Michael Blatchford

  
  


Date of Birth: January 29, 1986
Height: 5’10”/1.78m
Weight: 185lbs./84kg./13.3st.
Place of Birth:  Cypress, California
Hometown: Anaheim, California
Residence: Cypress, California
Teams: Project London 2012

Olympic/World Championship Experience:

8th place — 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing, China, Men's Team Sprint
15th place — 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing, China, Men's Sprints
12th place — 2011 UCI Track World Championships, Apeldoorn, Netherlands, Men's Team Sprint
10th place — 2008 UCI Track World Championships, Manchester, Great Britain, Men's Team Sprint (Set American Record)

National Championship Experience:

1st place — 2011 Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Sprint, Team Sprint
1st place — 2008 USA Cycling Elite Track Nationals, Carson, California, Espoirs, Sprint
1st place – 2007 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Sprint, 250-Meter Time Trial, Sprint (U23 Men)
2nd place — 2007 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Team Sprint
1st place — 2006 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Team Sprint, Sprint (U23 Men)
2nd place — 2005 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Team Sprint, Junior
2nd place — 2005 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships, Carson, California, Sprint, U23 Men
1st place — 2004 USA Cycling Junior Track National Championships, Los Angeles, California, Jr. Men 17-18, Sprint, Team Sprint
1st place — 2004 USA Cycling Elite National Track Championships, Frisco, Texas, Sprint, Team Sprint
1st place — 2003 USA Cycling Junior Track National Championships, Trexlertown, Pennsylvania, Team Sprint

Career Highlights

2nd place — 2011 Pan American Games, Guadalajara, Mexico, Men's Team Sprint
1st place — 2007 Pan American Championships, Valencia, Venezuela, Sprint
2nd place — 2007 Pan American Championships, Valencia, Venezuela, Team Sprint
1st place — 2007 Independence Day Grand Prix, Colorado Springs, Colorado, Keirin
2nd place — 2007 Giro d’Italia delle Piste, Oppido Lucano, Italy, Sprint
2nd place — 2007 Grand Prix International Ville de Barcelone, Spain, Sprint
1st place — 2004 UCI Junior Track World Championships, Los Angeles, California, Sprint
2nd place — 2004 UCI Junior Track World Championships, Los Angeles, California, Sprint
1st place — 2004 Junior Pan American Championships, Cuenca, Ecuador, Sprint, Team Sprint
3rd place — 2006 UCI Track World Cup, Los Angeles, California, Sprint
3rd place — 2005 Pan American Championships, Sao Paulo, Brazil Sprint
3rd place — 2005 Pan American Championships, Mar del Plata, Brazil Sprint

Points of Interest

  • Michael regularly gives back to his local community, assisting with Boy Scout Bike Rodeo helmet fittings, working as an audio engineer for children’s musical productions and visiting with children’s hospital patients.
  • Michael became the first junior to ever win an elite national title on the track with a sprint victory in 2004 at the age of 18.

Personal

After taking a two-year sabbatical, Michael Blatchford returned to the boards January of 2011. The 2008 Olympian returned with a bang as he won the individual sprint and contributed to winning the team sprint at the 2011 USA Cycling Elite Track National Championships. He continued his stellar riding as part of the team that registered the American Team Sprint record, with a 44.036 at the Pan American Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico.

Blatchford finished 15th in the Sprints and eighth in the Team Sprint at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Earlier in Blatchford's career, as an 18-year-old, Blatchford bested 2004 Olympians Giddeon Massie and Christian Stahl for an elite national title in the sprint to officially announce his arrival as a force to be reckoned with on the domestic track cycling scene.

Growing up in southern California, where he was home-schooled through high school, Blatchford’s career has been on the upswing since the age of 13. That’s when he first discovered the now-defunct velodrome that hosted the track cycling competition at the 1984 Olympic Games. Down the road, Michael became one of USA Cycling’s resident athletes at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs and continued his progress with his first major international result – a bronze medal in the sprint at the 2006 Los Angeles Track World Cup. He continued his international success the following spring with a gold medal in the sprint at the 2007 Pan American Championships. With an eye on the team sprint event in Beijing, Michael teamed with Massie and Adam Duvendeck to set a new national record in the event at the 2008 UCI Track World Championships.


This Article Updated January 27, 2012 @ 03:35 PM For more information contact: