Fast Times In Store At The Grand Prix

Feb 5, 2015 by Gordon Mack

The fastest track meet in the world this weekend will be held at the Reggie Lewis Center in Boston for the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. Ageless wonder Bernard Lagat will run the 3,000m on Saturday night, an event which Lagat is a former American record holder. The 40-year-old should have no problem breaking the master’s world record of 8:01.44, but it will be no easy task to beat the talented group of pros that will line up against him. Similarly favored will be Jenny Simpson in the two-mile, the nightcap on a Saturday full of record attempts and season openers. Simpson will make her 2015 debut in Boston, and she will seek the 9:23.38 American record which alluded her a year ago at this meet. Here are your events to watch:

Men's 1k (5:12pm CT)

ALERT! ALERT! David Torrence’s 2:16.76 1,000m American record will be on shaky ground when this field of mid-distance stars line up on Saturday night. Three-quarters of the Team USA DMR world record squad are slated to battle, that being Matthew Centrowitz, Erik Sowinski, and Pat Casey.

Joining them will be newly anointed 600m American record holder Cas Loxsom (1:15.58), who loves a hot pace from the gun. The fastest PB in this one comes from Sowinski, who ran 2:18.63 just one year ago. A lot will depend on the pacemaking, as tight turns can make for tentative runners if the tempo isn’t right at the beginning. For our money, Sowinski and Centro have the best shot of any to take down Torrence’s record.

Women's 1k (5:33pm CT)

Mary Cain returns to the site of her World Junior record (2:35.80) from last year looking to lower that mark once again. Cain has run three races thus far in 2015, one 600m and two 800m, a sign that Coach Salazar is focused on the 18-year-old’s speed development to prepare her for the hard kicking races that she’ll face this summer. At the Armory last week, Cain ran a PB of 2:02.75, a sign that this record could be in danger.

Lining up against Cain will be her NOP teammate Treniere Moser. Moser set a PB of 2:01.79 last week at the Armory, nearly taking down 2014 world leader Ajee Wilson. Moser finished more than two seconds behind her teenage teammate in this event last year, but her early season success in the 800 suggests that she is ready to challenge for the win this time around.

Molly Beckwith-Ludlow is a name that is often overlooked on the American mid-distance scene, but she was the most consistent 800m runner in the US in 2014. MBL had nine races at 2:00 or faster last season, her fastest being a 1:59.30 last July. Beckwith finished fourth in this race last season with a 2:37.19 PB.

Women's DMR (5:42pm CT)

The men did it last week, now it’s the women’s turn to take a shot at the world record. Team New Balance USA will be represented by Sarah Brown, Mahogany Jones, Megan Krumpoch, and Brenda Martinez, and they will have the 10:50.98 mark set by the 2009 Tennessee Volunteers on their minds when the gun goes off on Saturday.

Ironically, Sarah Brown was a part of that Tennessee squad that set the current record at the 2009 NCAA Championships, and Brown would be more than happy to see that record fall with a different set of teammates. The former Sarah Bowman will run lead-off for this attempt, whereas she was the anchor back in 2009. Brown ran 2:36.90 in the 1k here last year, so she should have no problem over 1200m.

Brenda Martinez will anchor this race for the Americans. Outside of her bronze medal at Worlds 2013 in the 800m, Martinez has a 4:20 road mile to her credit from Fifth Avenue last September. This record will most likely rest on her shoulders alone, since she should have a big lead by the time she gets the stick.

Other teams in this one are: New Balance Ireland, Harvard, Boston College, Northeastern, and New York All-Stars.

Men's 3k (6:28pm CT)

Nothing says “It’s February” more than Bernard Lagat and the indoor 3k. Lagat held the American record of 7:32.43 from 2007-2013 before Galen Rupp utterly demolished it for good with his 7:30.16 in Stockholm two years ago. While his AR breaking days may be behind him, age does not overpower Lagat’s consistency when it comes to the 15 lap race. From 2007-2014, Lagat’s average SB in the indoor 3,000m was 7:37.18.

Lagat will face stiff competition from a man he sees everyday in training. Lawi Lalang, fresh off his 3:52 split in 1600m leg of the DMR at the Armory, will be tough to beat if he is on form. Lalang’s split in that DMR was four seconds faster than any other anchor in the field, and there’s no reason why he can’t keep his momentum rolling. The key for Lalang to win this race is strong tactics against the master strategist Lagat. Leading for too long could spell trouble for the often aggressive Lalang. Even at 40, Lagat can still hammer a 25-second last 200m.

Those two won’t run alone. Ethiopian Dejen Gebremeskel has run 12:46 over 5,000m, albeit nearly three years ago. Hassan Mead and Will Leer never back down from a good fight, and they’ll bring plenty of punch to the Reggie Lewis Center on Saturday night. Mead ran 13:02 for 5,000m last spring, while Leer is the defending Wanamaker Mile champion.

Women's 2 Mile (6:45pm CT)

Let’s flash back to a year ago at this meet. Jenny Simpson was looking for an American record in the two-mile, the 9:23.38 that had stood since 2002. Simpson made her move to the front and started kicking like a champ. Problem was that when she crossed the finish line, there was still a lap left to run. Whoops! By the time she realized what was happening, Sally Kipyego had taken control of the race. Simpson was embarrassed, but she still managed to run a PB of 9:26.19. Here was her reaction.

If you missed the 2014 track season or were living under a rock, Jenny Simpson was downright unstoppable. Outside of winning the Diamond League in the 1500m, Simpson also set PBs in the 1500m (3:57.22), road mile (4:20), 3,000m (8:29.58), and of course the two mile (9:26.19). If you don’t think Simpson is going to break the American record on Saturday, you either 1) don’t know what you’re talking about OR 2) are betting on her miscounting laps again. Seriously, this record is toast unless Simpson does another Lopez Lomong impression.