Sports: USOC announces 2003 SportsMan, SportsWoman and Team award nominees

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. -- The United States Olympic Committee ... USOC today announced the nominees for its 2003 SportsMan, SportsWoman and Team of the Year honors. The nominees are the 2003 Athletes and Teams of the Year representing Olympic, Pan American, Affiliated and Disabled Sport Organizations within the U.S. Olympic Movement.

Each year the USOC recognizes the top male and top female athletes and the top team as selected by their respective member organizations. The names of the athletes and teams are placed on ballots used to select the USOC SportsMan, SportsWoman and overall Team of the Year. Members of the USOC Board of Directors and Athletes Advisory Council, along with representatives of the national media, comprise the voting panel that selects the USOC SportsMan, SportsWoman and Team of the Year.

Honored last year for their accomplishments in 2002 were cyclist Lance Armstrong, figure skater Sarah Hughes and the U.S. Women’s Bobsled Team.

Forty-four females and 46 males, as well as 28 teams, are being honored by the USOC for their athletic accomplishments in 2003. The athletes and teams acknowledged by their respective organizations are ...

2003 Male Athletes of the Year
(Sport ... Name, Hometown

Archery ... Richard “Butch” Johnson ... Woodstock, Conn.
Badminton ... Raju Rai ... Anaheim, Calif.
Baseball ... Huston Street ... Austin, Texas
Basketball ... Tim Duncan ... St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Biathlon ... Jeremy Teela ... Anchorage, Alaska
Bowling ... Tim Mack ... Garfield, N.J.
Boxing ... Jason Estrada ... Providence, R.I.
Curling ... Pete Fenson ... Bemidji, Minn.
Cycling ... Lance Armstrong ... Austin, Texas
Diving ... Caesar Garcia ... Baton Rouge, La.
Equestrian ... Chris Kappler ... Pittstown, N.J.
Fencing ... Keeth Smart ... Brooklyn, N.Y.
Field Hockey ... Shawn Nakamura ... Camarillo, Calif.
Figure Skating ... Tim Goebel ... Rolling Meadows, Ill.
Gymnastics ... Paul Hamm ... Waukesha, Wis.
Ice Hockey ... Brett Hull ... Duluth, Minn.
Judo ... Jimmy Pedro ... Lawrence, Mass.
Karate ... John Fonseca ... Chicago, Ill.
Luge ... Mark Grimmette ... Muskegon, Mich.
Modern Pentathlon ... Vakhtang “Vaho" Iagorashvili ... Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia
Racquetball ... Rocky Carson ... Mission Viejo, Calif.
Roller Sports ... Joey Mantia ... Ocala, Fla.
Rowing ... Jon Watling ... Greenwich, Conn.
Sailing ... Mark Mendelblatt ... St. Petersburg, Fla.
Shooting ... Walton Glenn Eller III ... Houston, Texas
Skeleton ... Chris Soule ... Trumbull, Conn.
Skiing ... Bode Miller ... Franconia, N.H.
Soccer ... Landon Donovan ... Redlands, Calif.
Softball ... Mike Dryer ... Blue Springs, Mo.
Speedskating ... Apolo Anton Ohno ... Seattle, Wash.
Squash ... Preston Quick ... Lakewood, Colo.
Swimming ... Michael Phelps ... Towson, Md.
Synchronized Swimming ... Bill May ... Cicero, N.Y.
Table Tennis ... Mark Hazinski ... Mishawaka, Ind.
Taekwondo ... Steven Lopez ... Sugarland, Texas
Team Handball ... Gary Hines ... Atlanta, Ga.
Tennis ... Andy Roddick ... Boca Raton, Fla.
Track & Field ... Tom Pappas ... Glendale, Ore.
Triathlon ... Hunter Kemper ... Longwood, Fla.
Volleyball ... Jeff Nygaard ... Madison, Wis.
Water Polo ... Tony Azevedo ... Long Beach, Calif.
Water Skiing ... Jimmy Siemers ... Round Rock, Texas
Wrestling ... Kerry McCoy ... Middle Island, N.Y.
Orienteering ... Brian May ... Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Canada
U.S. Association of Blind Athletes ... Royal Mitchell ... Spartanburg, S.C.
Wheelchair Sports USA ... Sylvester Flis ... Franklin Park, Ill.

2003 Female Athletes of the Year
Sport ... Name, Hometown

Archery ... Jennifer Nichols ... Cheyenne, Wyo.
Badminton ... Mesinee “May” Mangkalakiri ... Garden Grove, Calif.
Basketball ... Seimone Augustus ... Baton Rouge, La.
Biathlon ... Jill Krause Beste ... St. Cloud, Minn.
Bowling ... Diandra Asbaty ... Dyer, Ind.
Boxing ... Teresa O’Toole ... Wilmington, N.C.
Curling ... Debbie McCormick ... Rio, Wis.
Diving ... Laura Wilkinson ... Spring, Texas
Equestrian ... Debbie McDonald ... Hailey, Idaho
Fencing ... Sada Jacobson ... Dunwoody, Ga.
Field Hockey ... Katie Beach ... West Lawn, Pa.
Figure Skating ... Michelle Kwan ... Torrance, Calif.
Gymnastics ... Chellsie Memmel ... West Allis, Wis.
Ice Hockey ... Angela Ruggiero ... Harper Woods, Mich.
Judo ... Ronda Rousey ... Santa Monica, Calif.
Karate ... Junko Arai ... Seattle, Wash.
Luge ... Brenna Margol ... Sawyer, Mich.
Modern Pentathlon ... Anita Allen ... Star City, Ind.
Racqutball ... Cheryl Gudinas ... Lisle, Ill.
Roller Sports ... Julie Glass ... Olympia, Wash.
Rowing ... Rachel Anderson ... Darien, Conn.
Sailing ... Meg Gaillard ... Jamestown, R.I./Pelham, N.Y.
Shooting ... Kim Rhode ... El Monte, Calif.
Skeleton ... Tristan Gale ... Salt Lake City, Utah
Snowboarding ... Gretchen Bleiler ... Snowmass Village, Colo.
Soccer ... Amy Wambach ... Rochester, N.Y.
Softball ... Natasha Watley ... Irvine, Calif.
Speedskating ... Jennifer Rodriguez ... Miami, Fla.
Squash ... Latasha Khan ... Seattle, Wash.
Swimming ... Amanda Beard ... Irvine, Calif.
Synchronized Swimming ... Anna Kozlova ... St. Petersburg, Russia
Table Tennis ... Gao Jun ... Gaithersburg, Md.
Taekwondo ... Taylor Stone ... Denver, Colo.
Team Handball ... Lisa Eagen ... Oskaloosa, Iowa
Tennis ... Serena Williams ... Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.
Track & Field ... Deena Drossin Kastor ... Agoura, Calif.
Triathlon ... Laura Reback ... North Palm Beach, Fla.
Volleyball ... Danielle Scott ... Baton Rouge, La.
Water Polo ... Ellen Estes ... Novato, Calif.
Water Skiing ... Regina Jaquess ... Suwanee, Ga.
Wrestling ... Kristie Marano ... Albany, N.Y.
Orienteering ... Erin Olafsen ... Sandwich, N.H.
U.S. Association of Blind Athletes ... Karissa Whitsell ... Springfield, Ore.
Wheelchair Sports USA ... Jennifer Johnson ... Port Chester, N.Y.

2003 Teams of the Year
Sport ... Team
(full team rosters available on usocpressbox.org)

Archery ... Pan American Team
Baseball ... USA Baseball National Team
Basketball ... USA Basketball World Championship for Young Women Team
Curling ... Debbie McCormick Rink
Diving ... Synchronized Diving (Sara Hildebrand, Cassandra Cardinell)
Equestrian ... U.S. Show Jumping Team
Field Hockey ... USA Women’s National Team
Gymnastics ... Women’s National Team
Ice Hockey ... U.S. Men’s National Select Team
Karate ... U.S. Titan Games Karate Team
Luge ... Doubles Team (Brian Martin, Mark Grimmette)
Roller Sports ... USA Men’s World Inline Roller Hockey Team
Rowing ... U.S. National Team Men’s Eight
Sailing ... Women’s Three-Person Keelboat
Shooting ... Pan American Games U.S. Shotgun Team
Skeleton ... Men’s World Cup Skeleton Team
Softball ... Women’s National Team
Squash ... USA Women’s Team
Synchronized Swimming ... World Championship Team
Tennis ... Men’s Doubles – (Bob and Bryan Mike Bryan)
Volleyball ... Beach – (Misty May, Kerri Walsh)
Water Polo ... U.S. Women’s World Championships Team
Water Skiing ... U.S. Elite Water Ski Team
Wrestling ... U.S. Women’s World Cup Team
Orienteering ... Canoe-Orienteering C2M – (Aims Coney, J-J Coté)
U.S. Association of Blind Athletes ... Men’s Goalball Team
Wheelchair Sports USA ... Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago

From the United States Olympic Committee (USOC).