RIO DE JANEIRO Russia’s Olga Zabelinskaya protested her innocence after winning the silver medal in the women’s time trial on Wednesday, a week after nearly flying home because a previous doping ban looked like ruling her out of the Olympics.
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Armstrong, whose selection to the USA team had been unsuccessfully challenged by two other athletes, led the race early, fell three seconds behind Russian Olga Zabelinskaya, and worked herself back into a good position with about five kilometers (a little over three miles) to go.
Anna van der Breggen of the Netherlands added a bronze medal to the road race gold she won Sunday.
Kristin Armstrong had just put together another golden effort in an Olympic time trial, this time slicing through driving wind and rain, when her 5-year-old son approached her at the finish.
Zabelinskaya, the bronze medallist four years ago in London, recently returned to competition after an 18-month suspension for using a banned stimulant in 2014.
“When I looked out of the window at 4am I thought, ‘Oh!’ But I had two choices, get nervous, or say I’m the most experienced person out here and just attack it”.
“I’ve had the hardest journey this Olympics that I’ve ever had”, she said. “It’s very emotional that I win the medal again”.
Zabalinskaya said: “I’m very happy, but of course, I am also disappointed that I could not win the gold medal”.
Coming in behind and joining Cancellara on the podium were silver medalist Tom Dumoulin of Netherlands and Tour de France victor Chris Froome of Great Britain.
Several Russians, including Zabelinskaya, were reinstated at the last minute but she said it had been a nervy wait.
Armstrong said she was inspired by her American team-mate Mara Abbott’s near miss in the road race, when she was heading for gold only to be caught 150 metres from the line and settling for fourth.
Armstrong meanwhile won gold at Beijing 2008 and retired the next year to start a family.
“It’s everyone’s own choice when they want to retire”, said Cancellara. I know that balance is my secret weapon. “I don’t think there was anything glaringly wrong with it, just the result”. I am super proud.
She is entered for more long-distance triathlons, where prize money is good, but is yet to decide whether to compete.
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The American cyclist made it three consecutive gold medals Wednesday, the ageless wonder conquering a brutal course at the Rio Games. “This will leave me without any doubt about retiring”. I gave it everything I had out there today, but Fabian was unbeatable. “After winning the Tour this summer, to be back on the Olympic podium is just awesome”, he said.
