News & Notes
Elite Triathlon Academy Launched at University of Colorado Colorado Springs
The Elite Triathlon Academy, a landmark program that will provide the United States’ top up-and-coming triathletes the opportunity to receive a top-notch college education while benefitting from a full-time coach and the nation’s best training resources, will debut this fall at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs with national-level support from USA Triathlon and the United States Olympic Committee.
The ultimate goal of the program directed by Keith Dickson, the founder of the Illinois-based Multisport Madness Triathlon Team -is to develop potential Olympic triathletes into medal contenders on the sport’s biggest stage. Five of the nation’s best emerging multisport athletes, including 2010 Youth Olympic Games medalists Kevin McDowell and Kelly Whitley, comprise the first class of the Elite Triathlon Academy, which will enroll at UCCS in August.
Prior to the formation of this program, the top junior triathletes in the U.S. often chose to pursue running and swimming at the collegiate level due to the availability of scholarships. The Elite Triathlon Academy will identify potential Olympians and allow them to continue their multisport development throughout their college years with the potential to earn a collegiate scholarship.
Academy student-athletes will attend UCCS, one of the fastest-growing universities in Colorado and the nation, and will have full access to the resources of the U.S. Olympic Training Center, a full-time coach and the UCCS athletic facilities.
“This program will strengthen the United States as a competitor in international triathlon by giving young, elite triathletes the opportunity to train specifically for triathlon during their college years,” said Dickson. “The combination of UCCS, which already has 29 Olympic athletes on campus, the U.S. Olympic Training Center, our nation’s finest young triathletes and proven coaches and mentors will make this a successful venture from the start.
“Thanks to the formation of the Elite Triathlon Academy, every youth and junior triathlete in the country can now strive to earn a university scholarship in the sport of triathlon.”
“The Elite Triathlon Academy will help to solidify our Olympic pipeline. This program will encourage the top junior athletes to stay in the sport during their formative collegiate years, and they’ll receive a quality education while striving for the Olympic podium,” said USA Triathlon CEO Rob Urbach. “The sport of triathlon in the United States has benefitted tremendously from its inclusion in the Olympic Games, and sustained success by American athletes internationally will help take our sport to new heights on many different levels.”
Joining McDowell and Whitley, both of Geneva, Ill., in the program will be fellow freshman Johanna Gartman (Chattanooga, Tenn.), as well as sophomore transfer Ryan Bice (University of Colorado Boulder/Logansport, Ind.) and junior transfer Chris Wiatr (Lake Forest College/Long Grove, Ill.).
“Colorado Springs is an athletic mecca,” UCCS Chancellor Pam Shockley-Zalabak said. “The university’s partnership with USA Triathlon will bring top athletes to our region and provide them with the opportunity to excel athletically as well as academically.”
Kevin McDowell, and Kelly Whitley, are two of the top young triathletes selected for the Elite Triathlon Academy, directed by Keith Dickson.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140 |
Page 141 |
Page 142 |
Page 143 |
Page 144