World Cup 4, Sofia Bulgaria Women's Qualification recap

The fourth World Cup of the season is underway in Sofia, Bulgaria. As one of the last three opportunities to earn Olympic Ranking Points, athletes from around the globe have converged in Bulgaria, aiming to secure their spots for the 2024 Olympics. The competition kicked off with the women's qualification round, divided into three groups, with the top 12 from each group advancing to the semifinals. Team USA was represented by Phaelen French, Madison Gonzalez, and Jordan Towns.

Jordan Towns, competing in her second World Cup, was the sole American in Group A. She started her day with the swimming event, finishing 25th with a time of 3:00.40. Moving on to fencing, Towns had a mixed performance but managed to rally towards the end, finishing 23rd with a score of 173—over 40 points higher than her debut. In the laser run, despite rainy conditions, she maintained a steady pace to finish 25th in her group with an overall score of 771, nearly 70 points higher than her first World Cup total.

In Group B, French and Gonzalez began with the fencing event. Gonzalez faced challenges but secured significant victories, including one against a two-time Olympian, finishing with a score of 173 in 22nd place. French had a steady start but faltered in her final bouts, finishing 20th with a score of 194, matching her season's best. The swimming event followed, with French posting a time of 2:37.09, closely trailing her best for the season, and finishing 24th. Gonzalez excelled, finishing 4th with a time of 2:16.73. After two events, Gonzalez was 19th and French 24th. In the laser run, Gonzalez struggled at the shooting range but completed her fourth series in just 10 seconds, finishing 23rd with a score of 963. French had her best performance of the season, moving through the shooting series in 41 seconds and posting a 12:08 run time, the fifth fastest in the group, which elevated her to 19th place with a total of 1002 points.

Unfortunately , none of the women advanced to the semifinals. The focus for Team USA now shifts to the men's qualification round. Go Team USA!