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Snubbed...
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Monday, 02 March 2020 23:10
In an earlier post we predicted that PATRICK PARISH was, by our reckoning, a slam-dunk for at least a USA Triathlon Duathlete of the Year Honorable Mention. We also claimed that BECKY YOUNGBERG had a shot at Du Master of the Year HM, but noted that because Nationals and/or Worlds were not on her schedule, the liklihood of was slim.
USAT's Duathlete of the Year list was posted a week ago, and to our chagrin, neither Parish, a multiple DOY winner, nor Youngberg, were included. (Becky, however, did collect a very well-deserved Masters Triathlete of the Year HM.
The female MOY went to Kirsten Sass, 40, of McKenzie, Tennessee, which was not a surprise. Her resume was highlighted by overall Top 5 finishes / 1st 40+ at Standard and Sprint Du Nationals.
KS is the real deal, and has been the most awarded (by USAT) female multisportswoman for the better part of the last decade.
Three of the four MOY Honorable Mentions, though, did not have resumes that, in our opinion, demanded inclusion. Becky's scorecard boasted wins at Apple and Gear West and should have been considered....
(We understand that honoring athletes is a controversial enterprise, and we appreciate USAT's efforts to be fair.)
Now for Parish. It is our contention that if the 2019 Male DOYs were ranked, Patrick would have placed no lower than 2nd behind the rather obvious selection: Apple winner/course-record setter Ryan Giuliano. Why? First of all, Patrick WON the Standard Distance Duathlon National Championship, our country's most competitive run-bike-run. There he beat Giuliano (3rd) by 45 seconds, and DOY Honorable Mention Alex Arman (5th) by 3:30.
In addition to his national title, Patrick won at Gear West and placed 2nd behind Giuliano at Apple. If we participated in the selection process, we would support two of the three HMs--Arman and especially Jeff Wilson--and include Parish.
