Michael Benjamin Blatchford (born January 29, 1986 in

Cypress, California Cypress is a city in northwestern Orange County within Southern California. Its population was 50,151 at the 2020 census. History The first people living in the area now known as Cypress were the Gabrieleno, a Native American tribe of the Ton ...

) is an American professional track cyclist. Considered one of the youngest and most dynamic American sprinters on the present-day track circuit, Blatchford has held two Pan American and four U.S. national championship titles in his career resume since he scored his first triumph as an eighteen-year-old junior in 2004. He also 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 territorie ...

at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

and eventually led off the Americans for the silver medal in men's team sprint at the

2011 Pan American Games The 2011 Pan American Games, officially the XVI Pan American Games, was an international multi-sport event that was held from October 14–30, 2011, in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Some events were held in the nearby cities of Ciudad Guzmán, ...

. Blatchford currently races for Project London 2012 pro cycling team, and works as a resident athlete for the U.S. Olympic Training Center in

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...

Racing career

Growing up in

, where he was home-schooled through high school, Blatchford started his cycling career at age thirteen, when he first discovered the now-defunct Olympic Velodrome that hosted the

track cycling Track cycling is a bicycle racing sport usually held on specially built banked tracks or velodromes using purpose-designed track bicycles. History Track cycling has been around since at least 1870. When track cycling was in its infancy, it wa ...

tournament at the

1984 Summer Olympics The 1984 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXIII Olympiad and also known as Los Angeles 1984) were an international multi-sport event held from July 28 to August 12, 1984, in Los Angeles, California, United States. It marked the secon ...

. Blatchford's visit and fascination had thereby inspired him to become a track sprinter, and eventually claimed the silver medal at the 2004 UCI Junior World Championships in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. On that same year, he outclassed

Giddeon Massie Giddeon Massie (born August 27, 1981, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania) is an American professional track cyclist. He collected two medals (silver and bronze) each in men's Keirin and sprint at the 2003 Pan American Games, and later represented the U ...

and Christian Stahl for an elite U.S. national title in men's sprint that officially marked his debut as a force to be reckoned with on the domestic and international track cycling scene. Shortly after his early success, Blatchford became one of the resident athletes of the U.S. Olympic Training Center in

. His sporting career continued to flourish with a bronze medal in men's sprint at the 2006 UCI World Cup series in

, followed by an impressive, gold medal effort for the U.S. cycling team at the 2007

Pan American Road and Track Championships The Pan American Road and Track Championships are the continental cycling championships for road bicycle racing and track cycling held annually for member nations of the Pan American Cycling Confederation. Riders competing in the Pan American Cy ...

Valencia, Venezuela Valencia () is the capital city of Carabobo State and the third-largest city in Venezuela. The city is an economic hub that contains Venezuela's top industries and manufacturing companies. It is also the largest city in the Valencia-Maracay m ...

. With an aim on the team sprint event for the Olympics in 2008, Blatchford teamed up with Olympians Massie and

Adam Duvendeck Jeremy Adam Duvendeck (born October 28, 1981, in Santa Barbara, California) is a retired American professional track cyclist. He represented the United States in two editions of the Olympic Games (2004 and 2008), and later claimed two elite natio ...

to set a new U.S. record of 45.128 seconds at 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 ...

Manchester, England Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

. Following a stunning performance from the World Championships, Blatchford qualified for two track cycling events at the

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 recording the fastest entry time, and earning an automatic berth from 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 leve ...

Team's Selection Camp. In the men's team sprint, held on the first day of the track program, Blatchford helped his teammates Massie and Duvendeck set an eighth-place time in 45.346 (an average speed of 59.542 km/h) on the morning prelims before they were knocked off by the Brits (led by Olympic legend

Chris Hoy Sir Christopher Andrew Hoy MBE (born 23 March 1976) is a former track cyclist and Racing driver from Scotland who represented Great Britain at the Olympic and World Championships and Scotland at the Commonwealth Games. Hoy is eleven-times a wor ...

