September 2008 Track and Field Articles

(C) Copyright - 2008 - Christopher Kelsall Royal Victoria Marathon – September 30, 2008 – Victoria, BC – Women’s course record on the line at the 2008 Royal Victoria Marathon. Women's record Cheryl Murphy of Victoria, BC may take down the Royal Victoria Marathon (RVM) course record Sunday, October 12, 2008 when she races the 29th annual event. She is looking to continue running well in anticipation of the 12th IAAF World Athletics Championships in Berlin, (‘Berlin 2009’). Murphy’s debut marathon performance was outstanding, Saturday March 1, 2008 at the Snickers Marathon Bar, Marathon in Albany, Georgia. She finished 2nd to… more »

            Conference meets are about a month away, and this weekend’s races gave teams a good indication of their strengths, and what they will need to work on in the upcoming weeks. There were a wide variety of races nationwide, and I am highlighting but a few of them.  As always, I urge you to contribute additional results and comments below. Flotrack can only be made better with your respectful and courteous feedback. Stanford Invitational- In the women’s 6k race, Seattle Pacific’s Jessica Pixler was the top DII finisher. She placed 6th in a time of 21:22. Pixler led her… more »

Yes I know, there were other races this weekend other than Griak across all divisions, but I really want to thank the people at Minnesotta and the various athletic directors across D3 who sent their teams to Griak for making my life a heck of a lot easier this week. Also before I break into recapping this week's action, I must clarify a few errors from last week, one was my own, another was a scoring screw up by meet software. First I was yelled at for saying that Wash U had their full team in when they were beat… more »

SLATTERY WINS U.S. WOMEN'S 8-K TITLEBy David Monti(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved Sara Slattery of Lafayette, Colo., won today's U.S. Women's 8-K Championship in Akron, Ohio.  For the 26 year-old athlete, who won the Pan Am Games 10,000m title in 2007, it was her first ever U.S. open title on any surface. Slattery went for victory early, sharing the lead with race favorite Katie McGregor.  They passed the first mile in 5:05, while a chase pack of eight women, including Amy Rudolph, Molly Huddle, Renee Metivier-Baillie and Lindsey Anderson, kept them in sight.  On a gradual uphill… more »

GEBRSELASSIE ACHIEVES FIRST SUB-2:04 MARATHON IN BERLINMikitenko Joins Sub-2:20 ClubBy David Monti(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved Haile Gebrselassie became the first man in history to break the two hour and four minute barrier when he won today's real,- Berlin Marathon, shattering his own world record set on the same course one year ago.  The 35 year-old Ethiopian, who now owns the three fastest marathon times in history, clocked 2:03:59 under sunny skies accompanied by comfortably cool temperatures (10°C to 12°C). "I'm so happy," Gebrselassie told race organizers immediately after the race.  "Everything was perfect, the weather, the… more »

  Oklahoma State's star freshman recruit, German Fernandez, took third at Footlockers last year and erased Jeff Nelson's 8:36 two-mile high school record with a 8:34 of his own. He, along with Ryan Vail and the rest of the Oklahoma State Cowboys, will look to take that national championship away from the Oregon Ducks.   First off, what is the correct pronunciation of your first name? You say German (hair-mon). But, I go by German, because a lot of people can't pronounce it.   Were you nervous going from dominating high school races to being a freshman on a college… more »

  Don’t be all on your Jack Jones By Danny Mackey, M.S.     Did you ever notice some things are just better together verses alone?          Chips = good, picante salsa = good, chips + picante salsa = great.  I also just got introduced to those Uncrustables, and that reminded me of the classic all time best combos…..peanut butter and jelly.  Side note: if you like PB & J, try Uncrustables, though I think there is “something” in them, so don’t feel bad if you put down an entire box.  You can probably tell I’m hungry while writing this, but what about a… more »

There were a ton of races uploaded this weekend so we will try to organize some of them here.   The 22nd ranked Cedar Park HS held their annual Invite in Cedar Park TX on Sept 20th. Mike Stinson uploaded the races. Thanks Mike. Boys Race Div 5     Girls Race Div 5 Out in California James Roach put up a highlight video of 2008 Woodbridge Invite from Irvine, CA. Thanks James. Woodbridge Highlight Video   If we missed your races or you will be shooting some next weekend or any weekend give us a heads up and we… more »

