04/20/2008

Sarah Haskins could have been thoroughly disappointed with a second-place finish in the Olympic Triathlon trials Saturday in Tuscaloosa, Ala. After all, she missed an automatic berth to Beijing by seconds. Instead, she saw the bright side: She's in good position when she gets another shot in June.

A 1999 graduate of Parkway South, Haskins crossed the finish line 29 seconds behind winner Julie Ertel, who finished in 2 hours, 2 minutes, 21 seconds and earned the automatic berth. Sarah Groff was third in 2:02:59.

"It would have been great to qualify, but I'm in a pretty good spot," Haskins said in a phone interview Saturday afternoon. "I gave my best effort. I'm glad that I got the second. I definitely feel more secure."

Olympic qualifying in triathlon is a forgiving process, unlike the one-race method of track and swimming. So, Haskins has a final chance to make the Olympic squad June 22 at the Hy-Vee World Cup Triathlon in Des Moines, Iowa.

The final member will be chosen based on a points system, combining their best two finishes in the three qualifying races. Haskins would appear to be in the driver's seat, since she finished second Saturday and was the second American to cross the finish line at the first qualifier in Beijing, where Ertel finished third. Groff finished fifth among Americans in Beijing and third Saturday and would earn the final spot only with a victory in Des Moines. Haskins noted that the $700,000 purse in Des Moines will draw the best in the world, not just the dozen Americans who qualified for the event Saturday, making Groff's task difficult.

"It's not 100 percent that I have a spot, but odds are looking pretty good," Haskins said. "Sarah can have a great day, but she'll have to beat the best in the world, not just me."

Matt Reed, who won the men's race Saturday, and Ertel, a member of the 2000 Olympic women's water polo team, joined Laura Bennett and Jarrod Shoemaker, who qualified in the dress rehearsal event on the Olympic course last year.

As expected Saturday, Sara McLarty, the strongest swimmer in the field, led early in the 1.5K (0.9-mile) swim and left the water first, followed by Haskins and Groff.

The pair formed a chase group with Ertel and Amanda Stevens for the 40K (25-mile) bike leg. Haskins, Ertel and Groff caught McLarty and built their lead over the rest of the field to about a minute as they headed into the 10K (6.2-mile) run.

"We had to ride hard, but we knew that one of the four of us would probably win," Haskins said. "Then Julie had a fantastic transition. She probably picked up eight seconds on me and just built it from there."

Another reason for Haskins to smile in defeat: She had an entourage of 43 family members, most from St. Louis. They wore matching T-shirts with identifiers on the back, such as "Sarah's Dad," "Sarah's Brother," "Sarah's Brother's Girlfriend."

"It was pretty funny, and I could hear them cheering," she said. "To know they all came was really special."

The St. Louis area still has just one Olympian on his way to Beijing. Scott Touzinsky, a graduate of Vianney High, is a member of the U.S. volleyball team, which qualified for the Olympics in February.

knelson@post-dispatch.com | 314-340-8233