Cyclist Ready to Carry U.S. Flag

During his stay in the Dallas area during this week’s U.S. Olympic cycling trials, sprinter Marty Nothstein has been recognized and approached by several fans.

One problem: the think he’s some other big-time athlete.

“I usually get mistaken for Troy Aikman or Mike Modano,” said Nothstein, the silver medalist in match sprint at the Atlanta Olympics. “I must have heard that 50 times since coming down here.”

It’s an easy mistake to make because Nothstein, 29, looks every bit like a top-notch athlete. He’s 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, with a sculpted figure worthy of an NFL safety or a major league slugger.

Nothstein played football, baseball and wrestled while growing up in Trexlertown, Pa., but it was a ride on the area’s velodrome that ultimately won him over to cycling.

“I always wanted to be a pro athlete, maybe in football or baseball, but cycling was the realistic one,” Nothstein said. “After I won the junior national championship in 1988, it was a no-brainer.”

At the Sydney Olympics, Nothstein probably will be the gold-medal favorite in match sprint, a three-lap race where two riders jockey for position over the first two laps, then sprint to the finish. It emphasizes strategy and speed.

He’s also a gold-medal candidate in the keirin, a 2-kilometer race where a pack of riders drafts behind a pace motorcycle at about 30 mph, then breaks away to sprint the final two laps.

Nothstein’s confidence and good looks will make him a lock for the late-night television rotation if he delivers on his goal to bring home two gold medals from Sydney.

“Two gold medals might get me on some magazine covers,” he said with a laugh.

Not only will Nothstein be the biggest star among the U.S. cyclists, he’s also likely to be one of the top Americans, regardless of sport. It’s a responsibility that doesn’t intimidate him.

“That’s not a problem for me,” he said. “I want the load. I want to be the guy who’s expected to win. I can race well under pressure, and I wouldn’t even call it pressure. I know what I can do, and I know I can win.”

A third medal is a possibility if the Americans can assemble a team for Olympic sprint that suits Nothstein’s high expectations. The three-lap event pits two three-man sprint teams.

That race remains a possibility but not a priority for Nothstein. He’s concerned the Olympic competition schedule won’t provide enough recovery time for his individual races.

U.S. sprint coach Des Dickie might lure Nothstein to pursue a third medal. Dickie hopes the other American sprinters will demonstrate in this summer’s World Cup races they have the speed to compete in Olympic sprint.

“He’s motivated by success. Marty does not like to lose,” Dickie said. “If we’re going fast, he might rethink it. If we can have a chance at a medal, it will be hard to turn him down if he volunteers.”