Nitz, Leonard Harvey
Cycling
b. Sept. 30, 1956, Hamilton, OH
Nitz was among the top U. S. cyclists for longer than anybody since the early part of the century. He won the national 4,000-meter individual pursuit championship five times, in 1976 and from 1980 through 1983, the 1-kilometer time trial in 1982 and 1984, and the criterium in 1986.
He also raced for the national team pursuit champions from 1980 through 1984 and in 1986, 1988, and 1989.
In international competition, Nitz was a member of the team pursuit champion at the Pan-American Games in 1983 and 1987. He won a bronze in the world points championship in 1986 and took a silver medal in team pursuit and a bronze in the individual pursuit event at the 1984 Olympics.