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Two MMHs For David & Henry...

Tuesday, 16 November 2021 00:10

DAVID KOPPEL

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ATHLETE OF THE YEAR - A slam-dunk for the men's AOY, David was undefeated in five starts on Minnesota soil. He was our state's second fastest triathlete at Olympic Nationals in Milwaukee, finishing just five seconds behind our state's Rookie of the Year Henry Jessen. Koppel's amateur victory at Heart of the Lakes also received support for Performance of the Year. Once again, he was a close 2nd behind Jessen, whose great effort at Sprint Nationals took the POY.

MOST IMPROVED - As with Rachel Z, David was the clear pic for the #1 ranking on 2021 men's Team MInnesota. Five wins in six starts, plus wide margins of victory vaulted him all the way to the Top Spot on a team he'd never been named to in the past. His peers, however, were not surprised by his emergence...

HENRY JESSEN

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR - In one of most talented freshman classes--Jessen, Karl Nygren, Cami Eckhoff, Kurt Youngdahl--in MMH history, it was Henry who came out on top thanks largely to his breakout performances at Age Group Nationals last August. There he not only raced head-to-head with the best in the country, he outraced all of his Minnesota peers in both the Olympic and Sprint races.

We'd be surprised if Jessen did not earn a AOY nomination in 2022.

PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR - 7th place overall at Sprint Nationals - A huge performance against a huge field, his brilliant 57:46 was only 1:17 behind the national champion. This effort was a near-unanimous POY selection.