https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-Skel...-World-Cup
I think it's looking okay? He was on the 2nd place USA team yesterday at a competition (finishing 11th overall in the standings). I think the USA Olympic gets 2 4-man bobsled teams and might qualify a 3rd one based on how they do today in one final competition? My guess is he'll have a better chance of making the team if the USA gets 3 squads but hopefully he'll get the nod tomorrow.
Which gives Mike 24 hours to research if Rice has ever had a winter Olympian before.
(01-14-2018 12:13 PM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote: [ -> ]https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-Skel...-World-Cup
I think it's looking okay? He was on the 2nd place USA team yesterday at a competition (finishing 11th overall in the standings). I think the USA Olympic gets 2 4-man bobsled teams and might qualify a 3rd one based on how they do today in one final competition? My guess is he'll have a better chance of making the team if the USA gets 3 squads but hopefully he'll get the nod tomorrow.
Which gives Mike 24 hours to research if Rice has ever had a winter Olympian before.
From this article (
https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-Skel...-World-Cup):
Quote:Team USA is battling Team Russia to be the last of three nations to qualify three sleds at the 2018 Olympic Winter Games. Justin Olsen’s (San Antonio, Texas) push crew of Steve Langton (Melrose, Mass.), Evan Weinstock (Las Vegas, Nev.) and Sam McGuffie (Cypress, Texas) gave him the best chance of earning valuable points towards Olympic qualification today with push times of 5.03 and 4.99 seconds, both second best of the competition. Olsen, still a new pilot, raced to the finish in 1:04.93 in the first run, 17th best of the heat, but rallied back in run two with a time of 1:04.46. The crew moved up six spots into 11th with a combined time of 2:09.39.
Russian sleds piloted by Alexey Stulnev, Maxim Andrianov and Alexander Kasjanov were all ahead of Team Olsen after the first heat, but fell behind in the final run, finishing 12-14-15.
Nick Cunningham (Monterey, Calif.) is racing the North American Cup in Lake Placid, N.Y. in a last effort to accumulate points towards qualifying a third sled. He raced to a gold medal in yesterday’s four-man race, and competes again today at 9 a.m. EST.
Cunningham Hunter Church's sled was first (and another American team second) in today's race at Lake Placid:
http://www.ibsf.org/en/component/events/event/169704
Quote:The International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation will announce nation quotas following the North American Cup race today.
Waiting for that announcement.
I think they get 3 teams now. But I believe you had the American teams reversed (Cunningham's team was 2nd behind another American team). It's possible still McGuffie's team is the odd one out but we'll find out for sure tomorrow.
(01-14-2018 05:09 PM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote: [ -> ]... But I believe you had the American teams reversed (Cunningham's team was 2nd behind another American team). ...
Thanks! You're correct. Hunter Church's team was first.
(01-14-2018 05:09 PM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote: [ -> ]It's possible still McGuffie's team is the odd one out but we'll find out for sure tomorrow.
If I'm reading the
qualification rules correctly (not a certaintly, for sure ... let me know what you think, FBO and others), then three "National Olympic Committees" can earn three slots each for their 4-man bobsleds in the 2018 Winter Olympics ... based on the scores of their top three teams on
this ISBF ratings list.
The current list shows that Germany (#1, #2 & #4-ranked sleds) and Canada (#3, #6 & #16 sleds) are clearly the top two countries.
It appears that the USA is nosing out Russia:
Russia:
_#8 Kasjanov -- 1,105
#18 Andrianov -- 746
#20 Stulnev -- 738 ... Total = 2,589
USA:
_#5 Bascue -- 1,138
#17 Cunningham -- 752
#19 Church -- 746 ... TOTAL = 2,636
(#22 Olsen (McGuffie's driver) -- 704)
I wonder if after it gets three slots, then the U.S. Olympic Committee can decide which drivers and pushers to send to South Korea.
If you look at the
World Cup points rankings, Olsen's sled is the USA's second-ranked sled (just ahead of Cunningham), while Church has competed in only one World Cup contest (Whistler, B.C.). If I'm reading this correctly, then I would not be surprised if Olsen's squad is chosen over Church's. If the USA gets only two slots, however, it looks like it would be quite a close call between Cunningham and Olsen.
This article seems to say that the USA has qualified to have three sleds in the 2019 Winter Olympics ... and the Church's sled will be going:
https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-Skel...AC-Bobsled
Quote:Hunter Church (Cadyville, N.Y.) and his team ... showed poise under pressure Sunday morning and won the final North American Cup (NAC) four-man race to help Team USA qualify its third four-man sled for the upcoming 2018 Olympic Winter Games.
The article makes no mention of McGuffie or his driver, Justin Olsen.
Congrats to him. Will be even cooler if he can somehow get a medal next month in Korea.
(01-15-2018 10:56 AM)Fort Bend Owl Wrote: [ -> ]Congrats to him. Will be even cooler if he can somehow get a medal next month in Korea.
Will be even cooler if that medal is gold.
Has a rice athlete ever won winter olympic gold?
(01-15-2018 11:27 AM)seniorowl Wrote: [ -> ]Has a rice athlete ever won winter olympic gold?
No (Fred Hansen in pole vault in 1964 Summer Games is only Rice gold medalist) and I would assume Sam is the first winter Olympian from Rice.
(01-15-2018 09:48 AM)westsidewolf1989 Wrote: [ -> ]Sam made the team...he’ll be pushing Bascue’s sled.
https://www.101sports.com/2018/01/15/ols...sled-team/
He’ll also compete with Bascue as the brakeman in the two-man sled.
Here's the official announcement from USA Bobsled &
Skeleton:
https://www.teamusa.org/USA-Bobsled-Skel...-Announced
Congrats to Sam!!
I expect there will be significant media coverage of the U.S. bobsled team, since it's trying to recover from the sudden death last May of Steven Holcomb, who had driven U.S. sleds to four-man gold at the 2010 Vancouver Games, and bronze medals in both the two-man and four-man at the 2014 Sochi Olympics-- the first U.S. bobsled gold medal since 1948 and the first U.S. two-man medal of any sort since 1952.
For your Olympics viewing calendar:
Quote:The Olympic bobsled and skeleton events are held in a four-heat format over two days of racing with two heats on each day. The two-man competition will take place Feb. 18-19, and four-man races Feb. 24-25.
Below are the articles I wrote for Rice News on the Owls competing in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. At those Games, Heather McDermid became Rice's third medalist, while Rosey Edeh became the first Owl to compete in three Olympics. Heather medaled again in 2000 to become Rice's only two-time medalist.
Quote:7/25/1996
Rice Olympians Going for Gold in Atlanta
By George W. Webb III
Rice News Correspondent
Rice University is well-represented at the Centennial Olympic Games in
Atlanta.
Five Rice alumni and two undergraduates are competing in the 1996
Olympics, representing four countries in seven events. Here is a look at
these Rice Olympians.
Adam Setliff - United States, discus
Setliff, Baker College '92, became a discus thrower the easy way: At age
11, he joined his school's track and field team, and throwers didn't have to
run.
But his road to the Olympics has been anything but easy. Despite
attending four different high schools in three states, Setliff showed great
promise in the discus, recording the second best high school throw in the
nation his senior year. In 1988 he came to Rice on a track scholarship.
Setliff admits that "college athletics and I were a really bad marriage. I
don't do well with structure."
He left Rice in 1991 to compete on his own and promptly set a personal
record with the 13th best throw in the nation. That success prompted him
to return to college, this time at the University of Washington.
Setliff's second turn in college athletics was "a dismal failure," he said.
"That's where I learned the final truth about my athletic endeavors. I have
to be on my own."
So Setliff went back to competing strictly for himself. In 1995 he posted
the 10th best throw in the world. He then moved back to Houston to finish
his Rice education and to train full-time for the Olympics. He earned a spot
on the Olympic team by finishing third at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Atlanta
last month.
Setliff plans to finish his Rice degree in English next year and is considering
applying to medical school. Despite his struggles in college athletics, Setliff
says he has been welcomed at Rice by the faculty and administration. He
gives special credit to then-assistant men's track coach (now head coach)
Ray Davidson.
Bryan Bronson - United States, 400-meter hurdles
The only native Texan among the Rice Olympians, Bronson (Wiess College
'95) was born and raised in Jasper, near Beaumont. He comes from an
athletic family, as his twin brother Ben is a wide receiver with the Detroit
Lions.
Bronson was a four-sport athlete in high school and a star in track, helping
set a national high school record in the 4 x 100-meter relay. He entered
Rice in 1991 and continued to excel in track. He was named All-America in
1992 and 1993, was the 1993 NCAA champion in the 400-meter hurdles,
and holds Rice records in that event and in the 200 meters.
One of Bronson's proudest moments was in 1995, when he helped Rice win
its first Southwest Conference Indoor Track Championship.
Bronson left Rice after the 1995 season to train and compete full-time.
Although hurdlers usually peak in their late twenties, the 23-year-old
Bronson says, "I wanted 1996 to be my year."
He qualified for the U.S. Olympic team in convincing fashion: winning the
400-meter hurdles at the Olympic Trials. His performance was also a
personal record.
Bronson needs six credit hours to complete his Rice degree. He plans to
take these classes after the Olympics and "to take a couple of months off
before I start training again."
Rosey Edeh - Canada, 400-meter hurdles
As the only athlete in Rice history to compete in three Olympiads, Rosey
Edeh (Hanszen '90) is certainly the dean of the Rice delegation.
