Dinsmore, Anderson Among Candidates for USA Best of June Awards

The United States Olympic Committee today announced finalists for the Team USA Awards presented by Dow, Best of June, which recognize the outstanding achievements of Team USA athletes from last month. Fans are invited to vote for their favorite athletes and teams at Awards.TeamUSA.org through midnight Monday, July 9.

A total of 11 sports – including badminton, boxing, diving, golf, Para track and field, shooting, swimming, tennis, triathlon, water polo and wheelchair rugby – are represented among the 13 finalists across men’s, women’s and team categories. The finalists’ collective accomplishments tell the inspiring story of U.S. Olympic and Paralympic athletes year-round.

In addition to Dow, the presenting sponsor, the Team USA Awards are supported by DICK’S Sporting Goods and USG.

JUNE FINALISTS

Male Athlete of the Month
Khalil Coe (Jersey City, New Jersey), Boxing
Defeated 2016 Olympic champion Julio Cesar la Cruz of Cuba by a first-round knockout to win the gold medal in his international debut at the 2018 Chemistry Cup in Halle, Germany.

David Dinsmore (New Albany, Ohio), Diving
Captured bronze medals in the 10-meter and team event at the world cup in Wuhan, China, qualifying him for the 2019 FINA Diving World Series.

Vincent Hancock (Eatonton, Georgia), Shooting
Won his third consecutive gold medal in skeet at the world cup in Siggiwei, Malta, marking his 10th world cup victory and helping him maintain his undefeated season.

Daniel Romanchuk (Mount Airy, Maryland), Para Track and Field
Broke two world records in the 5,000-meter (9:44.84) at Swiss Nationals and in the 800 (1:29.66) at the Arizona Grand Prix, becoming the first man in the T54 class to go under the 1:30 mark in the event.

Bubba Watson (Bagdad, Florida), Golf
Earned his third PGA Tour victory of the season at the Travelers Championship, making him the only three-time winner on the tour this season.

Female Athlete of the Month
Haley Anderson (Granite Bay, California), Swimming
Claimed medals at three open water events in June, winning gold and silver medals in the FINA World Series 10-kilometer event, and a gold medal in the 5K mixed team event at the European Cup.

Breanna Clark (Los Angeles, California), Para Track and Field
Lowered her own world record in the 400-meter at the Arizona Grand Prix, winning the event in 55.99 to secure her place at the top of the T20 world rankings.

Sloane Stephens (Plantation, Florida), Tennis
Reached the singles final at the French Open and became the top-ranked American woman at No. 4 in the world.

Katie Zaferes (Hampstead, Maryland), Triathlon
Secured the No. 1 world ranking after earning the bronze medal at the world series in Leeds, England, marking her third consecutive podium finish on the ITU World Triathlon Series circuit.

Beiwen Zhang (Las Vegas, Nevada), Badminton
Won the silver medal in women’s singles, becoming the first American to earn a medal at the U.S. Open since 2014, when she won gold in the event.

Team of the Month
U.S. Mixed Relay Team, Triathlon
The No. 2 ranked team of Kirsten Kasper (North Andover, Massachusetts), Eli Hemming (Kiowa, Colorado), Zaferes and Matthew McElroy (Huntington Beach, California) came from behind to claim the mixed relay gold medal at the world series in Nottingham England.

U.S. Women’s Senior National Team, Water Polo
Claimed its fifth straight tournament title – and 12th overall – at the FINA World League Super Final, marking the longest streak by any nation in the women’s World League.

U.S. National Team, Wheelchair Rugby
Topped No. 1-ranked Australia and No. 3-ranked Japan to win the gold medal with a perfect 6-0 record at the Canada Cup in Richmond, British Columbia.

SELECTION PROCESS
Each National Governing Body may nominate one female, one male and one team per sport discipline. An internal nominating committee selects finalists to advance to the voting round. Votes received from NGB representatives and select members of the media account for 50 percent of the final tally, with the other half determined by online fan voting via Awards.TeamUSA.org.