Athens 1896. Games of the I Olympiad. French compatriot cyclists Léon FLAMENG and Paul MASSON. Between them they won 6 medals in the track cycling events (gold in the 100km, silver in the 10 km and bronze in the sprint events for FLAMENG; three times gold in the 10km, 1km and sprint events for MASSON). Credit: IOC Olympic Museum Collections/MEYER AlbertBorn: 30 November 1874
Deceased: 30 November 1944
Birthplace: Not available
Nationality: France
Sport: Cycling
ATTENDANCE AT THE OLYMPIC GAMES
Athens 1896
AWARDS
Olympic medals:
Gold: 3
Other results:
World Championships
Bronze : 1 (1897)
Cycling Champion and Pioneer
Born in 1874, Frenchman Paul Masson won three of the six cycling events (1km time trial, 10km track race, 1,000m sprint) at the inaugural 1896 Olympics. After the Athens Games, he turned professional and changed his name to Paul Nossam (Masson spelled backwards). He placed third in the world professional sprint championship in 1897.
