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Speed & Versatility...

Friday, 20 November 2015 00:10

MINNESOTA MULTISPORT AWARDS - Now we will attempt to explain the rationale behind the MMA Selectors' picks in the non-slam-dunk categories, starting with the JUNIOR OF THE YEAR.

- JAKE CROTEAU, 18, La Crosse, WI - Jake set Junior CRs at at Timberman and Brewhouse and his Olympic-distance times were competitive with credentialed adult triathletes. While his regional resume was stellar, his National (18th AG at Nationals) and International (11th AG at Worlds) were not quite as impressive.

- KAYTLIN GARRISON, 16, Cohasset - In six regional starts, Kaytlin never finished out of the Top 10. She cracked the Top 5 on half of those occasions. She did, however, lose to a fellow junior (Hannah Bettandorf) at Brewhouse Sprint, and her winning AG time at Buffalo was four minutes slower that Lauren Steinke's junior race record.

- ELIOT SLADE, 19, St. Louis Park - Eliot's Olympic times were nearly identical to Croteau's. Like Jake, he is knocking on the sub-2-hour door.

- NICK KLONNE, 18, Rockford (photo) - Nick demonstrated more speed and versatility than his fellow nominees. He excelled in duathlons (3rd overall - JrCR @ Falls, Jr.CR @ Apple, 9th overall @ Gear West), Sprint (2nd overall @ Manitou), Olympic (JrCR equivalent at Buffalo) and Half IM (9th overall / 4:29 JrCR at Liberty). It was for these reasons that he was named 2015 Minnesota Junior of the Year.