The top four professional golfers in the world have bowed out of the Rio de Janeiro Olympics, citing concerns over the spread of the Zika virus. Numerous other organizations or authorities have called on the postponement of the Games because of reports of unsanitary conditions in the Brazilian city’s waters.
Sarah True finds much of the worry overblown. And she will be directly affected by it.
The Hanover resident is headed to her second Olympics next week and is primed to come home with the Upper Valley’s first medal since Norwich’s Hannah Kearney pulled a two-medal mogul skiing haul at the 2010 and 2014 Winter Games. True has been set for the women’s triathlon for a year, having qualified for the United States team in a test event in Rio last August, which has given her a full year of training to peak for the Olympic race.
Speaking at a media teleconference last month, True said she considers some of the public health news out of the Brazilian resort city to be a minor issue. Athletes are kept informed of such situations either through the International Triathlon Union or USA Triathlon, she said, “and they’ve done a good job of communicating the latest information with us to make an informed decision.
“Based on the evidence given to us, there’s a low level of risk, yes, but we face that every time we race,” True said. “It’s part of travel, to be totally frank. There are frequently questions of water quality when we race, and that’s why we have water testing. Before every event, the governing bodies test bacterial levels and, based on the parameters set forth, the water quality at Copacabana Beach is within range.”
With that as a backdrop, the 34-year-old True believes she’s poised for big things.
Admittedly happy just to be 2012 Games in London, the former Sarah Groff — she married Dartmouth College cross country skier and distance runner Ben True in 2014 — came with 10 seconds of claiming bronze. She closed the 2012 campaign with her second straight USA Triathlon Olympic/ITU athlete of the year award, honored for a series of top-10 finishes on the ITU World Triathlon Series along with her London near-miss.
She’s been at or near the top of her sport since then. She ranked second in the world during the 2014 ITU season, third the year after that. She added two more world championship medals — a silver in 2014, a bronze in ’15 — to a bronze from the year before London. She twice won the ITU race in Stockholm and posted her best time of the current season in the Sweden event last month, her final competitive event before Rio.
“I would say that I’ve just gotten stronger,” said True, who swam competitively at Middlebury College. “I’m better and trying to move forward in all three sports and become a better racer. Going into 2012, I didn’t have much experience racing for a major podium, where now I have a few years under my belt where I’ve been able to get podium finishes and be in the mix for medals at races. The biggest difference is I have had a little bit more experience as a medal contender.”
Gwen Jorgensen and True grabbed the first two U.S. triathlon slots at last year’s Rio test event. Jorgensen won the race, while True was fourth overall and the second American across the line. USA Triathlon granted the third slot for the Olympics to Katie Zaferes in May.
While True will be looking to bridge the one-step gap to an Olympic podium, Jorgensen will hope to avoid misfortune. A promising London race resulted in a 38th-place finish because of a flat tire during the 40-kilometer cycling segment.
True may be a better athlete than four years ago, but the international field is also stronger, she said.
“I really love seeing how much more depth we have in the U.S., where it was harder to make the Olympic team this time around,” she said. “It’s really exciting to be part of a women’s Olympic team that is so strong. There’s no question that we push each other to succeed, and I know that I had to find something special last year in order to qualify.”
As much as she might want to absorb the atmosphere, the schedule will likely keep her focused on preparations. True doesn’t leave for Rio until Aug. 12, a week after the Olympics start, and her competition isn’t until Aug. 20, the next-to-last day of the Games.
“One of the things I learned from 2012 was that until my race is over, it’s strictly work,” she said. “I’m going down there and, up until my race, I am there to do my job, which is to represent myself as an athlete to the best of my ability.
“Then, after the race, I’ll take a shower, have a snack and spend time regrouping after the race. After that, I get to take in the Olympic experience.”
Greg Fennell can be reached at gfennell@vnews.com or 603-727-3226.