Menu
Cloverdale native to lead US Cycling Team in Beijing Olympics
Andy Sparks, a 1993 graduate of Cloverdale High School, has been selected as Head Coach for the United States Track Cycling Team for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China.
Sparks spent three years as a resident athlete at the Olympic training center in Colorado Springs, where he was a member of the US National Cycling team. As a member of the national team, Sparks was able to race at velodromes around the world.
Since retiring as a competitior four years ago, he has devoted his passion to coaching and has achieved a remarkable record of success. Athletes working with Sparks have recorded four World Championship titles, including a recent under-18 world record in the three-kilometer individual time trial by Taylor Phinney of Boulder, Col.
In Beijing, Sparks will be coaching reigning world champion and gold medal hopeful Sarah Hammer. Hammer also happens to be his fiancé.
Sparks, a graduate of the University of Colorado, now resides in Los Angeles. His coaching excellence has made him a two-time winner of the USA Cycling Coach of the Year award for his outstanding leadership and excellence in the field of coaching.
In addition to coaching, he also helped found the American Women's Track Cycling Fund, an organization launched to assist and mentor young female cyclists.