May 2009 Track and Field Articles

NEW YORK - The world watched in awe at the 2008 Olympic Games as Jamaican sprinters wrestled the title of the world's dominant sprint country from the United States, sweeping the gold medals in the men's and women's 100 and 200 meters. At Saturday's Reebok Grand Prix at Icahn Stadium, two of the most decorated leaders in that rivalry will face off once again as Veronica Campbell and Lauryn Williams - the last two world champions in the women's 100 meters - face off in the Visa Women's 100. Their race will be part of a sprinting spectacular that also will include… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - In his first 200m race on American soil since the disastrous 200m quarter-final at the Olympic Trials, Tyson Gay will look to reclaim the form that won him the 2007 100 and 200 World Championship titles when he competes Saturday at the 2009 Reebok Grand Prix at Icahn Stadium on Randall's Island in New York City. The fourth stop of USA Track & Field's 2009 Visa Championship Series, the Reebok Grand Prix will be televised live on NBC from 4:30 p.m.-6:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The most medaled entrant in the Western Union men's 200m, the race is far from a… more »

© Copyright – Christopher Kelsall – 2009 Jason Loutitt has lived just about everywhere in western Canada. He was born in Trail, British Columbia where his father played Jr. Hockey. He grew up in Uranium City, Saskatchewan until he was 8, Edmonton, Alberta for another 8 and yet another 8 years were spent in Winnipeg, Manitoba serving with the Canadian forces in the Army. Loutitt also attended University in Winnipeg and has called Fort McMurray, Saskatoon, Chemainus, Victoria, Regina, Vancouver, Shawnigan Lake, Canmore, Banff and now Duncan, BC on Vancouver Island 'home'. He has moved 37 times in 35 years.… more »

University of Southern California's senior, Eva Orban, a Hungary native, has been one of the top hammer throwers in the country in her four years in college. She's a two-time Olympian and is the reigning NCAA outdoor champion. Orban's got the best throw (226-11) in the country this year, leading the second-best mark (221-1) by over five feet. You're the defending NCAA Champion in the hammer throw and you've already got the biggest throw this year...by a lot. Are things going right on schedule for you? Everything is going really well. Practice has been going very well. I'm getting back… more »

National Running Day to Unite the Country Through Events and Activities from New York to San Diego on Wednesday, June 3 Major U.S. running organizations to host local events as part of national effort to get Americans moving  NEW YORK - The United States running industry on Wednesday announced an unprecedented unified effort to launch the inaugural National Running Day on Wednesday, June 3, to nationally and locally promote running as a healthy, easy, and accessible form of exercise. Across the country, the day will celebrate the benefits of running as part of a healthy and active lifestyle aimed at combating… more »

May 27, 2009   Wartburg Women Claim Inaugural Deb Vercauteren Program of Year Award   NEW ORLEANS – After winning both the NCAA Division III Women’s Indoor and Outdoor Track and Field National Championships, the Wartburg women added another piece of hardware to its collection on Wednesday when the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association announced the final standings for the NCAA Division III Deb Vercauteren Program of the Year award.   "To receive this award is very humbling and a big honor. I spent a lot of my early coaching days watching Deb's teams win national championships… more »

Lincoln’s women’s team barely captured the National team title over host school, Angelo State, with a score of 85 to 82.  UC San Diego was third with a score of 56. St. Augustine’s men took the title with 94 points. Abilene Christian was second with 86 points and Adams State was third with 75. The first day saw a new DII record in the 100 meters in the prelims, during which St. Augustine’s Barbara Pierre ran a time of 11.18.  Queens' Tanya Zeferjahn claimed her first National title winning the 10,000 in a time of 35:38.46. She was followed by… more »

By David Monti(c) 2009 Race Results Weekly, all rights reservedAdam Jacobs, the founder and editor of TheFinalSprint.com and an enthusiastic supporter of American distance running, died unexpectedly last night.  He was 24 and lived in Jersey City, N.J.The death was confirmed by his mother, Jodi Jacobs, who called the Race Results Weekly office this morning to report her son's death.Jacobs founded TheFinalSprint.com while a first year law student to provide both coverage of elite distance running and to build ties in the running community for athletes of all abilities.  A natural salesman, Jacobs quickly found sponsors for the site and… more »

I woke up to some very sad news this morning in my inbox. Adam Jacobs of TheFinalSprint.com passed away at the young age of 24. David Monti of Race Results Weekly let the community know of the news. Here is his story from David Monti.   By David Monti(c) 2009 Race Results Weekly, all rights reservedAdam Jacobs, the founder and editor of TheFinalSprint.com and an enthusiastic supporter of American distance running, died unexpectedly last night.  He was 24 and lived in Jersey City, N.J.The death was confirmed by his mother, Jodi Jacobs, who called the Race Results Weekly office this morning… more »

