IT'S OFFICIAL! Minnesota's CATHY YNDESTAD and KEVINO'CONNOR have been honored by USA Triathlon as the premier amateur triathlete (Cathy) an duathlete (Kevin) in America in 2009!
Yndestad, runner-up for this honor in '08 and an HM in '07,
was chosen over the talented likes of Mandy McLane (FL), Lindsay Whalen (IL) and Kathleen Calkins (CA). Though each of these women won more major events, Cathy consistently out-raced McLane and Whalen in their head-to-head confrontations last year. (Cathy did not race against Calkins, a long distance specialist, in 2009.)
Cathy's Acceptance Comments: "Wow! Considering all the other outstanding amateur triathletes in contention for this award, I am truly honored and grateful to be named Athlete of the Year. I owe a great deal of thanks to my fellow competitors for keeping each race challenging and more importantly, for keeping it fun!"
O'Connor's record in "major" duathlons--Apple, Minneapolis Duathlon and Worlds--last season is what gave him the edge over the candidates in the DOY category.
Kevin's Acceptance Remarks: "I am not certain I deserve this award as there are a number of talented men who raced well, often, and hard. I am quite honored and humbled by this recognition. Thank you to USAT for honoring all of the athletes, both elite and amateur, who work very hard every year to reach their potential. After 20 years of racing this is my most prized athletic award and for that I thank USAT."
Another Minnesotan, Mankato's Greg Taylor (see photo), earned Honorable Mention status in the Master of the Year category. St. Paul's Devon Palmer and Mound's Jan Guenther were seriously considered for HM positions in the AOY and MOY categories respectively.
For the full story, link HERE.
