USA Cycling announced today the 21 riders named to the U.S. squad for the upcoming Pan American Continental Mountain Bike Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala, April 9-11.
Former USA Cycling Development Program athlete Sam Schultz (Missoula, Mont./Subaru-Gary Fisher) earned the first automatic nomination to the men’s cross country squad as the number 33 rider in the UCI rankings, the top American next to Adam Craig (Bend, Ore./Giant-Rabobank) who is ranked 25th internationally but is unable to compete due to injury. Also earning automatic nominations are Todd Wells (Durango, Colo./Specialized) and Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Gary Fisher) who are ranked 40th and 46th respectively. Michael Broderick (Chilmark, Mass./Kenda-Seven-NoTubes) will round out the elite men’s squad as a discretionary pick.
Willow Koerber (Durango, Colo./Subaru-Gary Fisher), Mary McConneloug (Chilmark, Mass/Kenda-Seven-NoTubes), and Heather Irmiger (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Gary Fisher) all earned automatic nominations to the women’s cross country squads based on their UCI rankings – 12th, 14th, and 26th, respectively. Katie Compton (Colorado Springs, Colo./Planet Bike) rounds out the women’s squad as a discretionary pick.
As the highest-ranked American U23 athlete in the UCI rankings, USA Cycling Development Program athlete, Rob Squire (Sandy, Utah), earned the only automatic nomination to the men’s U23 cross country squad. Joining Squire on the cross country course in Guatemala will be discretionary picks Tad Elliott (Durango, Colo.) and Ethan Gilmour (Ludlow, Vt.).
Gravity athletes representing the U.S. at the Continental Mountain Bike Championships were all discretionary picks. Chris Van Dine (Park City, Utah/Cannondale), Shawn Neer (Arvada, Colo.), and Brian Buell (Boulder, Colo.) will don the red, white, and blue in the elite men’s downhill and four-cross competitions. Joining the pair for the downhill contest will be Joey Schusler (Boulder, Colo./ Yeti Fox Shox Factory Race Team), Geoffrey Ulmer (Troy, NY), Luciano Worl (Woodinville, Wash./Corsair-Atomlab), Ethan Quehl (Grayson, Ga.), and Graeme Pitts (Nevada City, Calif./Team Geronimo-Banshee Bikes).
Two women will represent the U.S. in the elite women’s gravity competitions in Guatemala. Rachel Bauer (Aspen, Colo./ Team Geronimo-BANSHEE ) and Katie Holden (Scotts Valley, Calif.) will contest both the downhill and four-cross competitions … Details
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