  (c) Christopher Kelsall - Copyright - 2009 The first Black Press 5000 (5 kilometre) race took place at the Jack Wallace Memorial Track (Oak Bay Track - Victoria, BC) May 15, under sunny skies and mild temperatures. The main event featured one of Canada’s top runners, Victoria's Ryan McKenzie who runs for Pacific Athletics. Ryan owns an impressive 5000m personal best time of 13:35. He won the Black Press 5000 in 14:02. Second place went to Scott Simpson. Both Scott and Ryan are preparing for the Canadian National 10,000m championships, which happen in Toronto, Ont., June 25 to 28… more »

Indiana Hoosier sophomore De'Sean Turner recently took second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Big Ten Championships, crossing the line in 8 minutes, 56.77 seconds. Heading towards regionals Turner's big goal is to qualify for the NCAA Championships and break 8:45. Is this season playing out the way you want it to play out? There are a couple of other events that I wish I had run better in. Not that I didn't have the opportunity, I just would have wanted to have prepared better. The steeple is one that's been working out pretty well for me. The Big Ten… more »

     This past weekend, the Thompson Valley High School girls repeated its Colorado 4A team State Title.  Coach Matt Norton had predicted his team to be in the 80-90 point range, and virtual meets had predicted the Eagles to score in the upper 90s; however, these golden girls lived up to the hype they had created all season and surpassed everyone’s expectations, scoring 101 points and furthermore winning by over 30.      On Thursday morning, Thompson Valley began its dominance in the meet’s “race to watch” – the 4x800m relay.  Not only did the Eagles beat 2nd place Alamosa by… more »

The finale of the 2009 DII outdoor season will take place this weekend, May 21-23, at Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas.  This is the fifth time that Angelo State has hosted the Outdoor Championships, which will be attended by over 600 athletes plus fans, coaches, and the media.  I will highlight a few of the most highly competitive events.  Let me know what your predictions are and fill in the events (e.g. field events) that I have missed.  Please remember to be respectful towards the athletes since they have worked hard to get to Nationals. Men’s 200 meters-… more »

  MARQUEE MATCH-UPS OF WORLD CHAMPIONS AND OLYMPIC MEDALISTS IN PLACE FOR 2009 REEBOK GRAND PRIX   NEW YORK, N.Y. (May 18) – Marquee match-ups for the women’s and men’s 5,000 meter, women’s 100 meter, women’s 400 meter, women’s 200 meter and men’s 110 meter hurdles for the 2009 Reebok Grand Prix announced today by organizers of the 2009 Reebok Grand Prix.   The Reebok Grand Prix is the fourth stop of USA Track & Field’s Visa Championship Series and will be held at 3:00pm on May 30, at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island.   Women’s 5,000 Meters Ethiopia’s double… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - USA Track & Field announced Thursday the Team USA men's marathon squad for the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, to be held in Berlin, Germany, August 15 - 23.   2004 Olympian Dan Browne (San Diego, Calif.) and Nate Jenkins (Lowell, Mass.) qualified for the men's team based on their respective performances at the Olympic Trials Marathon in New York in November 2007.  Browne finished sixth in 2:13:23 while Jenkins finished seventh in 2:14:56. Justin Young (Superior, Colo.), was also selected for the team based on his 2:13:54 performance at the 2008 Rotterdam Marathon last April.   Fernando Cabada (Boulder, Colo.) and Matt Gabrielson (Minneapolis, Minn.) round out… more »

Notre Dame senior Mary Saxer has a long history of success in the pole vault. The Lancaster, N.Y., native has trained with American Record holder Jenn Stuczynski and was the first high schooler ever over the 14-foot barrier. Saxer recently broke the Big East record and has the fifth-best vault in the country. Let's see how she does with her run at an NCAA individual title. What are your goals for this outdoor season?This outdoor season is well underway and my first goal was to vault over 14 feet again, which I did about a month ago. I vaulted 4.30… more »

     Any girl’s track team in the country that has four girls under the 2:20 will try to put together a solid 4x800m relay team in the hope of winning a State Championship, or possibly a national championship.  Surely a team of this caliber has the potential of getting All-American status at a Nike Nationals meet, but the trick of this race is getting all four runners to run to their potential on the same day.      Ironically, the Thomson Valley High School track team does just the opposite – the girls run faster in relays then they do during… more »

