PRINCETON, N.J. - The selection process has come to an end for the men's eight that will represent the United States at the 2016 Final Qualification Regatta, May 22-24, in Lucerne, Switzerland. The opportunity to compete in Rio at the 2016 Olympic Games hinges on a top-two finish there.
Members of the crew include coxswain Sam Ojserkis (Linwood, N.J.), Glenn Ochal (Philadelphia, Pa.), Rob Munn (Redmond, Wash.), Mike DiSanto (Boston, Mass.), Steve Kasprzyk (Cinnaminson, N.J.), Austin Hack (Old Lyme, Conn.), Alex Karwoski (Hollis, N.H.), Hans Struzyna (Kirkland, Wash.) and Sam Dommer (Folsom, Calif.).
Ochal and Kasprzyk return from the 2012 U.S. Olympic Team; Ochal won a bronze medal in the four, while Kasprzyk raced in the eight that finished fourth in London. Hack, Karwoski and Dommer return to the boat from last year's seventh-place world championship crew.
"We know what we have to do," said Ojserkis. "We are trying to get faster every day with the ultimate goal of qualifying this boat for the Olympic Games."
Selection for the men's eight was determined by lineup evaluations and training camp performance in Chula Vista, Calif., and Princeton, N.J., under U.S. men's coach Luke McGee. Entries for the Lucerne qualifier will be announced after the May 9 registration deadline.
In addition to the eight, three other U.S. men's crews will look to gain Olympic qualification in Lucerne. Two-time Olympian Ken Jurkowski (New Fairfield, Conn.) needs a top-three finish in the single sculls; Willy Cowles (Farmington, Conn.) and Stephen Whelpley (Moquon, Wis.) need a top-two finish in the double sculls; and Ben Davison (Inverness, Fla.), Ben Dann (Pound Ridge, N.Y.), John Graves (Cincinnati, Ohio) and 2012 Olympian Peter Graves (Cincinnati, Ohio.) need a top-two finish in the quadruple sculls.