Active Expert: Gale Bernhardt: Can You Pick the First Two Members of the Olympic Team?

Who will be the first two triathletes to make the 2008 USA Triathlon Olympic Team?

The first female will come from this group, racing Saturday September 15^th, with their current 2008 Beijing Olympic Qualifying Ranking (ranking began in June of 2006) and their 2007 World Cup Ranking in parenthesis - this is only 2007 World Cup Races:

Laura Bennett - 9^th (10^th)

Sarah Haskins - 10^th (13^th)

Julie Swail - 37^th (37^th)

Sara McLarty - 47^th (31^st)

Sara Groff - 53^rd (29^th)

Becky Lavelle - 54^th (53^rd)

The first male will come from this group, racing Sunday September 16^th, with their current 2008 Beijing Olympic Qualifying Ranking (ranking began in June of 2006) and their 2007 World Cup Ranking in parenthesis - this is only 2007 World Cup Races:

Andy Potts - 6^th (23^rd)

Jarrod Shoemaker - 20^th (35^th)

Hunter Kemper - 27^th (89^th)

Brian Fleishmann - 47^th (49^th)

Matt Reed - 49^th (21^st)

Doug Friman - 53^rd (62^nd)

The first USA female and male to cross the finish line at the 2008 Beijing World Cup race will be the first two athletes to make the 2008 USA Olympic Team.

The USA entries, and all other country entrants, can be found on the entry list for the event. This event is and Olympic qualifying race for several countries and this is the final dress rehearsal before the 2008 Games for event organizers.

Can you pick the first two USA finishers?

867 Views Tags: 2008_olympic_team, 2008_olympics

Sep 11, 2007 1:35 PM

Gale Bernhardt says:

Just in case you want more info. before you cast your guesses, here is a press release from today that might help - or - further confuse you...

http://www.usatriathlon.org/sitecore/content/News/2007/September/091107_Beijing_Qualifier_Preview.aspx

Sep 13, 2007 9:23 AM

Andrew says:

Potts for sure. Kemper makes a charge but Shoemaker wins the 2nd slot

Sep 13, 2007 2:13 PM

Trish18 says:

I'm going to go with my hometown favorite, Sarah Haskins from St. Louis. For the men's side, I will pick Jarrod Shoemaker. Could be the biggest race of their lives up to this point--best of luck to all the athletes.

Sep 13, 2007 2:32 PM

Gale Bernhardt says in response to Andrew:

Ah, now we're cookin'!!

Andrew says Potts for sure, getting the first slot and he predicts Shoemaker coming in second and Kemper third. Now, Shoemaker does not get the second slot by placing second in Beijing, but that second place "score" might help him if he does not win the second trials race.

The winners of the Beijing race and the Honolulu (2008) race are automatically on the team. The athlete with the lowest placement "score" from Beijing, Honolulu and Des Moines (2008) gets the third slot.

BTW, the men have qualified for three starting line start by virtue of the quality of our men's ranking on a world wide basis. For the women, we only had two slots. That is until...

Julie Swail won the Pan Am Games.

Sep 13, 2007 2:34 PM

Gale Bernhardt says in response to Trish18:

Trish, excellent selections for sure. Both athletes with some great results.

Sep 13, 2007 2:37 PM

Gale Bernhardt says in response to Gale Bernhardt:

If your favorite picks don't make the cut this time, there are more opportunities. Be thinking now, which three men and which three women do you think will make the team?

Yeah, yeah, I know one race at a time. So, make your first-slot selections now. You have to do it before Friday night at 10:00 pm Eastern. (As one Toby or Jesse pointed out, due to the time change, the race is telecast live at the ITU site tomorrow night.)

Sep 13, 2007 2:47 PM

Guest says in response to Gale Bernhardt:

Make that lowest placement score from two of the three races.