Speedskating Superstar Chris Witty Looks to Shine at this Summer’s Goodwill Games Cycling Competition

After skating her way to a silver and a bronze medal at the Nagano Winter Olympics, Chris Witty is stepping off the ice and onto her bicycle for this summer’s Goodwill Games. Witty, a rising cycling star, will test her skills against the world’s best competitors and teams as they ride on the tight and high-banked turns of the Games’ innovative cycling track, the Vandedrome™. The cycling competition takes place July 25 - 26 at Wagner College Stadium in Staten Island.

"If I’m looking to enhance my abilities and future in cycling, I have to challenge myself with events like the Goodwill Games," said Witty. "With cyclists of this caliber, competing on this track, the field stands to produce some of the fastest times around.""

Witty, a world-record holder in speedskating’s 1,000 meters, has long pursued both speedskating and cycling. Her performances at this past Winter Olympics propelled her into skating stardom, and the shadow of skating sensation Bonnie Blair. In addition to her skating fame, Witty has quickly become a familiar name in the cycling world, and is she gaining a reputation as a stellar competitor. She earned an alternate spot on the 1996 U.S. Olympic cycling team and most recently placed fifth at the World Cup in Berlin. Witty’s coach, world-class cyclist and Goodwill Games gold medalist Connie Paraskevin-Young, looks to the Games competition as a great test for Witty.

"I fully expect fast times and a great performance from her at the Goodwill Games," said Paraskevin-Young. "The Vandedrome is a very fast track and will provide a quick and competitive race. This will help push Chris to her ultimate potential."

Witty’s performances have already stirred speculation about becoming the greatest speedskating/cycling athlete. She could possibly become the first ever to win gold medals in both a Winter and Summer Olympics. Witty, who considers the idea a definite possibility, is setting her sights on cycling this summer and giving it her full attention.

The Goodwill Games cycling competition will match Witty and her U.S. team against the world’s most powerful teams, including: Russia, Germany, Belgium, the World All-Stars and the Pan-Am All-Stars. Other confirmed U.S. participants will be announced at a later date.

"With the commitments of these six cycling powerhouses, the competition is guaranteed to be an ultra-competitive and exciting stop for the athletes, spectators and television viewers," said Goodwill Games President Michael Plant.

The Games' track cycling competition has a unique, two-day format, with each team comprised of five men and three women. All teams compete in 11 finals each day for a total purse of $75,000. The competition will be held in an innovative "game" format—the first of its kind—where all points are totaled for the winner of the game. Other cycling events for men include: kierin final, elimination, chariot race, 50-lap scratch, sprints and the magic mile. Women's events are as follows: the chariot race, 30-lap scratch, sprints and elimination.

The 105-acre Wagner College campus welcomes the Vandedrome™—the world's first patented, portable, expandable, world-class velodrome. The 170-meter track is one of the world's steepest tracks, with a 53-degree banking. Cyclists can reach speeds up to 40 miles per hour on the wooden Vandedrome™, a lifelong dream of former Olympic cyclist John Vande Velde. Vande Velde, the Vandedrome’s™ creator, serves as the competition manager of the Goodwill Games cycling component.

The 1998 Goodwill Games will deliver approximately 1,500 of the world's best athletes from more than 60 countries competing in 15 sports. The competitors, which include numerous world and Olympic champions, will be vying for $5 million in prize money and world record/performance incentives, the largest purse in multi-sport event history.

TBS Superstation, the Games' host network, will televise 45 hours of prime-time coverage of the 1998 Goodwill Games. CBS will televise 10 hours of weekend, afternoon coverage. In addition to appearing on TBS and CBS, boxing will be televised on HBO as part of the Boxing After Dark series. The 1998 Games mark the first time a sporting event has appeared on all three levels of television distribution. Turner Sports is the host broadcaster and is coordinating all aspects of the production. Internationally, the syndication rights are being sold by Warner Bros. International Television Distribution.

Past Goodwill Games sites include:

• Moscow, Soviet Union, 1986
• Seattle, Wash., 1990
• St. Petersburg, Russia, 1994.

The Goodwill Games are hosted through a combined effort between Goodwill Games, Inc. and the participating sports federations, in conjunction with the appropriate state, city and county governmental agencies. Goodwill Games, Inc., a division of Turner Sports, is responsible for all aspects of the event.

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