COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee today announced the first-ever U.S. Beach Games Team, set to compete at the inaugural ANOC World Beach Games Qatar 2019 from Oct. 12-16 in Doha. The six-day competition will feature 13 sports and 14 disciplines, and more than 1,200 athletes from 97 nations are expected to participate.
“These great Team USA athletes are prepared and excited to represent the United States at the first-ever ANOC World Beach Games,” said Rick Adams, USOPC chief of sport performance and NGB services. “The opportunity to represent your country and compete in a multisport event like this is always unique and special, and we look forward to joining competitors and officials from around the world in Qatar for what we know will be a terrific Games experience.”
The World Beach Games are an international multi-sport event that was created by Association of National Olympic Committees, designed to connect new sports and news stars with a new generation of sports fans. Qatar 2019 marks the inaugural edition of the Games.
The 69-member U.S. roster is comprised of 27 men and 42 women. Team USA will be represented in all 13 sports.
“I am so excited to once again represent the United States of America in the ANOC World Games,” said Casey Patterson, Rio 2016 Olympian in beach volleyball. “Competing in Rio 2016 was such a special part of my life and having another opportunity to compete for the U.S. is always an honor. I have a chance to compete alongside not only amazing athletes but some of my favorite humans. Our teams are assembled with amazing talent. For me, it’s about leading the team by providing my years of experience on and off the sand. My goal is to help us find the highest competitive potential and synergy as a team.”
Patterson (Newbury Park, California) and two-time Olympic swimmer Haley Anderson (Granite Bay, California) are the Olympians highlighting the roster.
Anderson, an Olympic Games London 2012 silver medalist, will compete in open water swimming after already qualifying for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. Open-water swimmer Ashley Twichell (Fayetteville, New York) will also be competing in Qatar. Anderson and Twichell both qualified for Tokyo 2020 by finishing in the top 10 of the women’s 10-kilometer race at the 2019 FINA World Championships – Anderson with the silver medal and Twichell placing sixth.
Anderson and Twichell were the first U.S. athletes to qualify by name for Tokyo.
Skateboarder Heimana Reynolds (Honolulu, Hawaii) will be competing in Doha fresh after capturing the park world title in September 2019 and Karissa Cook (Santa Cruz, California) also comes off of a gold-medal win in beach volleyball at the Pan American Games Lima 2019 in July.
Additionally, Ariel Torres (Hialeah, Florida) heads into the Beach Games with a Lima 2019 silver-medal win in karate under his belt.
One sibling duo will compete for Team USA in Qatar: brothers Riley and Maddison McKibbin (Honolulu, Hawaii) in beach volleyball.
Click here to view the complete 2019 U.S. Beach Games Team roster.
Qatar 2019 – By the Numbers
- 1,240 athletes
- 97 National Olympic Committees
- 13 sports
- 14 disciplines
- 350 medal opportunities
- 6 competition days
- 4 competition venues
