Jennifer Valente

Jennifer Marie Valente (born December 24, 1994) is an American professional racing cyclist who is a two-time gold medalist in women's omnium at the 2020 and 2024 Summer Olympics. As part of the U.S. team, she has also won the team pursuit at the Paris Olympics. Valente has ridden for UCI Women's Team Virginia's Blue Ridge–TWENTY24.^[4] She has won seven gold medals in the World Championships and five Olympic medals, making her the most decorated U.S. female cyclist in Olympic history.^[5]

Jennifer Valente

Valente in 2018
Personal information
Full name	Jennifer Marie Valente
Born	(1994-12-24) December 24, 1994 (age 30) San Diego, California, U.S.
Height	5 ft 9 in (175 cm)[1]
Weight	165 lb (75 kg)[1]
Team information
Current team	Virginia's Blue Ridge–TWENTY24
Discipline	Track Road
Role	Rider
Rider type	Pursuitist (track)
Amateur team
2014	Twenty16
Professional teams
2013	Exergy Twenty16[2]
2015–	Twenty16 p/b Sho-Air[3]
Medal record Event 1st 2nd 3rd Olympic Games 3 1 1 World Championships 7 5 7 Pan American Games 1 1 0 Pan American Championships 20 1 4 Total 31 8 12 Women's track cycling Representing the  United States Olympic Games 2020 Tokyo Omnium 2024 Paris Omnium 2024 Paris Team pursuit 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team pursuit 2020 Tokyo Team pursuit World Championships 2016 London Team pursuit 2017 Hong Kong Team pursuit 2018 Apeldoorn Team pursuit 2020 Berlin Team pursuit 2022 Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Omnium 2023 Glasgow Scratch 2023 Glasgow Omnium 2015 Yvelines Individual pursuit 2018 Apeldoorn Points race 2020 Berlin Scratch 2020 Berlin Points race 2024 Ballerup Scratch 2019 Pruszków Omnium 2021 Roubaix Scratch 2021 Roubaix Elimination 2022 Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Elimination 2022 Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Points race 2023 Glasgow Elimination 2024 Ballerup Elimination Pan American Games 2019 Lima Omnium 2015 Toronto Team pursuit Pan American Championships 2014 Aguascalientes Team pursuit 2015 Santiago Scratch 2015 Santiago Individual pursuit 2015 Santiago Team pursuit 2017 Couva Omnium 2017 Couva Points race 2017 Couva Scratch 2018 Aguascalientes Omnium 2018 Aguascalientes Points race 2018 Aguascalientes Scratch 2018 Aguascalientes Team pursuit 2019 Cochabamba Omnium 2019 Cochabamba Scratch 2019 Cochabamba Points race 2019 Cochabamba Madison 2024 Los Angeles Omnium 2024 Los Angeles Scratch 2024 Los Angeles Points race 2024 Los Angeles Elimination 2024 Los Angeles Madison 2019 Cochabamba Team pursuit 2012 Mar del Plata Keirin 2012 Mar del Plata Scratch 2012 Mar del Plata Team pursuit 2014 Aguascalientes Omnium

Career

She enjoyed a successful junior career, winning 12 national titles and one world junior title.^[6] At the 2011 and 2012 UCI Junior Track World Championships she won three medals, a gold medal in the scratch race and two bronze medals in the keirin.^[7]

In the individual pursuit she won a silver medal at the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Championships. In the team pursuit she has won three gold medals at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships and a silver medal at the 2016 Olympic Games.

In June 2021, she qualified to represent the United States at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.^[8] She took the gold medal in the women's omnium, beating reigning World champion Yumi Kajihara of Japan. This was the first women's track cycling gold medal for the United States.^[9]

At the 2023 UCI Track Cycling World Championships, Valente became the most decorated American track cyclist in history, winning her 17th World Championship medal. She surpassed the previous recordholder, Sarah Hammer, who has fifteen.^[10]

In August 2024, she won her second and third Olympic gold medals, in the team pursuit and omnium. Valente's team pursuit gold medal was the first-ever in U.S. history. In both the 2020 and 2024 Olympics the women's omnium was one of the final events of the competition. As such, her gold medals helped the United States to come from behind and edge China in the overall medal count in Tokyo and Paris.^[11][12]

