Zaferes overleaps Spivey for Tokyo Olympics via USA Triathlon Selectors Discretion
USA triathlete Taylor Spivey will be devastated to learn she has not nailed the final women’s spot for the US Olympic Triathlon Team. The final women’s slot has gone to 2019 world champion Katie Zaferes despite her indifferent race results since the restart of the Olympic qualifying period.
Zaferes will now join the USA women’s pre-selected athletes: Summer Rappaport and Taylor Knibb.
The selection for the women’s third slot via discretion by the USA Triathlon Games Athletes Selection Committee was based on current results and performance,previous performances and results, and ability to earn medals.
The strength in depth of the American women having five of them in the Olympic ranking top 30 meant they would easily earn three spots and it was always plausible that a potential medal contender could be left off the team. Nonetheless, as time was getting ever closer to the end of the qualifying period for the final discretionary selection, all an athlete could do is show the selectors, they are the athlete in form and let the results speak for themselves.
With the two USA auto-select events at the Tokyo Test Event 2019 and the rearranged World Triathlon Series in Yokohama 2021, the result outcomes of Spivey (age 28) and Zaferes (age 32) makes interesting reading and, for some, will put into question the selection criteria.
Taylor Spivey: 8th place and 4th place respectively and Katie Zaferes: DNF (crash) and 22nd place respectively.
A final chance to impress the selectors came in the form of the World Championship Series race at Leeds.The outcome was:
Taylor Spivey: 6th (1st American to cross the finishing line) and Katie Zaferes: 18th place.
So how did it all come down to this?
The first automatic selection event for the U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team was the Tokyo Test Event held in August 2019, where the 2019 world champion Katie Zaferes crashed and Taylor Spivey came in 8th but not auto-qualifying since Summer Rappaport claimed the spot in 5th to lock down her pre-selected spot on the US team.
With the qualifying period frozen due to the worldwide impact of the pandemic and the subsequent travel restrictions the second and final automatic selection event for USA was held at the World Triathlon Championship Series race in Yokohama, Japan in May 2021.
Because the U.S. women had already allocated one of their spots to Rappaport, the process now for women in Yokohama was slightly different. Only two athletes total per gender can automatically qualify; after that it goes to the selection committee.
With Rapport already selected, in the women’s race Zaferes, Spivey and Knibbs were all going to be vying to be first athlete to cross the line to take a podium to claim that automatic spot. That honour went to Taylor Knibbs as she delivered a timeless performance to win gold and top podium spot. Spivey was just outside a podium in 4th place with Zaferes languishing in 22rd place.
Next up for impressing the selectors for the discretionary place was the World Championship Series race at Leeds. As with GB’s men’s discretionary battle between Brownlee versus Yee, this was a last-ditch effort for both Spivey and Zaferes to lay claim to that elusive Olympic spot by putting in a performance worthy of ensuring the ‘selection radar’ was echoing loud and clear. Spivey was the first American to cross the finishing line with a noteworthy 6th place with Zaferes trailing and ‘out of sorts’ in 18th place.
Now all that that was left was for the USTA selectors to decide who to choose: Spivey or Zaferes. The consensus of opinion suggested many believed Spivey would get the nod for the Olympic selection based on her current form, making her the more likely candidate for a potential medal. As for Olympic ranking both Zaferes and Spivy are 1st and 4th respectively and both above the pre-selected athletes Rapport and Knibbs. Selectors would also have been mindful that going into the last two WTCS races Zaferes mindset would have been in bereavement mode with the loss of her father in April.
This is a big call by the USTA with only 36 days to go to the Olympic to omit the in-form Spivey in favour of the ‘out of sorts’ Zaferes. Many will be eagerly awaiting to see if the selectors got it right, an Zaferes can produce the form that made her an unbeatable World Champion two years ago and win an Olympic medal for the USA.
Men’s Selection
The long-awaited USA Triathlon announcement also saw the final men’s selection of who would join pre-selected athlete Mogan Pearson. The final slot went to Kevin McDowell.
Over the week-end the American men’s team went from qualifying three athletes for Tokyo down to two whenAmerican Eli Hemming pulled out of the WTCS race in Huatulco, Mexico, due to an injury, dropping him in the rankings to 31st spot, which allowed Australia to steal by stealth a full team quota.
Morgan Pearson had earned an automatic spot thanks to his bronze-medal performance at WTCS Yokohama. That meant the second spot was to be decided between Kevin McDowell, Hemming, Ben Kanute and Matt McElroy.
Listen to Morgan Pearson talk to the TriNation Crew about his journey to Tokyo
Only two qualifying athletes means that both athletes will also have to compete in the mixed replay giving the USAT a lot less flexibility in building their mixed relay team. This was a major factor in selecting McDowell as he has a lot of experience for the US team in the Mixed Team Relay.
The USA men’s team do not have the strength of depth as the women’s field, so experience will be an essential ingredient if the USA are going to make any inroads into medalling in Tokyo. Nonetheless, McElroy, who is ranked 20th in the Olympic rankings, will obviously feel aggrieved about being overlooked by the selectors in favour of McDowell who is ranked 36th.
