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Men's Tandem Sprint Qualifications

Monday, September 20, 2004

This was taken from the www.usacycling.org website:  The men’s tandem team of Matt King (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Eric DeGolier (Madison Wis.) narrowly missed the cut-off by two-tenths of a second for quarterfinals of the Men’s Tandem Sprint (B1-3).

King, the team’s stoker, is competing in his third Paralympics. “I am in a state of shock and I would rather be in a state of euphoria. Our ride was slower than we expected and slower than we have been doing in training. The ride felt good, it felt like we were doing the right things. You can’t feel the difference of two-tenths of a second, you have to look at the clock.”

“We are pretty shocked about the results,” adds DeGolier, the pilot. “We have to put this one out of our heads and focus on the new task at hand (the 1km on Wednesday). We put most of our focus on the 1km in training.”

Men Open Sprint (B1-3) Qualification
1. Modra, Kieran/Short, David AUS 10.771 PR
2. Biddle, Anthony/Stewart, Kial AUS 10.800
3. Janovjak, Vladislav/Petrovic, Juraj SVK 10.958
9. King, Matt (Colorado Springs, Colo.)/Degolier, Eric (Madison, Wis.) 11.461

Full article below:

ATHENS, GREECE (September 20, 2004)- Karissa Whitsell (Spingfield, Ore.) and Katie Compton (Colorado Springs, Colo.) won the bronze medal in the Women’s Tandem Sprint (B1-3). The race for the bronze was marred by an accident that took the Australian team of Lyn Lepore and Jenny MacPherson out of contention to complete the best of three series.

The pilot of the American tandem, Compton, guided the bike past the Aussies on the back straightaway of the final lap of the first race for the bronze. “I got around the Aussie’s and did not even know they had crashed until I heard it. The crash happened so quickly, I heard it and looked back and did not see them. That is never good.”

“I am proud to get a medal, but it is a hard situation,” says the team’s stoker Whitsell. “I would have preferred to not win this way, but things happen in racing. I am glad no one was seriously hurt. I am confident in our sprinting abilities and I know we could have gotten the medal regardless.”

In the semifinals Whitsell and Compton raced the British team of Aileen McGlynn and Ellen Hunter, the eventual silver medallists. “We are both aggressive teams,” states Compton. “I kept trying to get around them. In track cycling it is much better to ride from the front than the back. We kept trying to get around, but they kept shutting the door. I just could not get around them.”

This is the second medal for Whitsell and Compton during the 2004 Paralympics. They previously won a silver in the Women’s Tandem Kilo. On Tuesday they compete in the qualification round of the Women’s Individual Pursuit (B1-3).

In other action today, the men’s tandem team of Matt King (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Eric DeGolier (Madison Wis.) narrowly missed the cut-off by two-tenths of a second for quarterfinals of the Men’s Tandem Sprint (B1-3).

King, the team’s stoker, is competing in his third Paralympics. “I am in a state of shock and I would rather be in a state of euphoria. Our ride was slower than we expected and slower than we have been doing in training. The ride felt good, it felt like we were doing the right things. You can’t feel the difference of two-tenths of a second, you have to look at the clock.”

“We are pretty shocked about the results,” adds DeGolier, the pilot. “We have to put this one out of our heads and focus on the new task at hand (the 1km on Wednesday). We put most of our focus on the 1km in training.”

Al Michini (Salt Lake City, Utah) raced in the Men’s CP4 Bicycle 3km Individual Pursuit finishing sixth. Michini was beaten in the quarterfinals by the eventual gold medallist Christopher Scott (AUS). The Aussie caught the American on the track ending Michini’s chance to advance.

“I did the best I could,” says Michini. “It is kind of tough when you are matched against a guy who went two seconds off the world record. I knew I had to run fast from the gun.

Michini’s focus is road cycling. “My events are still on the horizon. At home I live 10 hours from a track. I ride my road bike every week. Starting the road events will be like getting back to the norm for me.”

The final race of the day was the Men’s LC1-4 Bicycle Kilometer Time Trial. Paul Martin (Boulder, Colo.) and Brad Cobb (Bartlesville, Okla.) represented the United States. Both finished out of medal contention in this new race which combined four divisions competing against each other.

“I was ready, gave it everything I had. The last lap just wasn’t there,” says Cobb. “I did everything right. I warmed up good, got plenty of sleep and felt good. I got to the last lap and was like ‘Wow I am kind of fading here.’ I am happy with my track events and I am not going to worry about it.”

Looking forward to Tuesday, the U.S. team will compete in the qualification rounds of the Women’s Tandem Individual Pursuit and the Men’s Team Sprint. The final of the Women’s 1km Time Trial will also race. According to coach Craig Griffin (Colorado Springs, Colo.) it could be the start of “something strong. We can carry that into the road race.”

Results:
Women Open Sprint (B1-3)
1. Hou, Lindy/Lindsay, Janelle, AUS
2. McGlynn, Aileen/Hunter, Ellen GBR
3. Whitsell, Karissa (Springfield, Ore.)/Compton, Katie (Colorado Springs, Colo.)

Men Open Sprint (B1-3) Qualification
1. Modra, Kieran/Short, David AUS 10.771 PR
2. Biddle, Anthony/Stewart, Kial AUS 10.800
3. Janovjak, Vladislav/Petrovic, Juraj SVK 10.958
9. King, Matt (Colorado Springs, Colo.)/Degolier, Eric (Madison, Wis.) 11.461

Men CP4 Bicycle 3km Individual Pursuit
1. Scott, Christopher AUS 3:32.958
2. Homann, Peter AUS 3:41.437
3. Bouska, Jiri CZE 3:46.623
6. Michini, Albert (Salt Lake City, Utah)

Men LC1-4 Bicycle Kilometer Time Trial
1. Ball, Greg AUS 1:07.672
2. Thirionet, Laurent FRA 1:08.958
3. Graf, Tobias GER 1:09.358
9. Cobb, Bradley (Bartlesville, Okla.) 1:12.080
17. Martin, Paul (Boulder, Colo.) 1:13.396

For more information, event schedules, team previews and features on your favorite athletes at the 2004 Athens Paralympic Games, log on to www.usocpressbox.org and www.athens2004.com.

For specific team questions, contact U.S. Cycling Team Press Officer Christy McAllister, at christy.mcallister@usoc.org or (011 30) 693-678-6239.