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Wednesday, September 20
Victory brings a touching celebration
Associated Press
SYDNEY, Australia -- The bad memories of Atlanta are history
for Marty Nothstein. Like the American cycling team he represents,
he finally has the Olympic gold medal that eluded him.
Nothstein, of Trexlertown, Pa., won the men's match sprint
Wednesday, the first U.S. cycling gold at the Olympics since the
boycott-marred Los Angeles Games in 1984.
|  | | After reaching his final finish line, Marty Nothstein finally let all his emotions come to the surface. |
It also made up for Nothstein's silver medal at the Atlanta
Olympics.
"I've been waiting for this day for four years," Nothstein
said. "I've been thinking of only one thing. Ever since I was a
little boy, I've wanted to win a gold medal in the Olympics."
After the medal ceremony, Nothstein took his own little boy,
Tyler, for a victory ride around the track.
"He was hanging on pretty tight," Nothstein said with a big
smile. "I told him Daddy just won a gold medal and he gave me a
big kiss."
Nothstein beat Florian Rousseau of France 2-0 in the finals. A
short time earlier, he had beaten Jens Fiedler of Germany 2-0 in
the semifinals to avenge a defeat to Fiedler in the gold-medal race
at Atlanta.
"Not a single day went by that I didn't think of losing in
Atlanta," Nothstein said. "It haunted me. I made a lot of big
sacrifices to get to this point. To come here and win takes a big
burden off my back."
It was a workmanlike performance by Nothstein, who didn't show
much emotion until he pumped his fist in victory after blowing past
Rousseau on the decisive second race in the best-of-three format.
He yelled in joy as he crossed the finish line while his coach,
Gil Hatton, leaped on the track's skirt as the Australian crowd
cheered.
Nothstein held an American flag overhead on his victory lap.
Then he broke into tears after stopping to hug and kiss his wife,
Christi, son Tyler and daughter Devin.
Since arriving in Sydney, Nothstein hasn't seen much of his
family. He rented an apartment and has minimized his contact with
them.
"I've had to have a lot of discipline and make a lot of
sacrifices," he said. "I've had to be committed to myself 100
percent."
It was a big victory, not only for Nothstein, but for the U.S.
cycling program. Take away Los Angeles, where the United States won
three events, and the Americans hadn't won a gold medal since 1904.
"Hopefully, some kid is going to be watching Marty on TV in the
States and then want to come out to a track and give it a ride,"
said Sean Petty, director of the U.S. Olympic cycling team.
"That was a good haul in 1984 but other than that it was a
really long time without a gold medal," Petty said.
It was fitting that Nothstein pulled the United States out of
its gold medal drought. With three world titles and 22 national
championships, he's the most dominant, if unheralded, American in
the sport's history.
Fiedler beat Laurent Gane of France 2-0 for the bronze.
In the women's gold medal match, five-time world champion
Felicia Ballanger of France beat Oxana Grichina of Russia 2-1.
Irina Yanovych of Ukraine beat Michelle Ferris of Australia 2-0 for
the bronze.
Tanya Lindenmuth of Trexlertown, Pa., placed sixth overall in
the women's match sprint. She was second of four riders, behind
Tanya Dubnicoff of Canada, in a race to determine final positions
in the tournament-style competition.
Juan Llaneras or Spain won the evening's last event, the
40-kilometer points race. Milton Wynants of Uruguay took the silver
while Alexi Markov of Russia won the bronze. Jame Carney of
Durango, Colo., was fifth.
Nothstein looked like he was ready to race.
He went to the starting line cool and relaxed, looking like he
was watching television in his living room. He was all business and focused
on securing the gold medal.
"It was all confidence," Hatton said. "Marty worked extremely
hard for this."
Nothstein started the first race in the finals from behind,
meaning he would have to pass Rousseau at some point. The Frenchman
led through two laps, until Nothstein's burst of speed on the
backstretch vaulted him ahead.
In the second race, Nothstein started from the front before
relinquishing the lead after the first lap. Nothstein closed on the
backstretch and again blew past Rousseau with 150 meters remaining
in a stunning display of power.
Nothstein changed to a lower gear between the semifinals and
finals, and it gave him an extra boost. With his powerful thighs,
Nothstein's strategy was to win by riding from behind.
"Everybody felt this was a front-rider's track because it's so
fast," Hatton said. "Marty was the only rider who wanted to ride
from behind. Again, it's confidence, all confidence."
Nothstein pumped his fist as he passed the German on the
homestretch of the decisive second race, even before crossing the
finish.
The match sprint combines strategy with speed, with riders
jockeying for position over two laps before going into a flat-out
sprint on the final lap. The rider who advances must win two
matches in a best-of-three format.
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