February 26, 2007 (Colorado Springs, CO) – USA Cycling has named 15 riders to the U.S. National Team that will compete in the 2007 Continental Mountain Bike Championships next month in Argentina.

The Continental Championships will play a key role in determining how many start positions the United States will receive at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing since it offers significant international ranking points.

Four athletes were automatically selected to the elite men’s squad by holding the top four U.S. seats in the UCI individual rankings: Jeremy Horgan-Kobelski (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Gary Fisher) Adam Craig (Bend, Ore./Giant), Jeremiah Bishop (Harrisonburg, Va./Trek-Volkswagen), and Todd Wells (Durango, Colo./GT-Hyundai) were ranked 11th, 17th, 22nd, and 55th in the world respectively as of December 31, 2006.

Michael Broderick (Chilmark, Mass./Kenda-Seven Cycles) will join the elite men’s squad as a discretionary selection. The fifth-ranked U.S. rider in the UCI standings was chosen based on several factors including his commitment to racing a full 2007 UCI World Cup schedule, his potential to place in the top three, and his likelihood to affect the United States’ nation’s ranking for 2007, which plays a vital role in the number of spots the U.S. receives for Beijing.

The elite women will be lead by defending Continental Champion and seventh-ranked rider in the world, Mary McConneloug (Fairfax, Calif./Kenda-Seven Cycles). McConneloug will team up with three other automatic selections: Heather Irmiger (Boulder, Colo./Subaru-Gary Fisher), Willow Koerber (Horseshoe, N.C./Subaru-Gary Fisher), and Shonny Vanlandingham (Durango, Colo./Luna), who held the world’s 24th, 26th, and 31st spots at the end of 2006.

Current USA Cycling National Champion Georgia Gould (Ketchum, Idaho/Luna) will also compete for Team USA in the elite women’s contest as a discretionary nominee.

Headlining the men’s U23 squad is current U23 National Champion Sam Schultz (Missoula, Mont.), who recently secured his first pro contract with Subaru-Gary Fisher for the 2007 season. As the top American U23 rider at the 2006 UCI World Championships, Schultz was the only automatic selection to the men’s U23 squad.

Schultz will be joined by two discretionary picks: Sam Jurekovic (Colorado Springs, Colo./USA Cycling Development Team) and Colin Cares (Boulder, Colo./USA Cycling Development Team). As the second-ranked U23 rider in the U.S. last season, Jurekovic was the U23 silver medalist at the national championships and he also held the second U.S. spot in the U23 world rankings last year. Cares was selected to the team based on his third-place ranking in the U.S. in 2006.

2006 USA Cycling Collegiate National Champion Chloe Foresman (Boulder, Colo./Luna) earned the only automatic nomination to the U23 women’s team as the top-ranked American in the UCI standings in 2006. She was also the fastest American at last year’s world championships with an 11th-place effort.

Riding with Foresman will be discretionary pick Melanie Meyers (Flagstaff, Ariz./Kenda-X-Fusion-Titus) who shows great potential for both national and international competition. Meyers was the bronze medalist in the U23 National Championship race last year as well as the second-ranked U.S. rider in the world.

The Continental Championships take place March 6-12 in Neuquen, Argentina.

U.S. Roster

Elite Men Cross Country
– Jeremy Horgan-Kobleski (Boulder, Colo.)
– Adam Craig (Bend, Ore.)
– Jeremiah Bishop (Harrisonburg, Va.)
– Todd Wells (Durango, Colo.)
– Michael Broderick (Chilmark, Mass.)

Elite Women Cross Country
– Mary McConneloug (Chilmark, Mass.)
– Heather Irmiger (Boulder, Colo.)
– Willow Koerber (Horseshoe, N.C.)
– Shonny Vanlandingham (Durango, Colo.)
– Georgia Gould (Ketchum, Idaho)

U23 Men Cross Country
– Sam Schultz (Missoula, Mont.)
– Sam Jurekovic (Colorado Springs, Colo.)
– Colin Cares (Boulder, Colo.)

U23 Women Cross Country
– Chloe Foresman (Boulder, Colo.)
– Melanie Myers (Flagstaff, Ariz.)