Levi Leipheimer facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Levi Leipheimer

Leipheimer at the 2009 Tour of California
Personal information
Full name	Levi Leipheimer
Born	(1973-10-24) October 24, 1973 (age 51) Butte, Montana, U.S.
Height	1.69 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	62 kg (137 lb; 9.8 st)
Team information
Current team	Retired
Discipline	Road
Role	Rider
Rider type	All-rounder
Major wins
Grand Tours Tour de France 1 TTT stage (2009) Vuelta a España 2 individual stages (2008) Stage races Tour of California (2007, 2008, 2009) Tour de Suisse (2011) One-day races and Classics National Road Race Championships (2007) National Time Trial Championships (1999)

Levi Leipheimer (born October 24, 1973) is an American former professional road racing cyclist. He was a two-time US national champion. He won the time trial title in 1999 and the road race in 2007. Levi also earned an Olympic medal.

Leipheimer was born and grew up in Butte, Montana. He now lives in Santa Rosa, California. He is known for supporting the King Ridge GranFondo. This is a popular bike ride in Sonoma County that many people join.

Some of Leipheimer's biggest wins include the Tour of California. He won this race three times in a row from 2007 to 2009. He also won the 2011 Tour de Suisse and the 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge. In major races called Grand Tours, he finished 2nd in the 2008 Vuelta a España. He also placed 4th in the 2009 Giro d'Italia. Levi won a bronze medal in the time trial event at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

In October 2012, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) announced some changes to Leipheimer's race results. This was due to past issues while he was riding for several teams. He accepted a six-month break from racing. Many of his race results from June 1, 1999, to July 30, 2006, and from July 7 to 29, 2007, were officially changed. This included his third-place finish in the 2007 Tour de France.

In May 2013, Leipheimer announced he was retiring from professional cycling. This happened after his contract with Omega Pharma-Quickstep ended.

Early Life and Amateur Cycling

Levi Leipheimer was born and grew up in Butte, Montana. His parents owned a store that sold sports equipment. When he was younger, his main sport was skiing. However, after a skiing accident, he became very interested in cycling. He then decided to focus his sports career on biking.

First Teams: Maestro Frigas and Einstein (1995–1996)

In 1995, Leipheimer won the Tour of Namur. He was riding as an intern for a British team called F.S. Maestro – Frigas.

1996 Race Result Change

In 1996, Leipheimer was riding for Team Einstein. He won the U.S. National Criterium Championships in Ohio. However, he later had to give up his title and prize money. This was because a test showed a substance that was not allowed. He also received a three-month suspension. His family later said that the test result was due to allergy medicine he took for hay fever.

Professional Cycling Career

Riding for Astana (2008–2009)

Leipheimer joined the Astana team in 2008. This team was managed by Johan Bruyneel. Astana was not allowed to race in the 2008 Tour de France. This was because of past problems with the team in 2007. Even though new riders were on the team, they were still banned. Leipheimer tried to get the team into the 2008 Tour, but it didn't work.

Leipheimer riding behind Alberto Contador in the 2008 Vuelta a España

Leipheimer won the 2008 Tour of California. At the last minute, Astana was allowed to race in the Giro d'Italia. Leipheimer finished 18th, helping his teammate Contador win the race. He also won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. This was for the road time trial event. Leipheimer won two time trials in the 2008 Vuelta a España. He even led the race after the fifth stage. He finished second overall in that race.

Leipheimer started 2009 by winning the Tour of California for the third time in a row. He rode away from other cyclists on a climb during stage 2 and took the lead. He also won stage 6, which was an individual time trial. His Astana teammate Lance Armstrong helped him during this race. Leipheimer also won the 2009 SRAM Tour of the Gila. He rode with his Astana teammates Chris Horner and Armstrong.

In May, Leipheimer raced for Astana in the Giro d'Italia. He finished 6th overall, which was the best for his team. Later, the rider who finished 2nd had his result changed. This moved Leipheimer up to 5th place in the official records.

While racing in the 2009 Tour de France, Leipheimer had a crash. He broke his wrist near the end of stage 12. He was in 4th place overall at the time but had to leave the race.

Joining Team RadioShack (2010–2011)

Leipheimer moved to Team RadioShack for the 2010 season. He joined with Armstrong and other riders from Astana's 2009 team.

Leipheimer following Rory Sutherland in the 2011 Tour of California

He won the SRAM Tour of the Gila for the second year in a row in April. At the 2010 Tour of California, Leipheimer finished in third place overall.

Leipheimer was expected to lead his team in the 2011 Tour of California. However, he ended up helping his teammate Chris Horner instead. Horner had a stronger time on a tough mountain stage. Leipheimer won the stage that finished at the Mount Baldy ski area. He also placed second in the individual time trial. In his next race, the Tour of Switzerland, Leipheimer won. He beat the race leader by 4 seconds in the final time trial.

Leipheimer also won the very first 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge. He won the first stage and the third stage time trial in that race.

Omega Pharma - Quick-Step (2012)

Leipheimer joined the Omega Pharma - Quick-Step team for 2012. He started the year by winning the 2012 Tour de San Luis in Argentina. However, he broke his leg in a crash with a car. This happened just before the 2012 Tour of the Basque Country race. He said he thought he might die when the accident happened.

He returned to racing at the 2012 Tour of California. He won the "Most Courageous" jersey after stage one. This was to recognize his comeback from the serious injury. He finished the race in sixth place overall.

Leipheimer racing in the 2012 Paris–Nice

After California, Leipheimer finished third overall in the 2012 Tour de Suisse. Leipheimer won a stage in the 2012 Tour of Utah. He also finished third overall in the 2012 USA Pro Cycling Challenge. He had led that race for one day.

Omega Pharma-Quick Step ended Leipheimer's contract in October 2012. This was one week after he shared information with USADA.

Retirement from Cycling

Levi Leipheimer officially retired from professional cycling in May 2013. He had worked with USADA in their case against Lance Armstrong. Leipheimer also talked about his own past use of certain methods. He said he had raced cleanly for the last five years of his career.

Leipheimer and four other riders received six-month suspensions. Their past race results were also changed. Some of these riders retired, while others returned to racing after their suspensions.

On May 19, 2013, Leipheimer told a newspaper that he was "transitioning into the rest of my life." He said, "I'm retired."

Personal Life

On October 23, 2012, a documentary about Leipheimer's career was shown. It was called The Levi Effect: The Story of Levi Leipheimer. It was shown in some theaters in the United States.

Career Highlights

Some of Levi Leipheimer's race results from June 1, 1999, to July 30, 2006, and from July 7 to 29, 2007, were later changed.

See also

In Spanish: Levi Leipheimer para niños