267 Americans from 38 states will represent Team USA at the second-ever ITU Cross Tri World Champs in Shelby County, Alabama next Saturday, May 19.
May 4, 2012 (Honolulu, HI) - Last year at the inaugural ITU Cross Triathlon World Championships in Spain the host country reigned supreme with locals accounting for 15 of the 27 gold medals awarded.
On May 19, 2012 you can expect even greater domination from the host nation as Team USA makes up the vast majority of the amateur field and will be racing on home turf at Oak Mountain State Park in Shelby County, Alabama.
Leading the charge is a true local – Casey Fannin from Birmingham, Alabama. With 20 years worth of experience riding the trails at Oak Mountain and two XTERRA World Titles to his credit, Fannin is the clear favorite in the 50-54 division.
Other stand-outs in the men’s field include John Stover (reigning and two-time XTERRA World Champ in the 70-74 division), Steve Cole (reigning XTERRA USA Champ in the 55-59 division), Matt Boobar (a former XTERRA pro now competing in the 40-44 division), Bryce Phinney and Fred Smith in the 35-39 division, and Mathieu Signoretty, the current 20-24 XTERRA USA Champ.
On the women’s side we’ve got Charlotte Mahan (the 2010 XTERRA World Champ in the 65-59 division), Cindi Toepel (current and 4x XTERRA World Champ in the 60-64 division), Barbara Peterson (current and 6x World Champ in the 55-59 division), Tamara Tabeek (current 50-54 World Champ), Kathy Hudson (the defending ITU Cross Tri 45-49 champ), Kristin Jo Markham (the defending ITU Cross Tri 25-29 champ) and Hannah Rae Finchamp (current and 2x World Champ).
In all, there are 267 Americans from 38 states ready to represent Team USA and turn Shelby County, Alabama into a sea of red, white, and blue … and gold.
See all of the current start lists by division
The ITU Cross Tri World Championships will be held in conjunction with the seventh-annual XTERRA Southeast Championship race with local support from Shelby County, City of Pelham, City of Hoover, Alabama Tourism Department, Oak Mountain State Park and the Birmingham Urban Mountain Pedalers. It is the first time the event will be held in the United States. ITU hosted the inaugural Cross Tri World Championships last year in Extremadura, Spain, where four-time XTERRA World Champion Conrad Stoltz from South Africa and three-time XTERRA World Champion Melanie McQuaid from Canada won the elite titles.
About TEAM Unlimited/XTERRA
TEAM Unlimited is a Hawaii-based television events and marketing company, founded in 1988. It owns and produces XTERRA and in 2011 produced more than 100 XTERRA off-road triathlon and trail running races in 15 countries worldwide. In the U.S. alone nearly 200,000 participants took part in the XTERRA lifestyle last year while XTERRA’s TV, publicity, advertising, online, and grassroots marketing efforts generated more than 400 million impressions. In addition, TEAM TV has produced more than 300 adventure television shows resulting in three Emmy’s and 42 Telly Awards for production excellence since 1990. View samples at www.xterra.tv, and learn more at xterraplanet.com and xterratrailrun.com.
