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Olympics in Athens and how athletes try and make the grade

Just 3 years ago, Triathlon made its Olympic debut in Sydney. The organizers positioned the event to showcase the city, and it did wonders for our sport. Every year, sports get added and cut from the Olympic schedule, and triathlon's position is by no means guaranteed. For Athens 2004, the women will go off on August 25, and the men will toe the line on August 26. Rumor has it that a brutal hill in the multi-loop bike course will separate those who can ride from those who can't. This course might even nullify the whole draft legal format; we might actually have a triathlon at the Olympic triathlon.

Which athletes are going to don the red, white, and blue for that big day is still far from decided. Making the team is such a complicated process that it is a challenge to decipher the rules and gather the necessary points. Here are some of the hurdles to cross.

Only athletes ranked in the ITU's (International Triathlon Union) top 125 in the world can qualify for the Olympic Games.

To break into the top 125, athletes must amass points at either ITU Points Races (lots of races with talented fields all over the world - Holland, Mexico, Namibia, Hungary, Fiji, an on and on), or ITU World Cups (about 19 events loaded with unbelievably talented fields).

Picking the right races is an art in itself: poor swimmers look for wetsuit swims, weaker cyclists search for flat rides, and slow runners...well, are there any slow runners at this level? But as is the case all too often in the modern world, a financially challenged pro will be limited travel-wise. A mid level pro in the US has to study hard to find the right races, at the right times, with affordable travel.

The US will most likely send three men and three women to Athens, and those US athletes must be in the top 125 in the world one week prior to the qualifiers. Those speedsters will then be selected from one of two US qualifiers. April 18th, 2004 in Oahu is a good match to the Athens course with a non wetsuit swim, heat, humidity, and a hilly bike course. June 2004, in Bellingham, Washington is chillier to be sure, but still has a nasty hill frequently climbed on the bike.

Now get out your slide rule. The first US male and female to cross the line at the Oahu Olympic trails race will qualify for the team. The first US male and female finisher at the ITU World Championship on May 8-9 in Portugal will qualify for the team (if one of those athletes has already qualified at Oahu, then the slot rolls down to the next US finisher). Then, in Bellingham, the results will be used in some funky computation of scores to get the third US Olympic team members.

Now for a reality check: those US qualifying races in Oahu and Bellingham will be open to the world. Many of those who make up the international field will have already had their fates decided by their own home country qualifiers. It's not out of the question, in this draft legal format of racing, that a US athlete could "do a deal" with a talented athlete from another country to help him or her secure a slot. If, for example, fictitious US athlete Fred is a super-fast runner - maybe the best in the sport - but his swim is a bit slow. He might go to an Aussie or Kiwi swim specialist and ask him (or pay him) to get out of the water early and keep the leaders from working well together on the bike. Then find perhaps a Euro bike powerhouse to help pull him back into contention on the bike. This not so farfetched conspiracy would potentially set Fred up to use his run to qualify, and result in a medal given to a runner in the sport of triathlon. The downside of this is that, on the day in Athens, it'll be every man for himself and Fred will be off the back when another athlete might have faired better.

All potential shenanigans aside the Olympics are still an incredible place for super-human performances. We'll have to wait and see who can dig deep enough to make the time and try for gold.

Other articles in this series:
   » Triathlon, the Olympics, and the Evolution
   » Triathlon Keeps Inching Towards Mainstream
   » Slowtwitch's Kona Survey
   » Another course change at the IM World Championships
   » Put your mind to work in your favor before and during the race with
     visualizations

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