It has been a busy semester for Northwest Nazarene’s Ashley Puga; she won the DII Indoor title in the 800m, qualified for the DII Outdoor Championships, ran a 2:05.23 at the Mt. Sac Relays, which is the B standard for the USATF Outdoor Championships, and finished her senior project. “The senior project I was working on ended up taking over my life for the last three weeks until its completion this past Monday. The group I was a part of did quite well, so the hard work hopefully paid off,” she says. Puga is no stranger to hard work. Describing… more »

     It was only the third week of racing for Florida outdoor track and field, but several runners from Tampa looked liked they were ready for the FHSAA Finals already.  The cool temperatures on that March 11th evening not only produced 7 runners eclipsing the 2-minute barrier for 800 meters, but also saw 3 school records go down and many PRs along the way.  Even though this was a small Tri-meet between Jesuit, Sickles, and Robinson, the 800m race was not tactical by any means; the lead runners all came into this race fresh and ready to run lifetime bests.… more »

The Physical Ceiling By Danny Mackey M.S.     May, finally.      Personally, I am jealous as well as excited.  Being injured entirely for 4 months killed any hopes of being personally involved with the fast track racing.  But, Portland is turning the corner weather wise and showing why it is the best place to live for a runner (one third of the year at least).  So, I am enjoying getting back to base training.  It was 65 degrees and sunny for my 12 mile run this morning in the huge temperate-rainforest-in-the-middle-of-the-city, known as Forest Park, and the flowers are still… more »

For Immediate ReleaseMay 9, 2009 Contact: Jim Estes Associate Director of LDR Programs/Marketing  USA Track & Field  Jim.Estes@usatf.org Browne, Meyerhoff win USA 25 km Championships  GRAND RAPIDS -2004 Olympian Dan Browne (Beaverton, Ore.) won his third U.S. 25 km title as Sally Meyerhoff (Tempe, Ariz.) won her first at the USA 25 km Championships Saturday in Grand Rapids, Mich.  This marks the 16th year that the championships have been hosted by the Fifth Third River Bank Run.   In a field that also included open international athletes, Browne and Meyerhoff each finished second overall in the respective men's and women's divisions.  Browne was timed in 1:15:56 and Meyerhoff… more »

(C) Copyright - 2009 - Christoper Kelsall Alex Genest who happens to be the Canadian Junior record holder in the 3000 meter steeplechase will be moving to Guelph, Ontario this spring, to continue his studies in Human Nutrition at the University of Guelph for the 2009/2010 school year. Genest also the 2007 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) Cross Country MVP, may suit up for the University of Guelph Gryphons in 2010 after sitting out a year due to transferring. Meanwhile Genest just may help the Speed River Track and Field Club’s steeplechase team, become the strongest steeplechase team in Canadian history.… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - 2008 Olympian Magdalena Lewy Boulet (Oakland, Calif.) will be looking for her first USA 25 km title, while 2004 Olympian Dan Browne (Beaverton, Ore.) will be looking for his third as they lead the fields for the USA 25 km Championships Saturday in Grand Rapids, Mich.  This marks the 16th time that the championships have been hosted by the Fifth Third River Bank Run.   Browne will face a competitive men's field that also features 2006 25 km champion and American Record holder Fernando Cabada (Boulder, Colo.).  Browne and Cabada can expect to be challenged for the title by Jason Hartmann (Boulder, Colo.), Fasil Bizuneh (Flagstaff, Ariz.) and  Jason… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - The USA Track & Field Foundation has awarded a record 38 youth grants, totaling $58,500, to track and field clubs throughout the country, Foundation Executive Director Tom Jackovic announced on Thursday.  The grants assist clubs and their young athletes with expenses such as travel to meets, equipment, uniforms, awards and facility rental. "These programs have a positive impact in their local communities and enhance the track and field experience for the kids who participate," said Ashley Wright, USATF Foundation Director. "It's an honor to be able to provide this vital support for the clubs' growth and outreach." The Foundation made… more »

Thu, May 07, 2009 from adidastrackclassic.com Jordan Hasay and Reggie Wyatt to Compete at The Home Depot Center May 16 Carson, CA (May 7, 2009) – The adidas Track Classic, one of the premier track and field meets in the country, has added two of the United States’ top high school runners to its already elite field, meet officials announced today. Jordan Hasay, 17, a resident of San Luis Obispo, California, is already one of the most decorated American high school distance runners in history.  The 2008 High School Track & Field Athlete of the year, Hasay qualified for the 1500m… more »

Cal State Fullerton's fifth-year senior Juliane Masciana has one of the top 3,000-meter steeplechase times in the country this outdoor season (10 minutes, 15.96 seconds) and is poised to make her first trip to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. When you went 10:15 in that steeplechase at the Asics/Steve Scott Invitational, you won by something like 25 seconds. How fast do you think you can run if you're pushed? I sort of think I went fast because I was by myself. I was able to focus on the hurdles and focus on my jumps, which is what I've… more »

