COLORADO SPRINGS – One of the surprises of the recent release of the Team USA short course World roster was the fact that Katie Hoff withdrew from the competition.
Anticipating that the swimming community might have some questions regarding the withdrawal, Hoff released the following statement via USA Swimming with an answer on why.
“I am disappointed to share that I have decided to withdraw from the SC Worlds team. The opportunity to represent Team USA in international competition is an honor but I do not believe it would be right for me to do so when I am not 100%. As many of you know, I had to withdraw from my events at US Nationals earlier this summer for what was initially diagnosed as an intercostal strain, but I have since learned that I was dealing with two blood clots in my lungs. As a precaution, I have been advised to avoid international air travel for the time being. Thankfully, I am on the road to recovery and plan to swim at the Minneapolis Grand Prix this month to see where I am at with my conditioning, and I look forward to swimming a full schedule in 2015.”
As she said in her statement, she’s not completely off the table due to her health issues, and will be competing this month in Minneapolis to see how she can continue to progress in her return to swimming following an absence to focus on school.