Connie Carpenter-Phinney

Connie Carpenter, currently known as Connie Carpenter-Phinney, is a former Olympic racing cyclist and speed skater. Carpenter was born in Madison, Wisconsin in 1957. She had mastered the sport of speed skating by a mere age 14. Competing in the 1972 Winter Olympics, she finished 7th in speed skating and became the youngest American female Winter Olympian. Picking up cycling and rowing later on in life due to an ankle injury that hindered her skating ability, Carpenter became a very diverse and multi-talented athlete. She went on to attend the University of California, Berkeley where she was a member of the rowing team. Highly excelling in rowing, Carpenter graduated from Berkeley with a national championship in the varsity four. She went on to marry Olympic medalist and retired cyclist David Finney, with whom she had two children, one of which went on to compete in cycling at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. Carpenter has been a role model for more than just her children. Her accomplishments have been recognized by many as she was elected into the Wisconsin Athletic Hall of Fame, the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame, and the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame.