Rudy Winkler sets new American record in the hammer throw and sets sights on Olympic podium
With Lance Deal (right) watching on, Rudy Winkler celebrates after launching the American Record at Hayward Field on Sunday. Photo by Tim Healy
By Caela Fenton
Every athlete faced obstacles during the pandemic, with training facilities closed and competitions postponed. For hammer thrower Rudy Winkler, Covid-19 truly hit home when the athlete tested positive for the virus in early April 2020. He describes having run through the “gauntlet of symptoms,” which ultimately ended up in him taking a month off from training.
“So after that I kind of had to build back up from square one and I felt like that was good in a way...my physical fitness and my mental fitness and everything has just kind of built up since then so I think the hurdles I faced along the way were a positive in a way,” the 26-year old from Sand Lake, NY explains.
And it has clearly been quite the build up.
Winkler threw 82.71m for a new American record, besting Lance Deal’s 82.52m which has stood since 1996. Deal, who was on site for Winkler’s throw, was one of the first to congratulate him, telling Winkler “I’m really proud of you.” Winkler also bested Deal’s consistency record, with five out of six of his throws landing over 80m.
Lance Deal (front) congratulates Rudy Winkler (back) after Winkler bests his American Hammer Throw Record. Photo by Tim Healy
Winkler thinks that there is more to come. When he launched the throw that would end up being a record-breaker, he was surprised by how easy the distance felt. “I don’t think that’s it for me,” he says. He’ll soak up this moment for now though. When asked what this record means to him, Winkler responded, “It means the world...I really don’t have any words for it. It’s everything that I’ve been working for.”
As the 2016 Trials champion, Winkler has already come so far. He threw 76.76m to win the Trials in 2016, which was just shy of the 77m Olympic standard. The then 20-year-old was invited to join the field in Rio, as an insufficient number of athletes had achieved the standard.
Winkler describes his 2016 experience as “kind of unexpected” as he was still “immature in terms of my experience.” He says these Trials are a whole different experience, after preparing for five years, including making the 2019 World Championships hammer throw final in Doha.
Winkler’s throw was also a facility record for Hayward Field, a record formerly held by Koji Murofushi of Japan. Winkler calls Murofushi a “huge role model” of his. “I couldn’t ask for more, to live in the same sort of shoes that Koji lived in is a huge honour,” Winkler says.
It has been 25 years since the USA had a men’s hammer thrower on the Olympic podium and close to 100 years since it has had multiple on the podium. Winkler thinks that with fellow teammates, Daniel Haugh and Alex Young, more than one spot on the podium is possible. “We’ve been so consistent this year,” Winkler says, “Everyone today threw a personal best, and that bodes very well for us in Tokyo.”
An American record in the hammer throw and a fifth Olympics for Felix
Rudy Winkler breaks Lance Deals American Hammer Throw Record in a cage built by Deal at Hayward Field. Photo by How Lao
By Caela Fenton and Kate Walkup
On the third day of the 2020 Track and Field Olympic Trials, Rudy Winkler set a meet record of 80.75m to open the finals of the men’s hammer throw. The previous meet record (80.12m) was set by Jud Logan in 1992. For Winkler’s second throw of the competition, he extended his meet record and broke the national record, throwing 82.71m. The previous national record (82.52m) was set by Lance Deal in 1996.
“If you saw my practices leading up to this I don’t think this would surprise you,” Winkler said post-event. “My mindset going into this was just to stay focused and not overdo it.”
All three top finishers in the hammer throw recorded personal records. Daniel Haugh (79.39m) came in second and Alex Young (78.32m) in third.
In the women’s high jump final, Vashti Cunningham won, clearing a height of 1.96m. Inika McPherson and Nichole Greene both cleared 1.93m to finish in second and third.
Keturah Orji wins her fifth straight U.S. national title in the women’s triple jump on Sunday. Photo by Matt Parker
In the women’s triple jump final, Keturah Orji broke the meet record, jumping 14.52m. Tori Franklin (14.36m) took second and Jasmine Moore (14.53m) took third.
“A lot of people look at the event as weak, and so it’s exciting to have three people with the standard going to the Olympics,” Orji said.
Orji is the American record holder and placed 4th at the 2016 Olympics.
Keni Harrison (12.47), Brianna McNeal (12.51) and Christina Clemons (12.53) topped the podium in the women’s 100m hurdles. Harrison, who went into the 2016 Olympic Trials as the favorite but missed making the team, came back with a vengeance this year.
In the women’s 400m, Quanera Hayes (49.78), Allyson Felix (50.02) and Wadeline Jonathas (50.03) are Tokyo bound. Jonathas ran the fastest time for 3rd place in Olympic Trials history. Hayes and Felix were both joined by their toddlers on the track immediately post-race.
The 1-2 punch by veterans Hayes and Felix seems to speak to the importance of big meet experience. Hayes says experience means that, “You know what you’re up for when you’re coming to races like this, and you know what’s at stake. It means taking your time and running your own race, not running anyone else’s race.”
In the men’s 400m, Michael Norman (44.07), Michael Cherry (44.35) and Randolph Ross (44.74) took the podium. The field for this final featured eighth athletes who all came into the final with the Olympic standard.
Trayvon Bromell took the top spot in the men’s 100m final, clocking 9.80. He was joined on the podium by Ronnie Baker (9.85) and Fred Kerley (9.86).
Trayvon Bromell completes his comeback from injury to earn his spot on the Olympic Team heading to Tokyo. Photo. by Jay Bendlin
“I had to go into the race humble and understand that I can’t get complacent and think that this is just up for grabs. I had to give every athlete in the field their respect,” Bromell said of his race attitude. And now? “I’m still going to go home and train like I’m not being talked about at all.”
The women’s 3,000m steeplechase got underway today with Grayson Murphy (9:25.37) and Emma Coburn (9:21.32) winning their preliminary heats. The final will be contested on Thursday evening. Murphy is the 2019 World Mountain Running Champion. Coburn is the 2017 World Champion and 2016 Olympics bronze medallist in the steeplechase.
Sunday marked the final day of the men’s decathlon where Garret Scantling (8647 points), Steven Bastien (8485) and Zach Ziemek (8471) topped the podium. Bastien and Ziemek achieved their Olympic standard at the Trials, both athletes are also unsponsored.
Sha’Carri Richardson makes a statement at the Olympic Trials
Sha’Carri Richardson floats across the line in the 100m semi-finals, clocking 10.64 (+2.6). Photo by How Lao
By Caela Fenton
The crowd loves Sha’Carri Richardson.
The 21-year-old from Dallas, Texas delivered one electric performance after another in her debut at the 2020 Track and Field Olympic Trials. Richardson went pro in 2019 after one year of competition at Louisiana State University (during which she captured the NCAA title in the 100m).
Richardson ran 10.86 in the 100m final to secure her Tokyo berth. That 10.86 came on the heels of a 10.64 in the semi-finals earlier in the afternoon, during which Richardson pointed at the clock for the final 10m of the race, a show of confidence and a move that sent the Hayward Field crowd to new decibels.
Richardson’s post-final celebration was more of an emotional one. Seconds after finishing the race, with all her competitors still on the track, Richardson bounded up to the stands and into the arms of her grandmother.
Sha’Carri Richardson (right) celebrates with her grandmother (left) after earning her spot on the U.S. Olympic Team in the 100m. Photo by Sarah Northrop
“My grandmother is my Superwoman, so to be able to just have her here at the biggest meet of my life,” Richardson said post-race. “Honestly, that will probably feel better than winning the race itself, of being able to just hold her after becoming an Olympian.”
Family means everything to Richardson, who revealed in a trackside interview immediately post-race that she had found out about the death of her biological mother in the week before trials.
“Nobody knows what I go through. Everybody has struggles and I understand that,” Richardson said. “But y’all see me on this track and y’all see the poker face I put on but nobody but them [her family] and my coach, know what I go through on a day to day basis…without them, there would be no me. Without my grandmother, there would be no Sha’Carri Richardson.”