(C) Copyright - 2008 - Christopher Kelsall Frankly, it surprises me to no end why women are not waving their collective fists in the air, voices united in song, harmoniously belting out the chorus of Aretha Franklin’s classic, 'Respect'. Why it is women are not demanding equal treatment in regards to cross country racing distances, baffles me. I half expected someone to chain themselves to the wrought iron gates of the offices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) worldwide headquarters by now. They do have wrought iron gates, don't they? In collegiate, national and international cross country racing,… more »

 This weekend John Arnold, Me (Mark Floreani), and Madhu will head up to the University of Minnesota for the 2008 Roy Griak Invite. This is the 1st weekend of the XC Season where teams can start to accrue points that will help them earn an at large bid to nationals. Basically this is the first weekend that maters in XC. 2008 Coverage Page Here. Check out our 2007 Coverage here.   -Last Year's Roy Griak's Champion and Olympian Lopez Lomong. < -The Man, the Myth, the race, Roy Griak     TEAMS COMPETING AT GRIAK Men's Field (Rank) Women's Field (Rank) Arizona… more »

            While the first day of fall officially arrived on September 22nd, in many locations across the country fall weather arrived a week early.  With the crisper air came some fast times and exciting races. The results of last weekend’s meets will change the national and regional rankings. As usual, I urge readers to comment for there are many meets every weekend and I sometimes miss results.  Help me out for Flotrack is a community! Coyotes Cross Country Invitational- UC San Diego runners captured the team titles in the women’s 6k and the men’s 8k.  The women took the title… more »

Even though it is already the fourth week of the season, this weekend marked the real start of the march toward november for many of the nations top teams. Many regional rivals squared off for the first time giving the eight regional voters in the coaches' poll a good look at who was overrated and who was overlooked. After the recap of this weekend's results and its impact on the nationals scene, keep reading for an interview with one of the nation's top male xc/track runners - UW Oshkosh's Willy Kaul. RECAP: MEN -  1st ranked SUNY Cortland tied for… more »

September 19, 2008 By Greg Johnson The NCAA News The Division I Championships/Sports Management Cabinet at its inaugural meeting in the new governance structure approved a two-site format that will serve as the first round of the Division I men’s and women’s outdoor track and field championships beginning in 2010. The two-site format, which will be conducted over a three-day period, will replace the current regional qualifying system that raised concerns about competitive equity and fairness in advancement. Under the new plan, institutions will be assigned to either the East or West site for the first round of competition. The… more »

Stanford Cardinal Jake Riley, a redshirt freshman, looks the lead his squad to another top place finish at the NCAA Division I XC Championships. He kicked off the season with a second place finish at the USF Invitational. How's your training going right now?Training is going really well right now, I started keeping a log for the first time this summer because Coach Dunn requires it and I felt like it really focused me. I've been running more mileage than I ever have before, and aside from a few aches and pains here and there I'm feeling really strong.Can you… more »

Austin, Tx: Ryan, Madhu and I (Mark) will be on site in NYC for the 2008 5th Ave Mile. Flotrack will be bring you race coverage and interviews from gthe two great fields the NYRR have put together. The men's field has Bernard Lagat and Nick Willis, who are two of the best milers in the world along with 800 meter runner Nick Symmonds. The women are highlighted with favorite Shannon Rowbury and Australia's Sarah Jamieson. Click Here for the 2008 5th ave. coverage page and her for the 2007 coverage page. more »

Hi Flotrack,    You may or may not care who the heck I am (Danny Mackey), but this first “article” will just be an introduction.  I will try and save the boring  random details of me like, favorite color (light blue) and what albums are on the speakers right now (MGMT, Rage Against the Machine, Tokyo Police Club, The Cool Kids) and get to the running and science stuff.   So, I am from the south side of Chicago.  We moved to the suburbs later and I went to Andrew High School in Tinley Park, IL.  If that sounds familiar… more »