Her background is almost as international as the Olympic Games. Born in
London, England, to Nigerian parents, she moved with her family to
Montreal at age 3.
She started running as a way to keep busy after school -"parents' orders,"
she says. In 1986 she entered Fresno State University on a track
scholarship. On her own initiative she transferred to Rice in January 1988.
"I had heard a lot about Rice, even way out there in California," Edeh
explains. "There was a pretty good Canadian connection at Rice, and Rice
had a better athletic program and of course much better academics."
According to assistant women's track coach Jim Bevan,"Rice made a big
difference for her, both academically and in her outlook on life. Her grades
went up, and she became a very good student. Rice brought out the best
in her."
Her specialty was the 400 meters, and her goal was to represent Canada
at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, Korea. Unfortunately for Edeh, Canada had
already selected its team for the 400 meters.
So Edeh switched to the 400-meter hurdles, working closely with head
women's track coach Victor Lopez.
"I ran so many races and made so many mistakes," Edeh recalls. "I had to
walk around with aches and pains."
The hard work paid off. In June 1988 Edeh won the 400-meter hurdles at
the Canadian Championships to earn a spot on the Olympic team. She ran
well at the Seoul Olympics but did not advance past the first round. Edeh
notes, "I was happy, Coach was happy, and then it was back to school."
Back at Rice, Edeh earned All-America honors in 1989 and 1990 and holds
Rice records in both the 100- and 400-meter hurdles. Her proudest
collegiate moment was representing Rice and Canada at the 1989 World
University Games in Germany, where she won the silver medal in the 400-
meter hurdles.
Since graduating from Rice in 1990 in Art & Art History, Edeh has trained
full-time in Houston. At the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, she was a
semifinalist in the 400-meter hurdles and finished fourth in the 4 x 400-
meter relay. In 1993, she placed fourth in the hurdles at the World
Championships, setting a new Canadian record.
Edeh's goals for Atlanta are to make it to the finals and to better her own
Canadian record.
Heather McDermid - Canada, Eight with coxswain (rowing)
Heather McDermid, Hanszen '91, is the only Rice Olympian not competing
in track and field, but she started off as a runner.
McDermid was born and raised in Calgary, Alberta. Her mother manages
Canada's Olympic track and field team. McDermid ran track in high school
and came to Rice in 1987 on a track scholarship. She chose Rice because
"Victor Lopez is a very well-known coach in Canada and because Rice is a
good school."
She proved to be a versatile runner. She holds Rice records in the 800
meters and 4 x 800-meter relay. She was named All-America in 1989 and
1990 and was Rice's most valuable performer in women's track in 1990.
After graduating in 1990 in Economics and Managerial Studies, she moved
back to Calgary to train for the 1992 Olympics. When a foot injury forced
her to give up running, she started rowing with the Calgary Rowing Club.
She earned a spot on the 1996 Olympic team at the Canadian trials last
November.
McDermid is competing as a member of the Canadian women's eight. Her
crew has finished in the top three in three international regattas this year
and is a strong favorite to win a medal in Atlanta.
Sean Wade - New Zealand, marathon
Like McDermid, Sean Wade (Richardson '89) also switched sports en route
to the Olympics.
Wade grew up in Wellington, New Zealand, playing tennis. He attended
college in California before transferring to Rice on a tennis scholarship in
1986. Influenced by his roommates who ran track, he started running his
senior year and became one of Rice's top distance runners.
After graduating in 1989 in Economics and Managerial Studies, Wade
moved to Colorado to train full-time. He represented his native country in
the steeplechase at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.
When Wade started running marathons, he excelled immediately, finishing
second in his very first effort, the 1993 Houston Tenneco Marathon. He
placed in the top three in Houston in the next two years and finished fifth
in 1996.
This year's time was good enough to qualify him for the New Zealand
Olympic team. Unfortunately, a recent quadricep injury has hampered
Wade's chances for success in Atlanta. He may not be able to finish the
marathon, but he says "I'll start the race and see what happens."
Wade now lives in Houston in an apartment overlooking his training
ground, the jogging path on Allen Parkway. After the Olympics he will
continue to live and train in Houston, and he plans to become a U.S.
citizen.
Melissa Straker - Barbados, 400 meters
Cherita Howard - Barbados, long jump
Melissa Straker, a Baker College senior, and Cherita Howard, a Richardson
College senior, have been colleagues at almost every level. They attended
the same secondary school in Barbados, where they excelled as runners.
They came to Rice in 1994 and are double majors in Spanish and
Managerial Studies. Both are representing Barbados at the 1996 Olympics.
At Rice, Straker runs the 200 meters, 400 meters, and 4 x 400-meter
relay, in which she helped set the Rice record. She earned All-America
honors in 1994 and 1995 and was the 1996 Rice Scholar Athlete in
women's track. She is running the 400 meters in Atlanta.
Howard competes for Rice in the long jump and triple jump. She was a
sprinter in secondary school but switched to jumps her first year at Rice
when running was not going well. In April 1996 she set the Rice record in
the long jump, her event at the Olympics.
Straker's strategy for the Olympics is to "take it rung by rung. I'm only
20," she points out. "Most of the other [800 meter] runners are about 26,
and experience matters. This is my first time at an international
championship."
Howard's approach is similar. "I'm pretty excited," she admits, "but you
have to treat it like a regular meet, or else you can get overwhelmed by
the experience."
* * *
At least two other members of the Rice community are taking part in the
Olympics. Mauro Hamza, coach of the Rice Fencing Club, is competing for
his native Egypt in that sport.
Alumnus J. Fred Duckett ('55) is the director of the track and field press
box at Atlanta's Olympic Stadium. Duckett has been a fixture in Texas
sports for decades, serving as announcer and scorer for Rice, the Houston
Astros, and track meets throughout the state.
The latest results on Rice's Olympic athletes are available at the Rice
Olympians web page (http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~ricesid/olympics.html).
For Rice alumni attending the Atlanta games, Jane Gole (Brown '73) is
hosting a gathering at her house the morning of July 28. Contact the
alumni office for more information.
Quote:8/22/1996
Rice Alumni, Undergraduates Break Records at '96 Games
By George W. Webb III
Rice News Correspondent
Seven Rice Owls were among the 10,000 athletes who took part in the
Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. The Rice contingent of five alumni
and two undergraduates brought home a silver medal, a Canadian national
record, and a host of proud memories.
Heather McDermid '91 was a member of the Canadian rowing crew that
won the silver medal in the women's eight. McDermid's crew fought off
hard challenges from Belarus and the United States to finish second behind
a veteran Romanian boat.
In winning the silver medal, McDermid became Rice's first Olympic
medalist since 1976 and the first female medalist in Rice history.
The Atlanta Games marked the third Olympiad for fellow Canadian Rosey
Edeh '91, who competed in the 400-meter hurdles. Edeh's goals for this
Olympics were to advance to the finals and to break her own Canadian
national record. She succeeded on both counts, finishing sixth in the finals
from a field of 30 runners.
Two Owls competed for the United States in track and field. Adam Setliff
'92 advanced to the finals in the discus and finished 12th in a field of 40
throwers. In the 400-meter hurdles, Bryan Bronson '95 won his
preliminary heat to advance to the semifinals but missed the cut for the
final round.
Seniors Melissa Straker (Baker) and Cherita Howard (Sid Richardson)
represented their native Barbados in track and field. Straker ran the 400
meters and narrowly missed advancing to the second round. Howard was
scheduled to compete in the long jump, but an injury which incurred just
before the Olympics kept her from taking part.
Injuries also hampered Sean Wade '89, who ran for his native New
Zealand in the marathon, the final event of the Olympic Games. Wade
finished 83rd in the field of over 120 runners, although he led for the first
seven miles.
There to witness all the action was Rice athletics announcer J. Fred Duckett
'55, who served as manager of the "tribune" or press box at Atlanta's
Olympic Stadium. He has been involved in track and field for decades and
had performed similar duties at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
McDermid joins Americans Fred Hansen '63 and Dave Roberts '73 as Rice
alumni who have won Olympic medals. Hansen won the gold medal in the
pole vault at the 1964 Games in Tokyo, while Roberts earned the bronze
medal in the pole vault in Montreal in 1976.
Complete results and a history of Rice's Olympic athletes are available at
the Rice Olympians web page located at:
<http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~ricesid/olympics.html>.
Finally, McGuffie up the middle will be a good thing. Or will it be down in the middle?
In any case, does anybody know what night(s) the bobsled competition will air? I will be out of town a few days and would like to set my recorder if necessary.
2 man competes 1 week from today on Sunday and Monday nights Korean time (which would be Sunday and Monday mornings here). It's 4 runs, and roughly is from 5 am to 8:30 or maybe 9 am?
The 4 man competition is at the end of the Games on Saturday and Sunday mornings, Feb. 24th and 25th in Korea. That would be Friday night and Saturday night, Central time (there is a 15-hour time difference) or roughly 6:30 pm to maybe 9 pm that Friday and Saturday night?
I think maybe luge and bobsled (or bobsleigh as the official Olympics site calls it) use the same facility? Luge is using it now - an American actually got silver in the men's race earlier today which was our first Olympic medal ever in that event. Bobsled doesn't take over until luge is done, and they have several days of training runs before the real stuff finally begins.
https://www.olympic.org/pyeongchang-2018...hedule.htm
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