Posted: June 16, 2007

Triathlon: American Triathletes Race at Home for Sport's Biggest Payday

$700,000 prize purse, Olympic points on the line at Des Moines World Cup on Sunday DES MOINES, Iowa (June 15, 2007) -- The largest and strong American triathlon contingent of the year travels to America's heartland to compete for the richest purse prize in the history of triathlon and with Olympic qualifying spots at stake. The seventh stop of the 2007 BG Triathlon World Cup series makes its only appearance on American soil as it rolls into first-time host city Des Moines on Sunday, June 17. The world's best will gather for valuable Olympic qualifying points and the biggest payday ever offered in triathlon, US$200,000 each to the men's and women's winner. The United States sends a deep men's squad soaring high with Andy Potts' silver medal and Matt Reed's bronze performance this past weekend at the Vancouver BG Triathlon World Cup. Potts hadn't raced in a World Cup since March but looked in fine form in Vancouver, just getting out-sprinted by Canadian Simon Whitfield in the final kilometer of the run. Two-time Olympian and American triathlon legend Hunter Kemper has been nursing an injury the last few months but will make his much-anticipated return to the World Cup circuit this weekend in Des Moines with extra motivation. "I'm excited to be here in Des Moines and I'm excited to be part of this event and get out there and race in my home country," said Kemper. Another strong women's team will represent the stars and stripes in the women's field. Veteran Laura Bennett and Joanna Zeiger will call upon their years of experience to push to the front of the pack. But Sarah Haskins comes in as the highest ranked American woman and will be racing with much confidence after scoring her first career World Cup podium finish last weekend in Vancouver. Americans competing in the 2007 Des Moines BG Triathlon World Cup are: Hunter Kemper (Longwood, FL) - 2000 & 2004 Olympian, 3 World Cup wins, 14 World Cup podium finishes Andy Potts (Colorado Springs, CO) - 2004 Olympian, 2 World Cup wins Jarrod Shoemaker (Sudbury, MA) - 2005 Under23 World Champion Matthew Reed (Boulder, CO) - 6 career World Cup podium finishes Mark Fretta (Portland, OR) - 2 career World Cup podium finishes Brian Fleischmann (Jacksonville, FL) - 4 career World Cup top ten finishes Doug Friman (Tucson, AZ) - 6 career World Cup top ten finishes Joe Umphenour (Bellevue, WA) - 8 career World Cup top ten finishes Sarah Haskins (St. Louis, MO) - current world #11 Laura Bennett (North Palm Beach, FL) - 3 career World Cup wins Joanna Zeiger (Boulder, CO) - 2000 Olympian, 5 career World Cup podium finishes Sara McLarty (Colorado Springs, CO) - 2006 Aquathlon World Champion Jasmine Oeinck (Littleton, CO) - 1 Pan American Cup win in 2006 Julie Swail (Irvine, CA) - 3 career World Cup top five finishes Sarah Groff (Cooperstown, NY) - 2007 Aquathlon World Champion Margaret Shapiro (Annandale, VA) - 2 career Pan American Cup podium finishes The men's field is loaded with international contenders including five-time World Cup winner Brad Kahlefeldt of Australia, reigning World Champion Tim Don from Great Britain, 2004 World Champion Bevan Docherty of New Zealand and world number one Javier Gomez of Spain. Australian Emma Snowsill is widely considered the pre-race favourite in the women's field. The three- time World Champion has missed the World Cup podium just once since September 2003. But Snowsill hasn't raced in a World Cup event since her silver medal performance in Ishigaki in April, allowing her compatriot Erin Densham to jump past her in the world rankings to number two. The Des Moines BG Triathlon World Cup is part of the ITU's series of Olympic qualifiers where athletes earn points in the race to make the cut for Beijing. The Olympic fields are capped at 55 for men and women with a maximum of three per National Federation. Full race results and race report will be available immediately after the event (Sunday evening in the U.S.). **Note that Des Moines is Central Standard Time. Click here for up-to-date athlete start lists and race information. Click here for live coverage and results. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest