Her career as a professional cyclist is still young but Faulkner is quickly making a name for herself with stage wins at Tour Féminin de l’Ardèche, the Ladies Tour of Norway, the Tour de Suisse and the Giro Donne. Always strong in the race against the clock, Faulkner was the 2023 Pan American time trial champion, and finished sixth at the 2022 World Championships.
Despite Faulkner’s impressive rise in the sport, becoming a pro cyclist wasn’t even on Faulkner’s radar until around 2020. In fact, she didn’t even ride bikes for anything other than occasional recreational activities until 2016.
Get to know your new U.S. national road race champion below.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
1. Faulkner is Alaskan born and raised
Faulkner grew up in Homer, Alaska, a small fishing town that is known as the Halibut Capital of the World. She worked in her parents’ restaurant and hotel alongside her four siblings to “learn the value of hard work,” in her words.
2. Faulkner is a Harvard grad
Faulkner went to high school at the Phillips Academy in Massachusetts where she was an honors student and then attended university at Harvard, where she studied computer science.
3. Faulkner was a collegiate rower
Faulkner was always an active and competitive kid, but cycling was not on her radar until her twenties. Instead, Faulkner was a competitive rower. She placed second at the Junior World Rowing Championship in 2010 and rowed collegiately for Harvard and. Additionally, in high school, Faulkner was a multi-varsity sport athlete in running, swimming and rowing.
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4. Faulkner is a venture capitalist
Faulkner started her post-college career as an investment associate at Threshold Ventures, an early-stage venture capital firm in Silicon Valley, California. According to Faulkner’s website, she “loved [her] job because [she] was supporting entrepreneurs who were risking everything to pursue their big dreams.”
Today, Faulkner is an investor who focuses on gender equality and supporting women in technology, entrepreneurship and investing. She has previously hosted free office hours for female entrepreneurs and held leadership roles for All Raise, a community of female venture capitalists.
Kristen Faulkner (BikeExchange-Jayco) celebrates wearing the maglia rosa after winning the opening stage of the 2022 Giro Donne
(Image credit: Dario Belingheri/Getty)
5. Faulkner didn’t even ride a road bike until 2016
Although Faulkner knew the basics of how to ride a bike, it wasn’t until she attended a free introductory “learn to ride” class for women in New York City in 2016 that she fell in love with road riding.
After moving to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2018, Faulkner continued to hone her riding skills and fitness, and in 2020 she began racing professionally for the now-defunct TIBCO-Silicon Valley Bank women’s team.
6. Faulkner has made 3 World Championship appearances (so far)
Faulkner has represented the U.S. at three cycling World Championships thus far:
– The 2020 E-Sports World Championships, where she finished 19th place
– The 2021 Road World Championships, where she finished in 52nd place
– The 2022 Road World Championships where she finished 61st in the road race and sixth in the time trial.
7. Faulkner was DQ’d at last year’s Strade Bianchi
Faulkner was DQ’d at last year’s Strade Bianche for wearing a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) in competition, which is banned by the UCI. This cost Faulkner a podium spot – she would have finished in third. Faulkner later released a statement saying she was “very disappointed” in the DQ decision.
Faulkner finished sixth overall at this year’s Strade Bianchi.
8. She is a rising star and one to watch
The 32-year-old has big dreams, including Olympic ambitions for Paris. She is currently the third-highest-ranked American (47th) but if she continues to perform the way she has been, it’s likely we’ll see her finish out the year much higher than that. She’s certainly one to watch.
