3rd U.S. Championships (ITT), United States : 3rd Overall, Sea Otter Classic, United States :: 3rd Stage 1 :: 3rd Stage 2 ;2006 : 1st Stage 1, Central Valley Classic, United States : 1st Stage 1, Tour du Grand Montréal,

(CAN) : 2nd U.S. Championships (Road), United States : 2nd Overall, Redlands Bicycle Classic, United States :: 2nd Stage 3 :: 3rd Stage 1 :

(ITT),

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

(AUT) : 3rd U.S. Championships (ITT), United States : 3rd Overall,

Nature Valley Grand Prix The North Star Grand Prix is a men's and women's road bicycle racing stage race held each June in Minnesota, United States, as part of the North Star Bicycle Festival. An event was added in North Mankato in 2016. The North Star Grand Prix is on ...

, United States :: 2nd Stage 1,

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississippi River, Saint Paul is a regional business hub and the center ...

;2007 : 1st Jersey yellow

Overall, Central Valley Classic, United States :: 1st Stage 2 : 2nd Prologue, Redlands Bicycle Classic, United States : 3rd U.S. Championships (ITT), United States : 3rd Stage 1, Redlands Bicycle Classic, United States : 5th

(ITT), Stuttgart (GER) ;2008 : 2nd Overall, Cascade Cycling Classic, United States :: 2nd Stage 3 :: 3rd Stage 1 : 5th

( ITT),

(CHN) : 12th

(ITT),

Varese Varese ( , , or ; lmo, label= Varesino, Varés ; la, Baretium; archaic german: Väris) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 has reached 80,559. It is the c ...

(ITA) : 52nd

(

(CHN)

References

External links

* *
NBC 2008 Olympics profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thorburn, Christine 1969 births Living people American female cyclists Cyclists at the 2004 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Olympic cyclists for the United States American cycling road race champions Grinnell College alumni Stanford University alumni Sportspeople from Davenport, Iowa People from Menlo Park, California Sportspeople from San Mateo County, California 21st-century American women