Sofía Gómez Villafane (born 15 April 1994) is an Argentine cross-country mountain biker and cyclo-cross cyclist. She represented Argentina at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Women's cross-country.[1]
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 April 1994 Esquel, Argentina |
| Team information | |
| Current team | Specialized Off-Road |
| Discipline |
|
| Role | Rider |
| Major wins | |
| |
Career
editShe was raised in Esquel, Patagonia until she was twelve, before moving with her family to Los Gatos, California. The fifth child of six, she discovered mountain biking through the NorCal High School Mountain Bike Program, and her brother found her a bike on Craigslist for $500. She went on to compete at the collegiate level for Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado, where she received a Bachelor’s in exercise science and a minor in business administration.[2][3]
She races primarily in North America and is the 2019 Argentine national cross-country champion.[4]
She won the 2019 Epic Rides series, defeating World Cup champion Kate Courtney in the final race.[5] At the 2019 Pan American Games, in Lima, Peru, she won a silver medal in the cross-country race.[6]
In 2021, she became the first female mountain biker to compete in the Olympics for Argentina since 2004 by qualifying to compete in the cross-country event.[7]
In 2022, she raced on a duo team with Haley Batten to a victory in South Africa at the Cape Epic mountain bike stage race.
Personal life
editShe and her boyfriend, Keegan Swenson, met through mountain biking in 2012. They regularly train and travel to competitions together.[8]
Villafañe resides in Heber City, Utah, United States. She has a dual American and Argentine nationality.[4]
References
edit- ^ "Cycling Mountain Bike - GOMEZ VILLAFANE Sofia". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
- ^ "Sofia Gomez Villafane | Mountain Biking | CLIF Athlete". Clifbar.
- ^ "Portrait: Sofia Gomez Villafañe". 28 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Stories - Meet Sofia Gomez Villafañe | Stan's NoTubes". www.notubes.com.
- ^ "To become a top MTB pro, Sofia Gomez Villafañe learned to put herself first". 12 August 2020.
- ^ "Mountain Bike | Athlete Profile: GOMEZ VILLAFAÑE Sofia - Pan American Games Lima 2019". wrsd.lima2019.pe.
- ^ Livingston, John. "Sofia Gomez-Villafañe gives Fort Lewis College another Olympian". Durango Herald.
- ^ Ramsey, Ben. "Cross-country mountain biker Sofia Gomez Villafane eyes 2020 Olympics". www.parkrecord.com.
External links
edit- Sofía Gómez at Olympedia
- Sofia Gomez Villafane at Olympics.com
- Sofia Gomez Villafañe at the Lima 2019 Pan American Games
- Sofia Gomez Villafane on Instagram
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