Curtis "Curt" Melvin Harnett, (born 14 May 1965) is a Canadian

racing cyclist Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling spo ...

. He began cycling as a way to stay in shape for

hockey ''Hockey'' is a family of List of stick sports, stick sports where two opposing teams use hockey sticks to propel a ball or disk into a goal. There are many types of hockey, and the individual sports vary in rules, numbers of players, apparel, ...

. He competed in four Olympic Games, winning three medals, one silver and two bronze. Harnett also has three medals from the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

and three medals from the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games, known as the Pan Am Games, is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas. It features thousands of athletes participating in competitions to win different summer sports. It is held among athletes from nations of th ...

. He held the world record for the 200 metre time trial for 11 years, bested in 2006 by Dutchman

Theo Bos Theo Bos (born 22 August 1983) is a Dutch former professional road and track cyclist. An Olympic silver medalist and five-time world champion, he is the brother of Olympic medalist in speed skating Jan Bos. On 29 November 2021, he announced ...

. After retiring from cycling in 1996, he attended the Sydney and Athens Olympic Games as a commentator for CBC Sports. He was inducted into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canada, it serves as a hall of fame and mu ...

in 2005. Harnett was introduced into the Lehigh Valley Velodrome Cycling Hall of Fame. He was the

chef de mission In diplomatic usage, head of mission (HOM) or chief of mission (COM) from the French "chef de mission diplomatique" (CMD) is the head of a diplomatic representation, such as an ambassador, high commissioner, nuncio, chargé d'affaires, permanen ...

for Team Canada at the

2015 Pan American Games The 2015 Pan American Games (), officially the XVII Pan American Games () and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am Games (Toronto 2015), were a major international multi-sport event celebrated in the tradition of the Pan American Games, ...

and the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

. In 2018, Harnett was made a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

Quotes

* "It's time to get a haircut and get a real job." – After competing in his final Olympic Games. Harnett was noted for his distinctive long, very curly blond hair and even did a TV commercial for a shampoo.

References

External links

Website
* 1965 births Living people Canadian male cyclists Cycling announcers Cyclists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 1988 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Cyclists at the 1987 Pan American Games Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1992 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 1996 Summer Olympics Members of the Order of Canada Olympic bronze medalists for Canada Olympic cyclists for Canada Olympic bronze medalists in cycling Olympic silver medalists for Canada Cyclists from Toronto Commonwealth Games silver medallists for Canada Pan American Games gold medalists for Canada Pan American Games bronze medalists for Canada Pan American Games gold medalists in cycling Pan American Games bronze medalists in cycling Cyclists at the 1990 Commonwealth Games Cyclists at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Medalists at the 1987 Pan American Games Medallists at the 1990 Commonwealth Games Medallists at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Olympic silver medalists in cycling 20th-century Canadian sportsmen Commonwealth Games silver medallists in cycling {{Canada-Olympic-medalist-stub