Former Cooperstown student misses bronze finish by 10 seconds

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August 6, 2012

Former Cooperstown student misses bronze finish by 10 seconds

Former Cooperstown student finishes just out of medal contention

Anonymous STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS The Daily Star Mon Aug 06, 2012, 03:30 AM EDT

It's not that Sarah Groff slowed down.

It's just that after a 0.93-mile swim, a 26.7-mile bike run and approximately six miles on the roads, Groff couldn't do what Switzerland's Nicole Spirig, Sweden's Lisa Norden and Australia's Erin Densham did Saturday at Hyde Park in London.

The three Olympic triathlon medalists seemingly forgot what they had put their bodies through for close to two hours and surged to a near sprint over the final 500 or so meters.

"If you don't have a kick, you don't have a kick," former Cooperstown Central student Groff told the Los Angeles Times. "I didn't have it. There's nothing I could do at that point."

Groff finished fourth, 10 seconds off the medal podium and 12 seconds shy of the gold medal.

In perhaps the most exciting finish to any race in these Olympics, Spirig was awarded the gold medal only after officials studied a photo at the finish line. Spirig and Norden finished in 1 hour, 59 minutes, 48 seconds. Densham crossed 2 seconds later, and Groff completed the event in 2 hours flat.

Groff, 30, told the LA Times her goal entering the race was to be in contention with 1,000 meters left. Groff certainly accomplished that goal, and the way she did it might have been the most impressive aspect of her race.

About midway through the run, Groff was among a group of seven women in the lead pack. Soon after, she dropped off the pace, falling about 30 yards behind.

Normally in endurance races, athletes who lose contact with the leaders in the latter stages become afterthoughts.

"It was unusual to watch someone come back like that," said Cooperstown cross-country coach Jessie Ravage, who coached Groff as a freshman. "What sets Sarah apart from others is she's determined. She wanted it."

And so, Groff worked her way back to the leaders. When she returned, four remained in the lead group _ the three medalists and Groff. They ran together for about a mile _ with Groff moving as high as second _ before the medalists made their move.

"I looked and it wasn't there," Groff told the LA Times of her finishing kick.

Groff, who left Cooperstown to attend Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts as a junior in high school, finished the 10-kilometer run in 33:52.

Had Groff run the same time at the Pit Run in Oneonta this past October, she would have finished fourth overall _ one spot in front of former SUNY Delhi track and cross-country coach Justin Wood, who crossed in 34:56, and one spot behind Richfield Springs graduate Kane Seamon (33:43).

She would have cruised to the women's title. Alemtsehay Misganaw won in 37:06, 11 seconds ahead of runner-up Amanda LoPiccolo of Oneonta, the 2010 champion.

"When I saw her running yesterday, I thought, 'Boy, I'd still be able to pick you out from across the schoolyard,'" Ravage said of Groff, who lives in New Hampshire. "You can still see the stiffness in her shoulders."

That likely comes from Groff's swimming background. She was a Division III All-American in the freestyle at Middlebury College in Vermont.

Saturday's triathlon started with the swim. Groff spent 19:20 in the water and was the 11th out of 55 when she exited the lake. She picked up three spots in the transition from swim to bike. Aside from one potential disaster, Groff stayed near the back of a 22-woman lead group for most of her ride.

Groff was on the bike for 1:05:40, about a second of that spent running over Poland's Maria Czesnik. The Polish rider wiped out in front of Groff.

"I had nowhere to go," Groff told the LA Times. "Either I crash or I ride over the girl lying in the middle of the road. It was unbelievable."

During the bike ride, Groff was never more than two seconds behind the leaders. She exited her bike eighth and after she transitioned to the run, she stood seventh.

Groff finished far ahead of the other two Americans competing Saturday. Laura Bennett, who finished fourth in Beijing in 2008, placed 17th and Gwen Jorgensen finished 38th.

Following the competition, Groff hinted to the LA Times that she has designs on a trip to Brazil in four years.

"Fourth is the worst position to be in," Groff said. "But at the end of the day, I'm an Olympian. Obviously, I came here to try to get a medal. And I didn't.

"But only three people get a medal," she continued. "I'm going to have to wait another four years."

Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Summer Olympics.