Former venture capitalist Faulkner wins gold in Paris road race poker game

PARIS : First-time Olympian Kristen Faulkner of the U.S. was by no means the favourite to win the women's road race on the Paris streets on Sunday but in a three-way cycling strategy poker game the former venture capitalist rode away with the gold medal.

In the final stages of the 158-km contest, Faulkner sprinted away from a four-rider group that included the two favourites, Belgium's Lotte Kopecky, 2023 road race world champion, and Dutch veteran Marianne Vos, one of the greatest of all time.

Kopecky and Vos - in the company of Hungary's Blanka Vas - knew full well that whoever led the chase to close the gap with Faulkner would not have the legs to win the final sprint under the Eiffel Tower.

The Dutch and Belgian riders eyed one another, held back just a split second to calculate their medal chances, and let Faulker ride away to gold.

The American told Reuters she had to win solo to beat the other riders because they are faster on the finish line.

"I was guessing they would not work super well together, because there were four of us and only three medals," she said.

Faulkner, 31, who was a varsity rower for two seasons at Harvard University, has worked in several investment capital firms in New York and San Francisco, but quit in 2020 to pursue a career in cycling after winning some club races.

She told a news conference her finance background had taught her valuable lessons about risk and reward.

Before being a cyclist, Faulkner was a venture capitalist, investing in early-stage technology companies, which carry big risks and big rewards.

"A lot of what I learned to do is how to take calculated risks. In a race, I take that mindset with me," she said.

MOMENT OF CONFUSION

Vos, who won Olympic road race gold in 2012 and nine