    It didn’t take much time into this 2009 outdoor season to notice Derek Wehunt as a runner who could contribute some major point scoring at this year’s 4A State Championship.  In his first race of the season, the Sickles’ senior smothered his 800m PR by over 4 seconds to a 1:52.90 finish, which still ranks 11th in the USA as of early May.  Only two weeks later, Wehunt surprised one of the deepest and fastest 3200m fields in FL history with his then US-leading 9:06.78 PR through a swampy FSU Invitational.  Then, Wehunt continued his dominance over the Florida… more »

In an exclusive story posted on the website of Track & Field News, Kara Goucher said that she has decided to run the World Championships Marathon."We just decided it was what I needed for my professional career," Goucher told T&FN in a telephone interview, "so I submitted my name to USATF and I have been selected so I'm doing it. I'm going to run the marathon in Berlin."Goucher was third at both the 2009 Boston and 2008 ING New York City Marathons.You can read the full story here:http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/display_article.php?id=31339 more »

adidas Track Classic To Feature Top Early Season Distance Matchups The 2009 adidas Track Classic at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. on May 16 will feature international matchups of Olympic medalists and World Champions at the middle and long distances, meet organizers announced Tuesday. The third stop of USA Track & Field's 2009 Visa Championship Series, the adidas Track Classic will be televised live on ESPN2 from 8:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Headlining the women's 5,000 meters will be 2008 Olympic 10,000m bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan. Flanagan owns four American records including the 5,000m. She has already broken one American… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - 2008 Olympian Shannon Rowbury (San Francisco, Calif.) and Jon Rankin (San Diego, Calif.) lead the fields for the inaugural USA 1 Mile Road Championships Thursday night in Minneapolis, Minn. The event will be hosted through 2012 by the Medtronic TC 1 Mile.   Rowbury, the 2008 Olympic Trials 1,500 meter champion, leads a women's field that includes local favorite Carrie Tollefson (St. Paul, Minn.), a 2004 Olympian at 1,500 meters.  Also in contention for the women's title will be Sara Hall (Mammoth Lakes, Calif.) and Jenelle Deatherage (Saint Louis Park, Minn.).   While Rankin owns the fastest time in the men's field (3:54.24), he'll have to contend with… more »

INDIANAPOLIS - Chris Derrick has been named USA Track & Field's Athlete of the Week after setting the U.S. Junior men's 5,000m record Saturday at the 2009 Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford University's Cobb Track & Angell Field in Palo Alto, Calif. A freshman at Stanford, Derrick set the American Junior men's 5,000m record with his time of 13 minutes 29.98 seconds, which bettered 2008 Olympian Galen Rupp's standard of 13:37.91 from 2004. Elsewhere, Jamie Donaldson finished fourth at the 7th International Association of Ultrarunners' event held this weekend on a 1K road loop through the center of the Italian city of… more »

Flotrack will be in Minneapolis working with the USATF and the Twin Cities Marathon on the 2009 USA Running Circuit. The Road Mile is in it's first year of being a national championship and Flotrack will work with the USATF on race videos and interviews. Here are a couple links for ya: USATF Championship Coverage Twin Cities Marathon Flotrack Coverage   Talk amongst yourselves. Men's 1 Mile Kyle Alcorn unattached / Nike Darren Brown unattached Robert Curtis unattached / Reebok Jordan Fife Team Indiana Elite / Brooks Ryan Kleimenhagen Wisconsin Runner Racing Team Adrian Myers Indiana Invaders Jon Rankin unattached… more »

It is a known fact that if you are runner eventually, you will encounter some form of wildlife on a runs. It is no different for Chico State junior, Michael Wickman. “For the past two summers I have lived in Truckee, CA to train at altitude. While there I have had several crazy experiences with the local wild life. One of those moments happened when I witnessed a middle age woman running screaming down the street as two coyotes were chasing her. Needless to say I came to her rescue and scared off the coyotes,” he recounts. “That however, doesn’t… more »

New Mexico's Rory Fraser, a British fellow, cranked out a fast 5,000 at the Mt. SAC Relays. His time of 13 minutes, 39.85 seconds was a big personal-best and also a mark that ranks him seventh in the country for Division I athletes. 13:39. What are you feelings on running that time? Pretty happy. Pretty happy. It went pretty well. With a 10-second PR, you obviously can't complain about that. I still think I can go a bit faster by not committing as much in the start. The first lap was in 62, so I kind of committed enough to… more »