ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESS: SECOND ROUND OF MOUNTAIN BIKE RESIDENT-ATHLETES SELECTED
Colorado Springs, Colo. (Dec. 20, 1999) - Riding on the success of the '99 mountain bike resident-athletes, USA Cycling has selected five mountain bike athletes to join the 2000 U.S. Olympic resident-athlete program.
Adam Craig (Bangor, Maine), Matt Kelly (Johnson Creek, Wis.), Skyler Reeves (Pinckney, Mich.), Ben Scherrer (Bellingham, Wash.) and Jess Swiggers (Ramona, Calif.) will live and train full time at the U.S. Olympic Training Complex in Colorado Springs, Colo., in 2000.
Athletes were selected based on their race performances during the 1999 season, with emphasis on the National Off-Road Bicycle Association (NORBA) National Championship Series and the world mountain bike championships. All the resident-athletes competed at the '99 World Mountain Bike Championships.
The goals of the resident program include identifying, supporting and coaching top, young athletes; helping young athletes work their way through USA Cycling's athlete development pipeline; and building the best athlete training programs and structures oriented to the Olympic Games.
"The mountain bike resident-athlete program has been a success," said U.S. National Mountain Bike Coach Stephane Girard, who leads the athletes through the program. "Resident-athletes have made great accomplishments in '99, including Jess Swiggers' eighth overall in the National Championship Series and Pat Bower's fourth at the Seven Springs National Championship Series event. In 2000, we will try to race two road stage races as preparation for the upcoming mountain bike races."
Both Scherrer and Swiggers are returning from the '99 program. Scherrer gained international and domestic experience during his '99 campaign. He was one of five athletes selected to represent the United States at the Pan American Championships in Manizales, Colombia, and is a two-time U.S. World Mountain Bike Championships team member.
Swiggers earned his third national title by capturing the '99 men's under-23 national championship title. En route to this title, Swiggers earned two top-10 NORBA National Championship Series finishes, including a fifth place at Deer Valley, Utah.
Kelly, the '99 Junior World Cyclo-cross Champion, trained as a road cycling resident-athlete in 1998. In '99, Kelly turned his focus to mountain biking, finishing 13th overall among the pro men in the NORBA National Championship Series. He also won the Mount Werner Hill Climb stage of the Colorado Mercury Tour and claimed his second-consecutive junior national cyclo-cross title.
A two-time U.S. World Mountain Bike Championship team member, Craig finished 13th at this year's Worlds in Sweden and claimed the '99 junior national championship title. Craig also posted two top-five junior World Cup finishes.
Reeves knows the World Cup circuit well, earning first-place finishes at the Napa, Calif., and Snow Summit, Calif., events. He competed at both the pro and junior level in the NORBA National Championship Series and was first in the junior men's division at the Sea Otter Classic in California. |