FIFTH AVENUE MILE ANNOTATED START LIST   MEN Bib No., Gender, First Name, Last Name, City, State, Nat., Affiliation, Age, PB Mile, PB 1500m1, M, Bernard Lagat, Tucson, AZ, USA, NIKE, 33, 3:47.28 , 3:26.342, M, Kevin Sullivan, Talahassee, FL, CAN, Reebok, 34, 3:50.26, 3:31.713, M, Nick Willis, Ann Arbor, MI, NZL, Reebok, 25, 3:52.75 , 3:32.174, M, Nick Symmonds, Eugene, OR, USA, Oregon TC Elite, 24, 3:56.72i, 3:40.915, M, Nate Brannen, Ann Arbor, MI, CAN, Reebok, 26, 3:55.11i, 3:34.656, M, Adrian Blincoe, Philadelphia, PA, NZL, New Balance, 28, 3:54.40, 3:35.507, M, Jon Rankin, Chula Vista, CA, USA, NIKE, 26,… more »

Welcome to the 2008 FloAwards Preseason Rankings Page brought to you by the Flotrack NCAA XC panel. We say preseason because teams cannot start paving their way to the NCAA Championships until the weekend of September 27th when points can start being accumulated (more on this in the coming weeks). Every week Flotrack will come out with top 3 rankings for teams, individuals, and Flotrack freshman of the year. From this point forward, votes will come from the Flotrack NCAA XC panel and YOU, the community! So comment below to give us your votes for each category every week.   … more »

(c) Christopher Kelsall - 2008 - All Rights Reserved. As I understand it and because I may have made this up, for us long distance runners, each pound we are over our optimum weight, we are penalized 2 seconds per-mile when racing. If my calculations stand up to the scrutiny and you happen to be in the unfortunate position of being say 10 pounds over optimum weight, you would race 20 seconds per mile slower than your best. Multiply that by 6.2 miles and you have...well you do the math, I can't concentrate. Speaking of weight, refined carbohydrates are after… more »

The 2008 cross country season is in full stride. During the third weekend of competition, there were numerous meets across the nation in which DII teams contributed to the competiveness of the fields. The results of these meets will change the national and regional rankings. As usual, I encourage readers to comment.  After all, Flotrack is a community! Memphis Twilight Classic- This late night race (women at 8:40pm and men at 9:20pm) was a test for the southeast teams. (You can watch coverage of the race here on Flotrack.)  In the women’s 5k, the first DII finisher was Harding’s Ryspher… more »

Three weeks into the season and things are really starting to heat up, as more teams have common meets on their schedules we get to see small previews of regional meets to come. Before i start on this week's recap, I want to apologize for those that had to continually scroll across the screen to view last week's article. Something was messed up with the format, and I hope that this week will not have the same problem. On Thursday, the National Coaches Association released their second poll of 2008 and their first of the regular season. Not a whole… more »

Marie-Louise Asselin, an Ontario native, now rips up the distances in the NCAA for the West Virigina Mountaineers. She's placed 4th at the Canadian Cross Country Championships, 2nd at the Big Easts, and 17th at the NCAA Division I XC Championships. Watch her continue her successful run this season. She'll be opening up at the Paul Short Invitational.   The Olympics were this summer, were you glued to your TV or what did you do?I watched a lot of the Olympics. They were really exciting. I didn't just watch track and field. I watched a lot of other sports too.… more »

    Changing the World One Pair at a Time™ SOLES4SOULS TO HOST 10K RUN & 5K RUN/WALK  ON SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2008 United States Track & Field 2012 Olympic Hopeful,  Jon Rankin, to Run 10K in Inaugural Event Team Rankin Asks Supporters to Help Them Raise Funds for Soles4Souls Nashville, TN—September 9, 2008--- Nashville-based charity Soles4Souls™ Inc., the global organization dedicated to providing free footwear to people in need all over the world, will host the Inaugural Soles4Souls 5K/10K Walk Run on Saturday, September 13, 2008 and are pleased to announce that, Jon Rankin, the United States Track &… more »

