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Individual Time Trial, Men

Date 3 August 1996 — 8:30
StatusOlympic
LocationBuckhead Cycling Course, Atlanta, Georgia
Participants38 from 23 countries
Format52.2 km. (32.4 miles).

The men’s road race had been conducted as an individual time trial from 1912 thru 1932, when it was switched to a mass start race. But in 1994, the World Championships added an individual road time trial, based on the popularity of the individual time trial stages held at the major Tours, such as the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia. The Olympic Program in 1996 also added this race, dropping the team time trial. The favorite was Spain’s Miguel Induráin. Induráin had competed in the Olympic road race in 1984, but failed to finish. He turned professional in 1985, but struggled at his first few attempts in the Tour de France. Finally, in 1991 he won the Tour, and he would then win it from 1991-95, only the fourth five-time winner of the Tour, and the first to do it five times consecutively. Induráin’s specialty was the individual time trial, the contre la montre to the French, but also known as the “Race of Truth,” because it so often determined the champion in major stage races.

In 1996, Induráin finally was defeated at the Tour de France, placing 11th behind Denmark’s Bjarne Riis. He was going to skip the Olympics, citing fatigue, until a special appeal from IOC President [Juan Antonio Samaranch](/athletes/899318. The early leader in the race was Chris Boardman, gold medalist in 1992 in the individual pursuit. The next-to-last to start was Abraham Olano, World Champion in 1995 on the road. He surpassed Boardman’s time and took the lead. Induráin went off last and was ahead of Boardman’s leading splits at all the early marks and won, besting Olano’s time by 12 seconds, with Boardman winning the bronze.

PosBibCompetitorNOCTimeMargin
1–Miguel InduráinESP1-04:05–Gold
2–Abraham OlanoESP–at 0:12Silver
3–Chris BoardmanGBR–at 0:31Bronze
4–Maurizio FondriestITA–at 0:56
5–Tony RomingerSUI–at 2:00
6–Lance ArmstrongUSA–at 2:23
7–Alex ZülleSUI–at 2:28
8–Patrick JonkerAUS–at 2:49
9–Dariusz BaranowskiPOL–at 3:03
10–Michael RichGER–at 3:03
11–Erik DekkerNED–at 3:03
12–Uwe PeschelGER–at 3:28
13–Laurent JalabertFRA–at 3:29
14–Bjarne RiisDEN–at 3:42
15–Yevgeny BerzinRUS–at 3:48
16–Steve HeggUSA–at 4:24
17–Erik BreukinkNED–at 4:28
18–Jan KarlssonSWE–at 4:47
19–Francesco CasagrandeITA–at 5:13
20–Laurent BrochardFRA–at 5:17
21–Artūras KasputisLTU–at 5:34
22–Tomasz BrożynaPOL–at 5:43
23–Stephen HodgeAUS–at 5:54
24–Johan BruyneelBEL–at 6:07
25–Antón VillatoroGUA–at 6:29
26–Eric WohlbergCAN–at 6:31
27–Ruslan IvanovMDA–at 6:50
28–Remigijus LupeikisLTU–at 6:58
29–Dubán RamírezCOL–at 7:13
30–Jesús ZárateMEX–at 7:37
31–Miroslav LiptákSVK–at 8:23
32–Robert PintaričSLO–at 8:30
33–Igor BonciucovMDA–at 8:43
34–Milan DvorščíkSVK–at 8:49
35–Hernandes Quadri JúniorBRA–at 10:07
36–Valdir LermenBRA–at 10:43
37–Javier ZapataCOL–at 11:04
DNF–Michael AnderssonSWE––