Track and Field Blogs - Kevin Liao

was amazing. Some great track and field action. Since the internet is so slow, here are the best pictures more »

It was awesome. Check out the pictures more »

So after waiting an hour at the terminal at SFO, I see perhaps the whackiest Ameican track and field athlete. Breaux Greer is not only the American record holder in the javelin at 91.29 meters, but is also on the NBC show American Gladiators, where he is known at Hurricaine. He qualified for the team despite not even getting out of the prelims becuase he was one of the three who had the Olympic A standard. He is still struggling with a rotator cuff surgery, so don't bet on him being a factor in Beijing. At month ago at the… more »

So I'm waiting here at the airport terminal at SFO. The flight leaves at 2:50 PM Pacific on Wednesday and will land in Beijing around 8 PM on Thursday. So far I've seen one guy with USA Olympics gear on and another guy with a Mexico jacket and a bigass sombero. But hopefully I'll meet some cool people on the 12 hour long flight. Stay tuned, Kevin more »

3000 meter steeplechase - Since the Mexico City Olympics in 1968, Kenyan athletes have dominated the 3000 meter steeplechase, winning more than half of all medals, including eight of the ten possible golds. The trend is likely to continue with the absence of world record holder Saif Saaeed Shaheen of Qatar and the positive drug test of the Netherlands' Simon Vroemen. Despite not having two-time world leader Paul Kipsiele Koech on the squad, the Kenyan squad is made of up reigning gold medalist Ezekiel Kemboi, world champ and Athens silver medalist Brimin Kipruto, and 2008 African Champion Richard Matelong. There… more »

10000 meters – Over the last four years, Kenenisa Bekele has owned the 10,000 meter event. The Ethiopian star not only won gold at the Athens Olympics and the last three World Championships, but lowered his own world record to 26:17.53 in Brussels in 2005. In a time trial-like performance at the Prefontaine Classic in June, Bekele ran an excellent 26:25.97, just missing the world record. The only other potential threat to Bekele is Sileshi Sihine, nicknamed "Mr. Silver" because of his second place performances to Bekele at the 2004 Olympics and 2005 and 2007 World Championship. Sihine's closest shot… more »

I leave for China in 9 days, and I'm really excited to be there for man's greatest athletic spectacle. I have tickets for the night sessions on August 19 (W400, W100H, M1500 finals) and August 23 (M800, W1500, M5000 finals, 4x400s). A quick update on the Games: Organizers have announced that all tickets for events in Beijing are now sold out, making me feel even more fortunate for being able to get a few tickets. 30,000 citizens waited in line for up to 48 hours for the sales of the final batch of tickets, which went on sale last Friday.… more »

Once the Ethiopian track federation announced world record holder Kenenisa Bekele would indeed be racing both the 5k and 10k in Beijing, the Letsrun forums began buzzing with discussion of Lagat vs. Bekele. There are two possible scenarios that the race could play out. One of the Ethiopians may sacrifice his own race in order to set a fast pace, favoring Bekele's strength as a 10k runner. A slow pace, however, may lead to a furious kick over the final 300 meters, allowing Lagat's mile speed to reign supreme, though Bekele has closed in 53 seconds in the 10k.Other than… more »

After winning a bronze medal in Sydney and a silver in Athens, along with being undefeated this season, the stars seem to be aligned for double world champion Bernard Lagat to finally win the coveted gold in the 1500. Lagat has demonstrated a superior finishing kick during his victories at Carson, Stanford, and the US Olympic Trials, setting himself up well for the tactics of championship racing that is likely to take place in Beijing.The former Kenyan Lagat will most definitely be challenged by the three Kenyan entries into the race. Augustine Choge (3:31.57 PR from Berlin), Asbel Kiprop (3:31.64… more »

The track community was awed by the early season performances of 19 year old Abubaker Kaki of Sudan, first with his wire-to-wire victory at the World Indoor Championships in March in a world leading time of 1:44.81 (video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=NeKu3E0zfUk). Earlier in the indoor season, Kaki set a world leading time in the 1000m with a time of 2:15.77. At the Bislett Golden League meet in Oslo, Norway on June 6, Kaki ran a shocking 1:42.69, a new world junior record. More recently, the Sudanese star has shown chinks in the armor with a narrow victory over at the World Junior… more »

Hey guys, This is where I'm gonna be blogging when I'm at the Olympics in Beijing in August. Stay tuned... -K. Liao more »