Sarah Ulmer

Sarah Elizabeth Ulmer (born 14 March 1976) is a former Olympic cyclist. She is the first New Zealander to win an Olympic cycling gold medal, which she won in the 3km individual pursuit at the 2004 Athens Olympics setting a world record.

After the 2004 Olympics, she held the Olympic, Commonwealth and World Championship Pursuit titles, and the records for those events.

Biography
Ulmer was born in Auckland, where she studied at the Diocesan School for Girls. Her grandfather Ron Ulmer was a track cyclist for New Zealand at the 1938 British Empire Games. Her father Gary was a national road and track champion.

Individual pursuit races
In 1994 she won the World Junior Championship and placed second at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Canada with a time of 3 minutes 51 seconds.

At the 1996 Atlanta Olympics she was seventh after qualifying 6th with 3m 43s.

At the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur she won the gold medal with 3m 41.7s.

At the 2000 Sydney Olympics she qualified 4th with 3m 36.8s and came 4th after losing the ride off for third by 0.08 of a second.

At the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games she won the gold and set a games record of 3m 32.4s.

In May 2004 she won the World Championship in Melbourne and set a world record of 3m 30.6s in qualifying. At the Athens 2004 Olympics she broke the world record in qualifying with 3m 26.4s and took almost two seconds off that time to win the gold in the final with 3m 24.5s. Ulmer reduced the world record by six seconds. The silver and bronze medalists, Katie Mactier from Australia and Leontien Ziljaard-van Moorsel from the Netherlands, also went under the previous world record (3m 30.6s) in each of their three rides. They rode faster with each ride and rode 3m 27.6s and 3m 27.0s respectively in the finals.

In May 2010 at Aguascalientes, Mexico at an altitude of 1870 m, American Sarah Hammer broke Ulmer's world record with a time of 3m 22.269s. As of September 2014 nine current world cycling records for distances of 4 km or less have been set at Aguascalientes.

The current world championship record of 3m 27.268s was set by fellow New Zealander, Alison Shanks in Melbourne in 2012.

Other races
Ulmer did well in points races, winning a junior world championship and placing 3rd and 4th at senior world championships. She placed 2nd and 5th (twice) at Commonwealth Games.

After the 2004 Olympics she switched to road racing. The Cycling Archives website includes results for her competing in road races in the US, France, Australia, Belgium and Germany from 1999 to 2006.

Other information
Ulmer trained at the velodrome in Te Awamutu. Her home town is Cambridge. Ulmer has two daughters.

In the 2005 New Year Honours, Ulmer was made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to cycling.

Ulmer announced her retirement from cycling on 24 November 2007. She attended the 2008 Olympics as a mentor.

In 2011, Ulmer signed up as an 'ambassador' for the New Zealand Cycle Trail.

Palmarès
Source: All pursuits are 3 km individual, apart from two 2 km junior pursuits.


 * 1993
 * 2nd [[File:Silver medal icon.svg]] Pursuit World Junior Championships (2km)


 * 1994
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg Pursuit World Junior Championships (2km)
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg Points Race World Junior Championships
 * 2nd [[File:Silver medal icon.svg]] Pursuit Commonwealth Games
 * 5th Points Race Commonwealth Games


 * 1995
 * 1st Pursuit, National Championships
 * 2nd Points Race, National Championships
 * 3rd Sprint, National Championships
 * 2nd Pursuit, Australia National Championships
 * 1st Pursuit, Adelaide World Cup
 * 3rd Points Race, Adelaide World Cup
 * 1st Pursuit, Quito World Cup
 * 1st Pursuit, Tokyo World Cup


 * 1996
 * 1st Pursuit, National Championships
 * 2nd Points Race, National Championships
 * 7th Pursuit Atlanta Olympics


 * 1998
 * 1st [[File:Gold medal icon.svg]] Pursuit Commonwealth Games
 * 2nd [[File:Silver medal icon.svg]] Points Race Commonwealth Games
 * 2nd Pursuit, National Championships
 * 1st Points Race, National Championships


 * 1999
 * 3rd [[File:Bronze medal icon.svg]] Points Race World Championships
 * 6th Pursuit, World Championships
 * 2nd Pursuit, Texas World Cup
 * 2nd Pursuit, Cali World Cup


 * 2000
 * 4th Pursuit Sydney Olympics
 * 8th Points Race Sydney Olympics
 * 1st Pursuit, Cali World Cup
 * 2nd Pursuit, Turin World Cup


 * 2001
 * 1st Pursuit, Mexico City World Cup
 * 1st MaillotNuevaZelanda.PNG National Criterium Championships
 * 1st Stage 8 Tour de l'Aude Cycliste Féminin
 * 1st Stage 8 Tour de Snowy


 * 2002
 * 1st Pursuit National Championships
 * 1st Points Race National Championships
 * 1st MaillotNuevaZelanda.PNG National Criterium Championships
 * 1st Pursuit, Sydney World Cup
 * 1st Scratch Race, Sydney World Cup
 * 3rd Points Race, Sydney World Cup
 * 1st [[File:Gold medal icon.svg]] Pursuit Commonwealth Games
 * 5th Points Race Commonwealth Games


 * 2003
 * 4th Pursuit World Championships
 * 1st Pursuit, Mexico World Cup
 * 1st Pursuit, Sydney World Cup
 * 3rd Points Race, Sydney World Cup
 * 3rd Scratch Race, Sydney World Cup
 * 1st Pursuit, National Championships
 * 1st Points Race, National Championships
 * 3rd 500m Time Trial, National Championships


 * 2004
 * 1st Jersey rainbow.svg Pursuit World Championships
 * 4th Points Race World Championships
 * 1st Pursuit, Mexico World Cup
 * 3rd Scratch Race, Mexico World Cup
 * 1st Pursuit, Sydney World Cup
 * 1st Stage 4 Geelong Tour
 * 3rd Points Race, Sydney World Cup
 * 1st [[File:Gold medal icon.svg]] Pursuit Olympic Games
 * 6th Points Race Olympic Games


 * 2005
 * 1st MaillotNuevaZelanda.PNG National Road Race Championships
 * 1st MaillotNuevaZelanda.PNG National Time Trial Championships
 * 1st OceaniaChampionJersey.png Road Race Oceania Games
 * 1st OceaniaChampionJersey.png Time Trial Oceania Games


 * 2006
 * 1st Overall Tour of New Zealand
 * 1st Stage 1 & 4
 * 1st World Cup Road Race Wellington
 * 6th Overall Geelong Tour


 * 2007
 * 3rd National Road Race Championships