FEATURES
Why Emily?
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Monday, 29 October 2018 23:10
MINNESOTA MULTISPORT HONORS – Last Friday we explained why TED TREISE was named Most Improved Male, noting that his 2ndplace finish at Superior Man allowed him to overtake early season MI frontrunner JOSH MORK. Then Ted's stunning POY-nominated victory at Augusta 70.3 further sealed the deal.
Determining the women's MI honor was not as easy. Not by a long shot. That was because a strong case could be made for each of the five nominees.
Let's break it down.
BETTINA KEPPERS - What ultimately may have hurt Keppers was the fact that she, while not receiving official nominations, had been part of the MI discussion for each of the last three years. At first glance, her 2018 resume, featuring two wins, two seconds and a third, looked a lot like her 2017 scorecard. Another glance revealed that she managed to set some PRs (Buzz Ryan, Timberman). In the end, though, her unofficial Team Minnesota ranking was 13th, basically matched her 2017 placement.
KRISTINA SWENSON – The former Minnesota Junior of the Year enjoyed an impressive start to the 2018 season—two seconds and two fourths against solid competition. Her time at High Cliff Olympic—2:09:56 on the difficult .5 – 22 – 7 mile route—caught our attention. However, she did not finish the season as strongly as she began it. Plus her unofficial rank of 18th was basically identical to her 2017 position....
SARA RONDORF – Sara's racing volume increased dramatically in 2018. Not since 2008 had she raced this often (seven times). Between then and now, she had not competed more than three times in a single season. And her 2018 results, at age 40, appeared to be as strong, perhaps stronger, as those she posted in '08, at the age of 29. Her 2018 scorecard featured one win, two other podiums, and two fifths against great competition. So, yes, she was a very strong candidate for the MI.
KELLY TROM (photo R) –But Kelly was an even stronger candidate, in the minds of the Committee, than Sara. Ranked 10thin 2017, she climbed to 6th this year, and one Selector ranked her 5th. Some wondered if her rise wasn't assisted by the absence of 2017 Team Minnesotans Kortney Haag (low racing volume) and Maggie Weiss (injury), plus the fact that Diane Hankee (#6 in 2017) had a sub-par season due largely to various life changes, while Suzie Fox (#8 in 2017) had a season limited by injury, and Nicole Heininger (#5 in 2017) had lower than usual racing volume. Still, Kelly had an awesome season, and her speed at shorter distances had improved. Additionally, the only women who to beat her this year, with one exception, were those who had earned Triathlete of the Year nominations:
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2nd@ YWCA Women's Triathlon (Behind Christina Roberts)
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2nd@ Maple Grove Olympic (Behind Becky Youngberg)
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3rd@ Minneapolis Olympic (Behind Hanna Grinaker and Gaby Bunten)
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4th@ Chisago Half IM (Behind Hanna Grinaker, Becky Youngberg and Kortney Haag)
EMILY GAGE (top photo) – Why did the majority of the Committee members believe that Emily, not Kelly, should receive the MI? Because she was not even on the radar n 2017, then managed to win two races, and climb three other podiums in 2018. Her lowest local finish was a 4that Maple Grove Sprint behind established elites Cheryl Zitur, Diane Hankee and Sara Rondorf. In six of her seven starts, she outraced credentialed athletes. Kelly's upward mobility has been very steady. By comparison, Emily's was meteoric.