By David Monti(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reservedNEW YORK (10-Sep) -- Following in her coach's footsteps, 2007 IAAF World Championships 10,000m bronze medalist Kara Goucher will make her marathon debut at the ING New York City Marathon on Sunday, Nov. 2."Last year when I watched the race first hand, I decided I wanted to run in New York," Goucher commented.  "The ING New York City Marathon is one of the most prestigious, and the course is challenging, so I'm excited for my first marathon to be this one."Goucher's coach, Alberto Salazar, made his marathon debut in New York… more »

One could say that last week the 2008 cross country season came in like a slight breeze. This week, the season was more like a thundering storm. Despite meet cancellations due to hurricanes Gustav and Hannah, including the Campbell and the Bob Gravett invitationals, there were a wide variety of meets all over the country.  As usual, readers are encouraged to comment on and contribute to this week’s article. Joe I Vigil Open - The Adams State College men’s and women’s cross country teams  opened their  2008  season with teams wins at their home meet on Saturday. The women’s team… more »

By David Monti(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reservedOrganizers of the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, which plays host to the 2008 USA Women's 10 Mile Championship, announced today that Kara Goucher will challenge Katie McGregor for that title on Sunday, Oct. 5., in Minneapolis, Minn.Goucher is back in training after doubling at the Beijing Olympics in the 5000 and 10,000 meters last month.  She made the final in the shorter event, finishing ninth, and placed tenth in the longer event in a personal best 30:55.16.  This will be her first 10 mile road race, but at last year's Great… more »

(c) Christopher Kelsall - 2008 - All Rights Reserved. You may remember Colin Jenkins, the Canadian triathlete who celebrated finishing the Beijing Olympics Triathlon more than any other athlete did. He was joyously demonstrative running down the home stretch, motioning to the crowd to cheer more as he ambled in - and cheer they did! Yet Colin was finishing dead last. Considering this, you may wonder why he was celebrating so much. For those of you who may not follow triathlon very closely, Colin was celebrating because he had just done his job as instructed, to the letter. Like in… more »

As Hurricane/Tropical Storm Hanna swooped up the Eastern Seaboard, many D3 teams fought the elements to commence their seasons, including defending champions Amherst College and NYU. Based on the results from this past weekend, it would appear that a number of the top teams are holding out their “big guns” until later in the season, perhaps due to injury, but more than likely in an effort to continue strong training blocks. Other coaches chose to race their top runners, but at a more “tempo” like effort, rather than an all out race. Here is a recap of how the nationally… more »

(c) Christopher Kelsall - 2008 - All Rights Reserved. September 4th, 2008 - Athletics Alberta - Athletics Alberta, The Running Room and Saucony officially announced today through Athletics Alberta's, website (www.athleticsalberta.com) a new pilot project for fall 2008, The Saucony, Run Alberta Cross Country Series. The series is presented by Athletics Alberta while Saucony and The Running Room are the main sponsors. Goals are to: Increase awareness of cross country in AlbertaTo encourage mass participation in cross country runningProvide a series of 5 competitive races for aged 18+ cross country athletes. Races are located close to the major population centres in the cities of Red Deer, Edmonton,… more »

Patrick Smyth, a distance ace from the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, returns his senior year as one of the top returning harriers in all of Division I. His goals are set, and they're set high. Let's see how this multi All-American does this fall XC campaign. What kind of training are you doing right now? Right now we're doing a lot of strength oriented stuff. Today it was really hot here so we tempered the workout a little bit. We had a 3-2-1. A three mile, a two mile, and one mile. We ended up doing a three mile, then… more »

As the 2008 cross country season began it became apparent that there was a lack of D3 coverage on Flotrack. D1 meets and runners are covered semi regularly, and there was already a weekly article on D2, however the NCAA’s third division (which is also its largest) lacks any type of regular coverage. So I begin my quest to bring to you a recap of the previous weekend’s meets every week, and at least every other week an interview with one of the division’s top runners or coaches. My hope is that everyone can gain a little insight about what… more »

The first races of 2008 cross country season were run this past weekend. Though many teams will wait until next week for their first major race, these preliminary races allow athletes to test their legs and to see if their summer training has paid off.  The time has come to see if various teams can live up to the preseason rankings. Usually, on this opening weekend the meets are small and local, but there is still plenty of competition. Readers are free to add to any results they have to the comment section. Wooster Invite: In the women’s 4k race,… more »