This large blue scrapbook, filled to the brim with news clippings, magazine articles, and product endorsements, documents Greg Randolph’s cycling career and his participation in the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Randolph, a native of McCall, Idaho, quickly rose to prominence after starting his cycling career in 1993, and was ultimately selected to the 1996 Olympic team to support Lance Armstrong in the road race. Randolph would ultimately place 74th in the race.
This album, assembled by his mother Nancy, includes a wide array of items including photographs, sponsored advertisements, letters to and from his family, academic achievements, and memorabilia such as racing bibs, Olympic tickets, and a miniature Team USA flag. A highlight of the album are the articles detailing his selection to the U.S. Olympic team. One article title reads, “McCall bike racer off to Atlanta Games: Selection to American team catches Randolph by surprise.” Though certainly on the up and up, Randolph’s selection was a surprise to most, including himself.
Another highlight of the scrapbook are the numerous product endorsements Randolph partook in following his Olympic participation. Pulled from the high-octane cycling magazines of the nineties, the bright, bold colors and dynamic poses of these advertisements are certainly a glimpse into the cycling scene of the time.
Greg Randolph has lived in the Wood River Valley since 2003. Photos, articles, and items from the scrapbook appear in the new foyer exhibit at The Community Library, Summer Games | Local Heroes, running through Labor Day 2024.
