Two former students were chosen to their respective national teams this week to compete in the upcoming Beijing Olympics, which begin on August 8 with the opening ceremony. Currently there are eight athletes with ties to Texas A&M who are scheduled to compete in China next month when the track and field portion takes place from August 15-24.

Tyrone Edgar was selected to the relay pool of the 4 x 100 relay for Great Britain after placing fourth in the 100 meter final during the British Olympic Trials held in Birmingham this past weekend. Recent efforts by Fabrice Lapierre in the long jump earned him a spot on the Australian team.

While awaiting a court decision regarding British sprinter Dwain Chambers, Edgar may still be selected to compete in the 100 meters at the Olympics for Great Britain. Earlier this summer, Edgar won the 100 meter title in 10.20 seconds during the European Cup and also ran on the winning 4 x 100 relay. He also set a personal best of 10.06 at the end of May.

After placing fourth at the Australian Championships last March, Lapierrre has jumped over 26 feet three times in the past month. He produced a season best mark of 26-7 (8.10) on June 15 to win the Gold Coast meet in Australia and then placed second in Greece on July 9 with an effort of 26-5.5 (8.06). This past weekend a mark of 26-1 (7.95) won the City Sports meet in Cork, Ireland, over James Beckford of Jamaica.

Already selected to compete for the United States are Erica Bartolina in the pole vault and Muna Lee in the 100, 200 and 4 x 100 relay.

Bartolina, who competed as Boren in becoming the first female pole vaulter in A&M history, still holds indoor and outdoor school records in the event. She cleared 14-11 (4.55), a personal best, and surpassed the Olympic A qualifying standard in placing third at the U.S. Olympic Trials.

Lee, a seven-time NCAA champion and 20-time All-American while at LSU, is in her first season as a volunteer assistant coach at Texas A&M. She won the 100 meters in a career best of 10.85 at the U.S. Olympic Trials and finished second in the 200 with a windy clocking of 21.99. She is the only women to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team in both the 100 and 200 meters.

A&M senior-to-be Allison George (100, 200) and volunteer assistant Alleyne Francique (400) will compete for Grenada in the Olympics. Also in the relay pool of the 4 x 100 for their respective countries are Simone Facey (Jamaica) and Richard Adu-Bobie (Canada).

Only 16 countries are selected to compete in each of the four relay races. The United States is one of six countries who have qualified for all four events. The others include Jamaica, Great Britain, Germany, France and Poland.

Texas A&M Track and Field – 2008 Olympic athletes

United States

Erica (Boren) Bartolina pole vault former student

Muna Lee 100, 200, 4 x 100 volunteer assistant

Australia

Fabrice Lapierre long jump former student

Canada

Richard Adu-Bobie 4 x 100 relay pool 08 senior

Grenada

Allison George 100, 200 08 junior

Alleyne Francique 400 volunteer assistant

Great Britain

Tyrone Edgar 4 x 100 relay pool former student

Jamaica

Simone Facey 4 x 100 relay pool 08 senior