USA Triathlon Elite Development Race
USA Triathlon
July 31, 2010 (Colorado Springs, CO) – Cameron Dye and Kaitlin Shiver led the way for more than 70 athletes who turned out to compete in USA Triathlon’s Elite Development Race Saturday at Memorial Park.
Dye (Boulder, Colo.), a member of USAT’s Project 2016 program, was the first swimmer out of the water and led the men’s field throughout the 750-meter swim, a 20-kilometer bike and a 5-kilometer run race to finish in 54 minutes, 47 seconds. He finished second at an Elite Development Race in Clermont, Fla., earlier this season.
Kaleb VanOrt (Mishawaka, Ind.) was second with a time of 55:39 after clocking a 13:34 in the run, followed by Nicholas VanDam (Minneapolis, Minn.) in third with 56:25.
Shiver (Satellite Beach, Fla.) made her move on the run to take the lead, winning the women’s race in 1:01:40, just four seconds ahead of second-place finisher Nicole Kelleher (Charlottesville, Va.). Lauren Goldstein-Kral (Shaker Heights, Ohio), another Project 2016 member, took third in 1:02:07. Gwen Jorgensen (Milwaukee, Wis.) finished fourth but completed the 5k run in a blazing 14:42.
Saturday’s race featured athletes from the Collegiate Recruitment Program, who along with junior elite athletes, are in the area for a two-week camp at the Olympic Training Center. It was the first draft-legal race for a number of competitors, including Shiver and Kelleher.
“I love this kind of event, because we really get to see how the race pans out and see how the athletes do in packs,” said Barb Lindquist, a U.S. Olympian who now coordinates the Collegiate Recruitment Program. “It’s fun for them just to get to experience it and see what the sport is like.”
The first three male and female amateur finishers qualified for their USAT elite licenses, which will open the door to ITU Continental Cup events and the road to the 2012 London Olympic Games.
“This is my fourth season, and I wish I’d known about these four years ago when I came out of college as a swimmer,” said Dye. “I pretty much just had to jump into the ITU races to get the experience; that’s a huge jump. There are a handful of pros out here so that gives the race some credibility as far as what a real race is like. I think it’s great. It’s huge for the sport and great for the up-and-comers.”
Development races are designed by USAT to allow athletes ages 16-23 the chance to race with elite triathletes and top amateurs pursuing the Olympic dream. Saturday’s race allowed juniors to earn points towards their draft-legal ranking for 2010.
Women
1. Kaitlin Shiver (Satellite Beach, Fla.), 1:01:40
2. Nicole Kelleher (Charlottesville, Va.), 1:01:44
3. Lauren Goldstein-Kral (Shaker Heights, Ohio), 1:02:07
4. Gwen Jorgenson (Milwaukee, Wis.), 1:02:13
5. Kate Ross (Colorado Springs, Colo.), 1:02:25
Men
1. Cameron Dye (Boulder, Colo.), 54:47
2. Kaleb VanOrt (Mishawaka, Ind.), 55:39
3. Nicholas VanDam (Minneapolis, Minn.), 56:25
4. Tony Smoragiewicz (Rapid City, S.D.), 56:35
5. William Huffman (Colleyville, Texas), 56:45
Related:
Fleischmann, Haskins Take USAT Elite Development Race Titles
Sarah Haskins, Jarrod Shomemaker Take USAT Elite Titles
Bennett, Shoemaker Capture USAT Elite National Titles
Kaitlin Shiver Leads U.S. at Women’s Under-23 World Championships
Olympians Kemper, Bennett Earn USA Triathlon Elite National Titles
