The 2017 Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford University is poised to be the leading NCAA meet thus far this season. Watch the action live on FloTrack next Friday, May 5 from 4:00 PM PT to 12:00 AM PT here, view the entries here, check out the schedule here and stay tuned to FloTrack for more event previews as we inch closer to the date that it's all going down!

Women's 5K

Worlds standard: 15:22.0
USAs standard: 15:25.0
Who: Sifan Hassan, Eilish McColgan, Nicole Tully, Marielle Hall, Jessica O'Connell, Dom Scott-Efurd, Allie Buchalski, Erika Kemp, Brie Felnagle, Nicole Sifuentes, Muriel Coneo Paredes, Jessica Tonn, Kate Van Buskirk, Heidi See, Ednah Kurgat, Lauren Paquette
When: 8:50 PM PT (Heat 1)
Why: Sifan Hassan of the Nike Oregon Project is a heavily decorated middle-distance runner but at Payton Jordan, the Netherlands' 1500m national record holder will chase the win in a longer distance: the 5K. Hassan, a native Ethiopian, has raced just a handful of 5Ks, with her PB effort of 14:59.23 coming with a thrilling win over Meraf Bahta at the 2014 Payton Jordan Invitational. The Dutch national record of 14:56.43, set in 2003 by Lornah Kiplagat, should be within reach.

Watch Sifan Hassan battle Meraf Bahta to win the 2014 Payton Jordan 5K, 14:59.23 to 14:59.49:



Hassan, whose 1500m credentials include the 2016 IAAF World indoor title, 2015 IAAF World Championships bronze medal and a PB of 3:56.05, is the only woman in the field to break 15 minutes, though there are several athletes on the cusp of the barrier. The United States' Marielle Hall and Nicole Tully have run 15:06 and 15:04, respectively, and this race represents a different challenge for them both.

Tully, a 1500m specialist while at Villanova, won the U.S. 5K outdoor title in 2015 to make her first World Championship squad. She was a prohibitive favorite for the Olympic team, but fell in the U.S. Trials 5K final and did not complete the race. Her only result this year is a 4:15.35 1500m win at the Larry Ellis Invitational last weekend, where she was paced by her sister -- Stephanie Schappert. Surely, 2017 is a redemption year for Tully.

Meanwhile, 25-year-old Hall represented the United States in the 5K in Beijing alongside Tully in 2015, but had more luck in the 10K during the Olympic year and ultimately represented the U.S. in the longer event in Rio. Her Payton Jordan performance may indicate whether she focuses on the 5K or 10K at the U.S. outdoor nationals in June.

Marielle Hall talks to FloTrack after making her first Olympic team last year:



Several foreign Olympians will also pose a challenge. Canada's Jessica O'Connell has a 15:06 PB to her name, and Great Britain's Eilish McColgan, the 2017 European Championships bronze medalist for 3K, has run 15:05. Canada's Nicole Sifuentes (15:19 PB) and Kate Van Buskirk (15:29 PB), as well as South Africa's Dom Scott-Efurd (15:25 PB) will be in the mix. Muriel Coneo Paredes of Colombia has run 15:41 and could challenge the national record of 15:35.3, set by Carolina Tabares in 1986.

The United States' Brie Felnagle is entered in the 1500m and 5K; whichever she chooses to pursue will be her outdoor debut. Since joining the NorCal Distance Project last fall, the adidas-sponsored athlete set indoor PBs for the mile (4:27.27) and 3K (8:52.35).

Top collegiate entrants include Allie Buchalski, of Furman, the current NCAA leader with her PB of 15:35.55. Erika Kemp of NC State recently whittled her PB down to 15:41 with a win over Notre Dame star Anna Rohrer at the Virginia Challenge. Ednah Kurgat, fourth in the 2016 NCAA outdoor 5K for Liberty, will make her season debut -- though she is running unattached this year after transferring to New Mexico.

​Allie Buchalski became the first indoor track All-American in Furman school history this year: