Atlanta Olympics women’s points race 1996

The field for the women’s points race circle the velodrome in Atlanta at the 1996 Olympic Games with varying degrees of tech on show – from the ever-popular Campag Ghibli rear disc wheels that only recently received a major overhaul, to the now banned Spinergy wheels. There are also some very basic-looking box-section front wheels being ridden.

Winner of the race, France’s Nathalie Lancien, can be seen on the right of this picture, wearing number 17. It would be unfair to call this a lucky win – she took bronze in the points race at the World Championships the year before – but it was to be her last international medal.

This was the first women’s points race on the Olympic schedule; it had only become a world title event in 1998 when Britain’s Sally Hodge won in Ghent, Belgium.

The women’s points race would only run at four Olympics, with Marianne Vos (Ned) winning the last one in Beijing 2008 in dominant fashion. At the 2012 Olympic Games in London it became one of the races in the six-race omnium event.

The points race remains a World Championships event. The current holder is none other than Elinor Barker.

The track in Atlanta, at Stone Mountain Park outside of the Olympic park, was built in an unconventional way, without slats running around the track, and was not a popular venue. It was pulled down soon after the Games.