United States Selects Olympic Team

Second Olympics, first together for Ruckman and Tucker
© Getty Images/Gary Prior

The United States Olympic selection procedure is explained over 14 pages that read like a legal document. It begins with submitting erg scores for 6,000 metres and 2,000 metres by April 2004. It continues through two selection regattas and finishes with a trial (if necessary) at the start of July.

The Olympic team announcement came with no elaborate fanfare in a country where sport is dominated by baseball, basketball and American football. Rowing (often called crew) focuses around university sport where sweep dominates and the eight is the status boat.

Despite the lack of attention, the United States has successfully qualified 12, out of a possible 14, Olympic boats, putting them up there with Australia and ahead of Great Britain. Included in the squad of 45 athletes are 15 Olympians with women’s eight member Laurel Korholz the most experienced. Korholz has two Olympic Games to her name with a fourth placed finish at Atlanta in the eight and a fifth from Sydney in the quad.

Korholz is part of a young women’s eight who come to Athens as favourites having won gold at both the Munich and Lucerne World Cups this year. Women’s head coach Tom Terhaar, however, is cautious in his confidence.

?The US has a history of doing really well in everything but the final at the Olympics,? says Terhaar. ?So we’ve made a conscious effort not to get excited until after the Olympics.?

The men’s eight came second at last year’s World Championship, but after finishing a disappointing fourth at the Lucerne World Cup last month, the line up has been changed to include Lucerne winners of the four, Bryan Volpenhein, Beau Hoopman, Dan Beery and Jason Read.

Also making the Olympic team is medical doctor Jen Devine. Devine qualified the single just last month at the final Olympic qualification regatta in Lucerne. She comes back to rowing after taking a break following the 1996 Olympics but has made comebacks in 2001 and again in 2004.

First time Olympian Lisa Schlenker at 40 years old will compete in the women’s lightweight double with fellow first-timer Stacey Borgman. Schlenker holds the World Record on the indoor rowing machine since 2000 and was a spare at the Sydney Olympics. 

The United States won medals at Sydney in the men’s and women’s pair and the lightweight women’s double.

The squad will train in Plovdiv, Bulgaria before the Olympics making use of the 2000 metre course and hot climate in preparation.

2004 OLYMPIC TEAM ROSTER

Women’s Single Scull
Jennifer Devine

Men’s Double Scull
Henry Nuzum
Aquil Abdullah

Men’s Lightweight Double Scull
Greg Ruckman
Steve Tucker

Women’s Lightweight Double Scull
Stacey Borgman
Lisa Schlenker

Men’s Quadruple Scull
Kent Smack
J. Sloan DuRoss
Brett Wilkinson
Ben Holbrook

Women’s Quadruple Scull
Danika Holbrook
Kelly Salchow
Hilary Gehman
Michelle Guerette

Men’s Pair
Artour Samsonov
Luke Walton

Women’s Pair
Kate MacKenzie
Sarah Jones

Men’s Four
Wolf Moser
Jamie Schroeder
Mike Wherley
Garrett Klugh

Men’s Lightweight Four
Steve Warner
Pat Todd
Matt Smith
Paul Teti

Men’s Eight
Pete Cipollone
Bryan Volpenhein
Beau Hoopman
Dan Beery
Matt Deakin
Joseph Hansen
Chris Ahrens
Wyatt Allen
Jason Read

Women’s Eight
Mary Whipple
Lianne Nelson
Anna Mickelson
Laurel Korholz
Caryn Davies
Alison Cox
Megan Dirkmaat
Sam Magee
Kate Johnson

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