Publication Date: Friday, July 16, 2004
OLYMPICS
Stanford trio on U.S. men's polo squad
Stanford trio on U.S. men's polo squad
(July 16, 2004) by Rick Eymer
Stanford senior Tony Azevedo and Stanford grad Wolf Wigo will once again be teammates for the United States men's water polo team.
Stanford grad Layne Beaubien also was named to the 13-member team Wednesday. Stanford grad Peter Hudnut, in his second year with the national team, was named the Olympic alternate, and Richard Azevedo is an assistant coach.
Team USA , which opens play in the Athens Olympics on Aug. 15, will participate in the FINA World League Super Finals beginning today at the Charter All Digital Aquatic Centre in Long Beach.
Wigo, named team captain, will be playing in his third Olympics. Azevedo and Ryan Bailey are playing in their second Olympics.
"This is one of the most important parts of our Olympic preparation because we are down to our 13 and we can narrow our focus and become more specific with each part of our training," U.S. coach Ratko Rudic said. "This now takes the psychological pressure off of the 13 men on the team. I expect them to be much more involved than before. These 13 have to live just for this Olympic tournament."
Wigo and Azevedo gives the Americans one of the better one-two scoring punches in the world.
Azevedo was the youngest member of the team in 2000, but has grown into one of the top scorers in the world.
Beaubien is one of the United States' top defenders and also a scoring threat. Hudnut is a two-meter player.
The sixth-ranked United States' team will be in the same Olympic bracket with top-ranked Hungary, No. 3 Serbia and Montenegro, No. 9 Croatia, No. 10 Russia, and unranked Kazakhstan.
"This is the toughest Olympic draw I've ever seen," said Rudic. "I've never heard of a group this tough from top to bottom."
The United States finished sixth at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.
The FINA Super Finals features the top six ranked teams in the world: Hungary, Italy, Serbia and Montenegro, Greece, Spain and the United States.
The Americans open the Super Finals today at 8:45 p.m. against Greece.
Men's rowing
Stanford senior Jamie Schroeder was named to the Olympic team's straight four. He's the only undergraduate on the U.S. Men's Olympic rowing team.
Schroeder becomes the 11th Stanford man to be named to the rowing team, and the first since Dick Lyon and Larry Hough were named in 1972.
"His making the Olympic team is a statement not only to his talent but durability and tenacity," U.S. Olympic coach Craig Amerkhanian said. "Jamie has been blessed with immense desire."
Women's rowing
Stanford will be represented on two Olympic teams. Junior Samantha Magee was named to the United States team, while graduate Sabrina Kolker was named to the Canadian team.
Kolker and Magee were teammates on Stanford's Pac-10 championship team in 2003, and helped earned the Cardinal a third place finish at that year's NCAA championships.
Both will compete on the women's eight boat for their respective countries.
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