She had her usual domestic success in 1993, including a new record time in the Coast to Coast. Her focus sharpened in early 1994 when it was announced that mountain biking would be an Olympic event at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Although she would be 39 then, she did not want to give the selectors an opportunity to look past her. The 1994 domestic mountain bike season was the most competitive yet, with Kate Rattray and the visiting Susan DeMattei providing good competition, but it was 1995 where it counted. Rather than go for another veteran's medal, Lynch entered the Pro race at the 1995 UCI Mountain Bike World Championships in Kirchzarten in Germany's Black Forest. Lynch had a fierce start of the cross country race and led the field into the first climb. One by one, younger and full-time professional cyclists went past her, and Lynch ended up 21st, with Mary Grigson 33rd, and the other Kiwis further back. They had gained New Zealand two qualifying positions for the Olympics; no New Zealand men qualified. Grigson accepted an offer to race for Australia and left New Zealand (she competed at the Olympics in 1996 and 2000), so the New Zealand Mountain Bike Association decided to nominate just one competitor for the New Zealand Olympic team. The team was announced on 16 April 1996 and Lynch's name came up. This was by no means a foregone conclusion, and Lynch thinks that she was selected against the selection panel's inclinations: