The World Selection Committee is a group of the most knowledgeable, experienced, and dedicated individuals in the global food security field. The Committee selects one prize winner each year and recognizes the contributions of others who help achieve a food-secure world. The Committee welcomes nominations of individuals who work across boundaries of geography, age, gender, race and ethnicity, to promote peace in the world by achieving food security and reducing hunger and malnutrition. The Committee also encourages nominations of individuals who work in ways that emulate the achievements of Norman Borlaug, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to feed the world and reduce poverty.
The committee meets at the World Selection Event, held in Katy, Texas. Gymnasts will compete in the all-around, and the highest scorer locks her spot on the team for the world championships. The committee may also name a non-traveling alternate.
There are 19 gymnasts vying for six spots at the event, including reigning Olympic all-around champion Simone Biles, 2022 world all-around silver medalist Shilese Jones, and a host of other top contenders including Tokyo floor exercise champion Jade Carey, Tokyo vault champion Jordan Chiles, and former Olympic team alternates Leanne Wong and Skye Blakely. The committee is expected to name the final team at the end of camp, after the gymnasts have competed in all events on Friday and Saturday.
During the selection process, the committee evaluates candidates for a prize in the following ways: consistency (% of routines that are hit); results at recent major competitions; D-scores and E-scores at selection camp; performance at previous international events, including GK U.S. Classic and American Classic; personal bests; and composite strength, with consideration for potential all-around and event medals. The committee also takes into account whether each candidate is ready to train hard for the season ahead, given their current injuries and level of fitness.
The committee must carefully manage a number of other factors when making its decision, including the potential for bias and a lack of consensus. To minimize bias, the committee should avoid publicly sharing individual evaluations or rankings, and only show cumulative rankings for candidates at the end of the process. Committee members should discuss their recommendations in random order, so that candidates who were evaluated and discussed earlier are not favored or given short shrift. It is important that the committee take adequate time to make its decision. Research has shown that implicit bias is mitigated when committees have enough time to discuss the nominees, rather than making snap judgments. Taking time to deliberate over nominations can also mitigate the risk of a groupthink phenomenon, when all members tend to follow the lead of a few key members. This is also why it is critical that committees have at least six members to ensure a full and diverse representation of the field of nominees.