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Sarah True
Triathlon

Sarah TRUE

Olympian 2012, 2016

Athlete Bio 

Height

5’8”

Age

43

Hometown

Hanover, NH

Education

Cooperstown High School (Cooperstown, NY.) Middlebury College ‘04, Conservation Biology/ Studio Art

Olympic Experience
  • 2-time Olympian
    • Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016, (Olympic Distance - Women)
    • Olympic Games London 2012, 4th (Olympic Distance - Women)
Career Highlights
2017 ITU World Triathlon Edmonton silver medalist
2016 U.S. Olympic Team Member
2-time ITU World Triathlon Stockholm champion (2015, 2014)
3-time ITU World Championships medalist (silver: 2014; bronze: 2015, 2011)
2015 ITU World Triathlon London bronze medalist
2015 ITU World Triathlon Gold Coast silver medalist
Ranked No. 2 in the 2014 Threadneedle ITU World Triathlon Series rankings
2012 USAT Olympic/ITU Athlete of the Year
2012 U.S. Olympic Team Member
Fourth at the 2012 Olympic Games
2011 USAT Olympic/ITU Athlete of the Year
Ranked No. 3 in the 2011 ITU World Championship Series rankings
Ranked No. 4 in the 2008 ITU rankings

Elite Triathlon Career

2017: Claimed victory at IRONMAN 70.3 Austin on Oct. 29 • Placed third at IRONMAN 70.3 Edinburgh on July 2 • Earned a silver medal at IRONMAN 70.3 Mont-Tremblant on June 25 • Won silver at IRONMAN 70.3 Chattanooga on May 21 • Recorded a 34th-place finish at ITU World Triathlon Gold Coast on April 8 • Placed 10th at the New Plymouth ITU Triathlon World Cup on April 2 • Earned silver at the Sarasota CAMTRI Sprint Triathlon American Cup on March 11

2016: Placed seventh at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Cozumel, Mexico, on Sept. 11 • Earned a silver medal at ITU World Triathlon Edmonton on Sept. 3 • Qualified for the U.S. Olympic Team and competed at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games on Aug. 18 • Posted her first top-10 effort of the season with a ninth place at WTS Cape Town on April 24 • Finished 25th at WTS Gold Coast • Opened her season with WTS Abu Dhabi on March 5, but did not finish the race after being caught in a late-stage bike crash

2015: Ended the season ranked No. 3 in the world to earn her third career ITU World Championships medal • Posted a seventh-place finish at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final Chicago • Won her second career WTS title at the Stockholm stop • Qualified for her second U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team spot on Aug. 2 at the Rio de Janeiro ITU Olympic World Qualification Event with a fourth-place finish • Fourth at WTS Hamberg • Finished third at WTS London on May 30 to complete the second U.S. podium sweep of the season • Placed 13th at WTS Cape Town • Earned her first podium finish of the season with a second-place effort at WTS Gold Coast on April 11 • Part of the first-ever U.S. podium sweep in the ITU World Triathlon Series with her silver medal performance in Gold Coast • Logged top-10 finishes at WTS Auckland (eighth; March 28) and WTS Abu Dhabi (ninth; March 7)

2014: Clinched the No. 2 spot in the season world rankings with a fourth-place finish at the Aug. 30 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Edmonton, Alberta • Grabbed her first career World Triathlon Series win at the ITU World Triathlon Stockholm on Aug. 23 • Recorded five top-five finishes in 2014 World Triathlon Series races • Finished 15th at ITU World Triathlon Hamburg following an injury that nearly ended her season • Runner-up at the ITU World Triathlon London on May 31 for her first podium finish on the ITU World Triathlon Series circuit since finishing third in Hamburg in 2012 • Fourth at the ITU World Triathlon Cape Town • Fifth at the ITU World Triathlon Auckland • Finished seventh at the New Plymouth ITU Triathlon World Cup

2013: Earned four top-8 finishes on the 2013 ITU World Triathlon Series circuit (San Diego, Madrid, Stockholm and the London Grand Final) • Won the 2013 Clermont ITU Pan American Cup • Placed second at Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon • Runner-up at USA Triathlon Elite National Championships by virtue of finishing as the second American at the 2013 Omegawave World Triathlon San Diego • Runner-up at Cozumel ITU World Cup behind 2012 Olympic gold medalist Nicola Spirig