Major results

2011

UCI Junior Track World Championships

1st Scratch

3rd Keirin

2012

1st Keirin, National Track Championships^[13]

3rd Keirin, UCI Junior Track World Championships

Pan American Track Championships

3rd Keirin

3rd Scratch

3rd Team pursuit

2013

2nd Team pursuit, Los Angeles Grand Prix (with Kimberly Geist, Sarah Hammer and Ruth Winder)

2014

Pan American Track Championships

1st Team pursuit (with Amber Gaffney, Kimberly Geist and Elizabeth Newell)

3rd Omnium

1st Omnium, National Track Championships^[14]

1st Omnium, Grand Prix of Colorado Spring

2015

2nd Individual pursuit, UCI Track World Championships

Pan American Track Championships

1st Individual pursuit

1st Scratch

1st Team pursuit (with Kelly Catlin, Sarah Hammer and Ruth Winder)

National Track Championships

1st Individual pursuit

1st Omnium

1st Scratch

2nd Team pursuit, Pan American Games (with Kelly Catlin, Sarah Hammer, Lauren Tamayo and Ruth Winder)

2014–15 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

3rd Team pursuit, Cali

2015–16 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

2nd Team pursuit, Cali

3rd Scratch, Cali

Independence Day Grand Prix

2nd Scratch

3rd Individual pursuit

2016

1st Team pursuit, UCI Track World Championships

2nd Team pursuit, Olympic Games

3rd Team pursuit, UCI Track Cycling World Cup (Hong Kong)

2017

1st Team pursuit, UCI Track World Championships

Pan American Track Championships

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

National Track Championships

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

1st Omnium, US Sprint GP

1st Omnium, Fastest Man on Wheels

2016–17 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

1st Team pursuit, Los Angeles

2017–18 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

1st Omnium, Manchester^[15]

2nd Omnium, Pruszków^[16]

5th Overall Cascade Cycling Classic

2018

UCI Track World Championships

1st Team pursuit

2nd Points race

Pan American Track Championships

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

1st Team pursuit

National Track Championships

1st Madison

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

2017–18 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

1st Team pursuit, Minsk

3rd Omnium, Minsk

2018–19 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

3rd Omnium, Milton

3rd Scratch Race, Milton

3rd Omnium, Berlin

2nd Omnium, London

2nd Team pursuit, London

10th Winston-Salem Cycling Classic

2019

3rd Omnium, UCI Track World Championships

National Track Championships

1st Madison

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

1st Omnium, 2019 Pan American Games

Pan American Track Cycling Championships

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

1st Madison

2nd Team pursuit

2019–20 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

1st Omnium, Minsk

1st Team pursuit, Minsk

1st Points Race, Minsk

3rd Scratch, Minsk

2nd Omnium, Cambridge

1st Omnium, Brisbane

2020

2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships

1st Team pursuit

2nd Points race

2nd Scratch

2019–20 UCI Track Cycling World Cup

1st Omnium, Milton

1st Team pursuit, Milton

3rd Madison, Milton

2021

2020 Summer Olympics

1st Omnium

3rd Team pursuit

2021 UCI Track Cycling World Championships

3rd Scratch

3rd Elimination

2022

2022 UCI Track Cycling World Championships

1st Omnium

3rd Elimination

3rd Points race

2022 UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup

1st Elimination, Milton

2nd Omnium, Milton

3rd Team pursuit, Milton

1st Omnium, Cali

1st Elimination, Cali

1st Madison, Cali

2022 UCI Track Champions League

1st 2022 UCI Track Champions League – Endurance Overall

2023

2023 UCI Track Cycling World Championships

1st Omnium

1st Scratch

3rd Elimination

2023 UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup

1st Elimination, Cairo

2nd Elimination, Milton

3rd Omnium, Milton

2024

2024 Summer Olympics

1st Omnium

1st Team pursuit

2024 Pan American Track Cycling Championships

1st Omnium

1st Points race

1st Scratch

1st Elimination

1st Madison^[17]

2024 UCI Track Cycling Nations Cup

2nd Elimination, Adelaide

3rd Omnium, Adelaide

3rd Madison, Adelaide^[18]

1st Elimination, Milton

3rd Omnium, Milton

3rd Madison, Milton^[19]

2024 UCI Track Cycling World Championships

2nd Scratch

3rd Elimination