SpokePost.com

Colorado Springs, Colo. - USA Cycling announced today the eight-person squad that will compete in the third round of the 2004/05 UCI Track World Cup in Manchester, Great Britain January 7-9. Led by a veteran core of six 2004 Olympic Team members, the U.S. team heads to England on the heels of a two-medal performance at last weekend’s World Cup stop in Los Angeles.

Giddeon Massie (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Christian Stahl (Bethany, Conn.), Colby Pearce (Boulder, Colo.) and Marty Nothstein (Orefield, Pa.) make up the men’s contingent while the women’s delegation consists of Jennie Reed (Kirkland, Wash.), Erin Mirabella (Racine, Wis.), Becky Quinn (Quakertown, Pa.) and Ashley Kimmet (Easton, Pa.).

With a bronze medal in Athens and a win in the points race at the Los Angeles World Cup, Mirabella has the momentum of strong international results on her side. Currently second overall in the world cup standings in the points race behind Lyudmyla Vypyraylo (UKR), Mirabella will also compete in the scratch race.

After a strong outing in Los Angeles in which she won two qualifying heats and advanced to the finals in the keirin, Reed will look to improve upon the sixth place finish she earned there amongst a deep field of sprinters. In addition to the keirin, Reed will also contest the sprint.

Quinn will ride the scratch race, an event in which she consistently places in the top-ten of at international competitions. Kimmet, the youngest member of the women’s foursome at 23 and a silver medalist at the 2000 junior world championships, will ride the points race in her first world cup of the season.

Of the men, Pearce is having the most successful season thus far thanks to a near gold medal performance in the points race in Los Angeles. Heading into the final sprint of last weekend’s competition tied with Olympic champion Mikhail Ignatiev (RUS), Pearce was outsprinted by a mere six inches and settled for silver. In addition to the points race, Pearce will again team up with Nothstein in the madison.

After his first world-class caliber keirin in Los Angeles, Stahl will focus his efforts on the sprint only while Massie will ride both the sprint and the keirin.

In addition to the madison with Pearce, Nothstein will also contest the scratch race.

Currently, the United States is ranked eighth among 30 nations in the world cup standings. In Manchester, 225 riders from 34 countries are expected to compete.