Félicia Ballanger

Félicia Ballanger, born on 12 June 1971 in La Roche-sur-Yon, is a French retired racing cyclist who won five world championships in the sprint and the 500 metre time trial and was a triple Olympic champion. She began as both a cyclist and a handball player and rode for Vendee la Roche Cycliste. She finished fourth at her first world championship and again at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, then took her first world title in 1995 under the coach Daniel Morelon, winning the 500 metre time trial and the sprint, and won both again in each of the next four years. She won the Olympic sprint at Atlanta in 1996 and the 500 metres at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, her last international. In 2000 she received the Vélo d'Or français, and in 2001 she became vice-president of the Fédération Française de Cyclisme.