) in the first round. Two days later, in the men's sprint, Blatchford lost his round-of-sixteen match-up against France's

Kévin Sireau Kévin Sireau (born 18 April 1987) is a French professional racing cyclist. He rides for the Armée de Terre (cycling team), Armée de Terre cycling team. Major results ;2003 :3rd Sprint, French National Track Championships, Novice ;2004 :2nd ...

, and finished second in his repechage heat behind Japan's

Kazunari Watanabe is a Japanese cyclist. Watanabe has competed in the keirin and other track events at the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) wa ...

, thus eliminating him from the tournament. Earlier in the morning session, Blatchford grabbed a fifteenth seed with a time of 10.470. In 2009, Blatchford immediately took up a two-year

sabbatical A sabbatical (from the Hebrew: (i.e., Sabbath); in Latin ; Greek: ) is a rest or break from work. The concept of the sabbatical is based on the Biblical practice of ''shmita'' (sabbatical year), which is related to agriculture. According to ...

from the sport, when the U.S. cycling team disbanded the sprint program in track cycling. By early 2011, he came out of an early retirement to join with four other riders for Project London 2012, an elite track cycling team, inspired and created by Rubicon Cycling LCC, that fosters the youth to become champion professional athletes, fulfilling their dream to represent the

at the Olympic Games. Returning from two years off the sport, Blatchford managed to reclaim the men's sprint titles (both individual and team) at the 2011 U.S. Track Cycling Championships, and further continued his stellar ride as part of the team that registered an American record of 44.036 and earned a silver medal at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is held ...

Guadalajara, Mexico Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Mexico, while the Guadalajar ...

. Having been chosen by

to be eligible for team selection, Blatchford sought his official bid to compete for the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, but he was shortlisted.

Career highlights

;2004 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Sprint),

Frisco, Texas Frisco is a city in Collin and Denton counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and about from both Dallas Love Field and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. Its population was 200,509 at the 2 ...

(USA) * UCI Junior Track World Championships (Sprint),

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

(USA) ;2005 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (250 m sprint),

(USA) * Pan American Championships (Sprint),

Mar del Plata Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" is a s ...

(ARG) * Pan American Championships (Team sprint),

(ARG) ;2006 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Team sprint),

(USA) * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Sprint),

(USA) * Stage 3, UCI World Cup (Team sprint),

Carson, California Carson is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, in the South Bay region of Los Angeles, located south of downtown Los Angeles and approximately away from Los Angeles International Airport. Incorporated on February 20, 1968, ...

(USA) ;2007 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (250 m sprint),

(USA) * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Sprint),

(USA) * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Team sprint),

(USA) ;2008 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (250 m sprint),

(USA) * 8th

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 var ...

(

Team sprint The team sprint (also sometimes known as the Olympic sprint) is a track cycling event. Despite its name, it is not a conventional cycling sprint event – it is a three-rider team time trial held over three laps of a velodrome. The current men's ...

with

and

(CHN) * 10th

(Team sprint with

and

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

(GBR) * 15th

( Sprint),

(CHN) ;2011 * U.S. Track Cycling Championships (Team sprint with Dean Tracy and Kevin Mansker),

(USA) *

(

with

Jimmy Watkins James David Watkins (born August 26, 1982) is an American track cyclist. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the Men's sprint, where he reached the quarterfinals, and sealed a sixth-place ranking in the final classification race. Person ...

and Dean Tracy),

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( , ) is a metropolis in western Mexico and the capital of the list of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population of 1,385,629 people, making it the 7th largest city by population in Me ...

(MEX)

References

External links

Michael Blatchford
–

Profile *
NBC 2008 Olympics profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blatchford, Michael 1986 births Living people American male cyclists American track cyclists Cyclists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 2011 Pan American Games Medalists at the 2011 Pan American Games Pan American Games silver medalists for the United States in cycling Olympic cyclists for the United States People from Cypress, California Sportspeople from Orange County, California