The men's track time trial at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City, Mexico, was held on 17 October 1968. There were 32 participants from 32 nations, with each nation limited to one cyclist. The event was won by Pierre Trentin of France, the nation's first victory in the men's track time trial since 1948 and third overall (breaking a tie with Italy and Australia for most-ever in the event). In a sport where competitors rarely competed at more than one Games, Trentin was only the second man to win multiple medals in the track time trial. Niels Fredborg's silver medal was Denmark's first medal in the event since Willy Hansen's win in 1928; Fredborg would go on to be the only man to win three medals in the event. Poland earned its first ever medal in the time trial with Janusz Kierzkowski's bronze. Italy's four-Games medal streak in the event ended as Gianni Sartori took fourth.

Background

This was the 10th appearance of the event, which had previously been held in 1896 and every Games since 1928. It would be held every Games until being dropped from the programme after 2004. The returning cyclists from the 1964 Games were bronze medalist Pierre Trentin of France, eighth-place finisher Roger Gibbon of Trinidad and Tobago, and thirteenth-place finisher José Mercado of Mexico. The two-time reigning world champion, and favorite in this race, was Niels Fredborg of Denmark. Gianni Sartori, the amateur world record holder, and Trentin were also significant contenders.

Barbados, Lebanon, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and South Korea each made their debut in the men's track time trial; East and West Germany competed separately for the first time. France and Great Britain each made their 10th appearance, having competed at every appearance of the event.

Competition format

The event was a time trial on the track, with each cyclist competing separately to attempt to achieve the fastest time. Each cyclist raced one kilometre from a standing start.Official Report, vol. 3, p. 623.

Records

The following were the world and Olympic records prior to the competition.

The track was fast, and at altitude, and 17 of the 32 cyclists beat the old Olympic record. The first one to do so was Gianni Sartori (the world record holder), who set a time of 1:04.65. He was immediately followed by Niels Fredborg, who matched Sartori's world record of 1:04.61. That Olympic mark held until rider #24, Pierre Trentin, who broke the world record at 1:03.91.

Schedule

All times are Central Standard Time (UTC-6)

Date Time Round Thursday, 17 October 1968 14:00 Final

Results

Rank Cyclist Nation 200 m 400 m 600 m 800 m Time Notes Pierre Trentin 16.00 27.80 39.80 52.00 1:03.91 Niels Fredborg 16.80 28.50 40.20 52.70 1:04.61 Janusz Kierzkowski 15.90 27.20 39.40 51.50 1:04.63 4 Gianni Sartori 16.60 28.20 40.10 52.40 1:04.65 5 Roger Gibbon 15.70 27.20 39.20 52.00 1:04.66 6 Leijn Loevesijn 17.10 28.50 40.20 52.70 1:04.84 7 Jocelyn Lovell 16.00 27.50 39.90 52.50 1:05.18 8 Serhiy Kravtsov 16.80 28.20 40.10 52.60 1:05.21 9 José Pittaro 16.00 27.60 39.70 52.40 1:05.57 10 Heinz Richter 16.30 28.10 39.90 52.70 1:05.61 11 Herbert Honz 16.90 27.30 40.40 52.80 1:05.61 12 Jackie Simes 16.40 28.10 39.80 52.20 1:05.67 13 Luis Barruffa 15.90 29.10 40.70 53.30 1:06.27 14 Hilton Clarke 16.80 28.60 40.60 53.60 1:06.45 15 Miloš Jelínek 16.00 27.90 40.00 53.60 1:06.52 16 Brendan McKeown 17.60 29.30 41.40 54.00 1:06.56 17 Tibor Lendvai 16.30 28.30 40.60 53.50 1:06.65 18 Dirk Baert 16.80 28.70 40.80 54.00 1:07.34 19 Sanji Inoue 16.50 28.70 40.90 54.40 1:07.54 20 Edwin Torres 17.20 29.10 41.10 54.70 1:07.65 21 José Mercado 16.80 28.80 41.50 54.80 1:07.97 22 Jupp Ripfel 17.30 29.30 41.90 55.10 1:08.65 23 Raimo Suikkanen 17.50 29.80 42.90 56.10 1:08.92 24 Raúl Marcelo Vázquez 17.90 30.20 42.70 54.20 1:08.96 25 Jorge Hernández 16.80 29.00 41.80 55.00 1:09.24 26 Kim Gwang-seon 16.50 28.90 41.90 55.20 1:09.40 27 Kensley Reece 17.20 29.10 41.70 55.60 1:09.90 28 Rolando Guaves 17.20 29.50 42.50 56.20 1:10.02 29 Pakanit Boriharnvanakhet 17.30 29.70 42.80 56.60 1:10.66 30 Fan Yue-tao 16.70 28.80 42.10 56.70 1:11.13 31 Aubrey Bryce 18.20 30.30 43.70 57.60 1:12.73 32 Tarek Abou Al Dahab 19.70 33.40 47.60 1:02.40 1:16.18

References