Yasmine White off to
Switzerland for Triathlon
World Champs!!

September 2nd, 2006
At Lausanne, Switzerland

 

Yasmine White off to
Switzerland for Triathlon
World Champs!!
US Jr Champ to Worlds!!

September 2nd, 2006
At Lausanne, Switzerland
By Joe Hartman

 
photos by Bob White

YASMINE WHITE: SWISS MISS

Yasmine White – a recent graduate of Arcata H.S. and two-time state track qualifier at 3200 meters - is off to worlds again in triathlon. After coming in 2nd place at last year’s qualifier, Yasmine won this year’s USA ITU Triathlon race, which serves as the qualifier for Team USA in the 16-19 age group. The qualifier was in Bridgeport, CT. In just a few days, Yasmine will line up against 65 other young women from around the world in Lausanne, Switzerland with full confidence to improve upon her 44th place finish in 2005. Her triathlon is set for early morning September 2nd.

A year ago, Yasmine was last out of the water in the stifling humidity of Gamagori, Japan but she did make some passes and posted a time of 1:08:21 – quite good for a young 16-year old. This year, her time at the Connecticut qualifier (same distance) was a much faster 1:03.34, aided by two lighting-fast transitions. The distances for the Junior Elites are a 750-meter swim, a 20K bike, followed by a 5K run.

Lausanne is located on Lake Geneva in the French-speaking part of Switzerland and is the home of the International Olympic Committee. Yasmine will be joined there by Americans Alexandria Lechner of Clearwater, FL, Kathryn Ross of Doylestown, PA, and Danielle Kehoe of Arvada, CO. The national junior men’s team is Willy Pickhardt of Fayetteville, AR, Gregory Billington (overseas), Zachary Paris of Solano Beach, CA, and Duncan Hoge of Chapel Hill, NC.

Yasmine was the 2004 USAT National Triathlon points champion in the 13-15 age group. In high school cross country, she was 4th in the state in Division 4 in 2004 with a time of 18:31. She was the #1 runner for the Buffalo Chips Running Club at the 2005 USATF Cross Country Championships in Vancouver, WA and helped the Buffalo Chips win the junior women’s title at the same meet in New York City in February of 2006.

A prized recruit of the Brown Bears in distance running, Yasmine bemoans missing the start of the Brown XC Camp and her first contact with the team, but she is understandably excited about seeing some of the alpine sites and sneaking a bite of rich chocolates and other Swiss delights up close and personal. Yasmine took time out from her training up in Arcata on the north coast to answer a few questions.

DyeStatCal: We’re curious about how you're race went in Connecticut. You had a couple of the contenders a minute or more ahead of you out of the swim. Were you ever worried about overtaking them and can you briefly describe the swim, bike, and run sections of this particular race?

Yasmine: A minute sounds like a long ways, but that's actually not as far as I am usually behind the leaders after the swim, so I was feeling pretty good after the swim. On the bike section I caught up with a pack of girls just ahead of me. Because the bike course was so flat, riding in a pack is a big advantage. (Note: ITU-style triathlons are ‘draft legal’.) I knew we were gaining on the leaders, so I just sat in the pack and waited for the run. By the end of the bike we had reeled in the leaders, so there was a lead pack of seven girls starting the run together. I felt good on the run and pulled away from the field. The run course ended up being a little long though, more like 3.3-3.4 miles instead of 3.1. (Note: Despite the long course, Yasmine’s ‘5K’ run time was still just over 20 minutes after 43 minutes of earlier racing)

DyeStatCal: Last year it had to be a great experience to be at worlds in Japan, but the American junior women weren't quite as competitive as they would have liked. This year's ITU World Triathlon is in Lausanne, Switzerland and you are leading the contingent. How do you feel about this year's group of American girls (and guys) and how is your approach going to be different?

Yasmine: Going to Japan last year was an incredible experience--worlds is a whole different level of competition. This year I have a much better idea of what to expect and I think that will help. Last year's junior team actually had a pretty strong showing with the World Junior Champion on the guys side (who will be back to defend his title this year) and a 15th place finish on the girls side. I think our goal as a team this year is just to keep that momentum going.

DyeStatCal: Have you been to Europe before and what are you most looking forward to doing/seeing in Switzerland if you get a free moment?

Yasmine: I've been to Europe a couple of times before, but never to Switzerland, so I'm quite excited! I hear the food is delicious, so I'm hoping to try some Swiss cuisine!

DyeStatCal: What do you think of Brown cross country and how much are you looking forward to joining that program when you return?

Yasmine: I'm incredibly excited about running for Brown this fall. The team has been improving so much and I think it will be fun to be part of a program on the rise.

Note: Brown University is now being headed up by Director of Cross Country and Track Craig Lake who helped build Ivy League competitor Columbia into a top-notch running program. (Columbia’s women’s team has been in the Top 25 nationally five times under Coach Lake.) Under her guidance in 2005, the Brown Bears were 5th in the Ivy League in XC and 8th out of 38 schools at their NCAA region meet.

Meet website: http://www.trilausanne.ch/2006/html/cm/index_en.htm