2012: Named the 2012 USA Triathlon Olympic/ITU Athlete of the Year • Finished seventh overall and was the No. 1 American for the second straight year in the 2012 ITU World Triathlon Series rankings • Placed ninth at the 2012 ITU World Triathlon Series Grand Final in Auckland • Finished seventh at the 2012 ITU World Triathlon Yokohama • Led the U.S. with a fourth-place finish at the 2012 London Olympic Games • On the run, Groff bridged back up to the leaders on the final 2.5k lap before falling 10 seconds short of the podium • Finished third in her final Olympic Games tune-up at the 2012 Dextro Energy Triathlon Hamburg for her second career World Triathlon Series podium finish • Placed 15th at the 2012 ITU World Triathlon San Diego

2011: Named the 2011 USA Triathlon Olympic/ITU Athlete of the Year • Recorded the top season by an American in the three-year history of the ITU World Championship Series in 2011 by placing third overall to earn a spot on the series podium • Finished 10th at the 2011 WCS Grand Final in Beijing to secure her third-place finish in the series • Placed seventh at the Hy-Vee Triathlon Elite Cup • Posted five top-10 finishes in the seven WCS events in 2011 • Finished seventh at the 2011 ITU Elite Sprint World Championships • Part of the U.S. team that took fifth at the 2011 ITU Team Triathlon World Championships • Qualified for the 2012 U.S. Olympic Triathlon Team with a seventh-place finish at the 2011 London WCS event on the proposed Olympic course • Earned the first-ever podium finish in a WCS event by a U.S. woman by taking third in Kitzbühel in 2011 • Posted a then-career-best WCS finish of seventh in Madrid in 2011 • Opened the 2011 season with an eighth-place finish at the Mooloolaba ITU World Cup

2010: Placed second at the 2010 USA Triathlon Elite National Championship in Tuscaloosa, Ala. • Wrapped up the 2010 ITU World Championship Series as the No. 3 American and 20th overall • Placed fifth at the 2010 Toyota U.S. Open Triathlon in Rockwall, Texas • Posted three straight top-12 WCS finishes in 2010 — 10th in Kitzbuhel, 12th in London and eighth in Hamburg on July 18 • Placed 17th at the 2010 Hy-Vee ITU Elite Cup • Took 19th at the 2010 ITU World Championship Series opener in Sydney • Finished fifth at the season-opening 2010 Mooloolaba ITU World Cup

2009 and earlier: Ranked 17th overall and second among Americans in the 2009 ITU World Championship rankings • Posted three top-10 ITU finishes in 2009, including ninth-place showings in Madrid and Washington, D.C. • Finished 2008 ranked No. 4 in the ITU World Cup rankings • Took the San Francisco Triathlon at Treasure Island title in 2008 and was second at the Huatulco ITU World Cup event • Placed seventh at the 2008 ITU World Championships in Vancouver • Won 2007 Geneva ITU Pan American Cup • Placed fourth at Edmonton World Cup in 2007 • 2007 ITU Aquathlon World Champion • Was second at ITU World Team Championships in Cancun, Mexico

Athletic Background: At Cooperstown High School, ran cross country and track and swam on the boy's swim team, as the school didn't have a girl's team at the time • Transferred to Deerfield Academy as a junior and competed on the cross country and swimming teams, earning All-New England Prep honors • At Division III Middlebury College, swam for four years as a freestyler and earned All-NESCAC and All-America honors
 

Quick Facts
Sarah Brooke Groff True • Born November 27, 1981, in Hanover, N.H. • Grew up the youngest child in a family of five • Daughter of Jeannine and Gerald • Both siblings are married and highly accomplished: Adam is a MD/MBA and Lauren is a highly regarded fiction writer • Married elite runner Ben True on Oct. 18, 2014  • A double major in conservation biology and studio art at Middlebury College, graduating cum laude and with highest honors in art • When finished with triathlon, she plans on going into environmental law • Has two dogs • Enjoys skiing and mountain biking • Also enjoys hiking, printmaking, woodcarving, bird watching and cooking
World Championships Experience
  • Most recent: 2013 – bronze (Team Relay - Mixed)
  • Years of participation: Team Relay - Mixed 2011, 2013; Individual Ranking - Women 2009, 2010, 2011; Sprint Distance - Women 2011; Olympic Distance - Women 2006, 2007, 2008
  • Medals: 2 (2 bronze)
    • Bronze – 2013 (Team Relay - Mixed); 2011 (Individual Ranking - Women)

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