Cycling at the 2000 Summer Olympics - Women\'s individual road race
Diana Žiliūtė ([dʲɪjɛˈnɐ ʒɪˈlʲuːtʲeː]; born 28 May 1976 in Rietavas) is a Lithuanian racing cyclist who dominated women's road racing in the late 1990s.
She made her debut in the pro cycling ranks in the mid-1990s after winning the 1994 World Junior Road Race Championship. She rose to the top of women's cycling in 1998 when she won two World Road Cup races, the overall World Road Cup title, and capped the season by winning the World Road Race Championships and leading the UCI Women's Road World Rankings.
The following year (1999), she further demonstrated her all around prowess by winning the Grande Boucle, one of the hardest stage races in women's cycle racing history. This was followed in 2000 by a bronze medal at the Summer Olympics.
For her achievements, Žiliūtė was awarded the Order of Gediminas, a Lithuanian state honor.
Palmarès
Prior to 1998
1994 World Junior Road Race Champion1994 World Team Time Trial Championships - 2nd place1996 European U-23 Time Trials - 2nd place1996 Giro d'Italia - stage victory1997 European U-23 Time Trial Champion1997 Tour de Vendeè - stage victory1997 Giro d'Italia Femminile- stage victory
1998
UCI Road Rankings 1st placeWorld Road Cup (Overall Points) - 1st placeWorld Road Race Championships - 1st placeWorld Time Trial Championships - 4th placeGP Tell (Swi) World Cup - 4th placeBeneden-Maas (Ned) World Cup - 1st placeTrophee International (Fra) World Cup - 3rd placeWomen's Challenge - 3rd place GC, Points jersey, 1 stage victoryMontreal (Can) World Cup - 1st placeLiberty Classic (USA) World Cup - 2nd place
1999
UCI Road Ranking - 3rd placeWorld Road Race Championships - 3rd placeWorld Time Trial Championships - 8th place Grande Boucle (cat. 1) - 1st place GC, 3 stage victoriesThuringen Rundfahrt - 2nd place GC, 2 stage victoriesGiro del Trentino - 2 stage victories
2000
UCI Road Rankings 1st placeWorld Road Cup (Overall Points) - 1st place Olympic Games Road Race - 3rd place (Bronze Medal)Embrach (Swi) World Cup - 4th placeGiro d'Italia Femminile (cat. 1) - stage victoryWomen's Challenge (cat. 1) - 2nd place GC, Points jersey, 2 stage victoriesLiberty Classic (USA) World Cup - 2nd placeMontreal (Can) World Cup - 3rd placeVuelta Navarra Feminas (cat. 2) - 1st place GC, Points, QOM jerseys, 4 stage victoriesLa Flèche Wallonne (Bel) World Cup - 4th placePrimavera Rosa (Ita) World Cup - 1st place
2001
UCI Road Ranking - 16th placeWorld Road Race Championships - 8th placeGiro della Toscana (cat. 1) - 1st place GCHolland Ladies Tour (cat. 2) - 2nd place GCGiro d'Italia Femminile (cat. 1) - 2nd place GC, 1 stage victory
2002
Giro d'Italia Femminile - 3rd place GCWomen's Challenge (cat. 1) - Sprints jersey, 1 stage victoryPubli-Tour Midi Pyrenees (cat. 2) - 1 stage victoryPrimavera Rosa (Ita) World Cup - 2nd placeGP Citta di Castemaso (cat. 2) - 1st place
2003
UCI Road Ranking - 13th placeRotterdam Tour (Ned) World Cup- 2nd placeHolland Ladies Tour (cat. 1) - Points, Sprints jersey, 3 stage victoriesRund um die Nurnberger (Ger) World Cup - 1st placeLe Tour du Montreal (cat. 1) - 4th place, Points jersey, 1 stage victoryGP Liberazione (cat. 2) - 1st place
2004
Giro d'Italia Femminile (cat. 1) - 7th place GC, 2 stage victoriesLithuania National Road Race ChampionLithuania National Time Trial Champion
2005
(did not race for most of the 2005 season)World Road Race Championships - 11th place