While the athlete did not wish to elaborate on her biological mother’s passing, saying that it is sensitive and confusing topic for her to speak on, but she did say this: “I am grateful for her giving me life, bringing me into this world...I will always love and respect her for that and I definitely pay her respect every time I step on a track. I love her, and I know she loved me.”
Despite this emotional situation leading into the trials, Richardson—through the strength of the rest of her family—was able to stay focused on her Olympic goal.
Richardson says she has dreamed of being an Olympian since she first started in the sport as a kid. Javianne Oliver (26) and Teahna Daniels (24) rounded out the podium for the women’s 100m, making this a fleet of young, first-time Olympians in the event.
In 2016, Richardson was competing at the AAU Junior Olympics while many of her other competitors were in Eugene trying to make the Olympic team for Rio. After winning the 100m at the Junior Olympics, Richardson came back the next year and won the 100m at the USA Track and Field Junior Champion in 2017. Her early success prepared her for moments like these.
“Age doesn't matter when you step on the track,” Richardson said. “It's about who's been working the hardest at practice, it's about who has the heart, who wants to go into that finish line first.”
The Olympic Trials Champion showed that heart and determination in both her semifinal and final performance in the 100. Richardson’s sizable wins seemed to fuel her celebration that followed the finish line.
Sha’Carri Richardson takes a moment to appreciate her gold medal from the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field. Photo by Adam Eberhardt
“I use my age as honestly an intimidating factor to everybody else getting on the track,” Richardson said. “If you've been doing this and I step on the scene, I'm letting you know, ‘I respect you, but at the end of day when we go on this line, what you've been doing, you have to do that against me,’ and we just go on from there.”
Even at her own young age, Richardson is fast becoming an inspiration for younger athletes. Her message to those athletes is to stay true to their own individuality, a mindset that Richardson embodies.
“It's okay to have role models, but at the end of the day never be someone else,” she said. “Always continue to be yourself and work hard.”
One of the ways that Richardson expresses her individuality is through her various colourful hairstyles. She sported bright orange hair for the trials, a color that was picked out by her girlfriend for being “loud, encouraging, and honestly dangerous,” which seems to be a pretty apt encapsulation of Richardson’s persona on the track.
It doesn’t hurt that it looks like flames when she reaches top speed.
There are high hopes and big hype around Richardson’s Olympic debut. The Guardian calls her “the most exciting, compelling, and intriguing sprinter since Usain Bolt.” Many are hoping that Richardson might be able to snag the USA’s first gold medal in the women’s 100m since Gail Devers’ win in 1996.
But one thing is for sure, American fans cannot wait to see Sha’Carri take on the Olympics.
Sha’Carri Richardson and Valarie Allman headline day 2 of the Olympic Trials
Valarie Allman celebrates after throwing 69.92m in the discus to earn her spot on the Olympic Team. Photo by Matt Parker
By Caela Fenton and Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. – To conclude day two of the 2020 Track and Field Olympic Trials at Hayward Field, the women’s 100m final featured a blazing fast field. In the final event of the day, Sha’Carri Richardson took the top spot, running 10.86. She was followed by Javianne Oliver (10.99) and Teahna Daniels (11.03). It will be their first Olympics for all three athletes.
In Richardson’s semi-finals performance earlier in the day, she ran her fastest time of the competition (10.64).
In the women’s discus, Valarie Allman threw 69.92m to be crowned Olympic Trials Champion. Allman was followed by Micaela Hazelwood (PB 62.54) and Rachel Dincoff (60.21). Allman’s meet-record heave (70.01m) in the qualifying round stood as her farthest throw of the competition.
“Coming in [in 2016], I just had the goal of trying to make the Olympic Team, and I missed it by three feet,” Allman said. “It was in that moment that I really realized I wanted to try again to be an Olympian and represent the United States.
“To now be here five years later, after so much hard work—it’s the best feeling.”
Kicking off the hurdling events for the trials, Taliyah Brooks won the second heat of the women’s 100m hurdles first round, recording a personal best and Olympic “A” standard of 12.61. Keni Harrison (12.49), Anna Cockrell (12.63) and Brianna McNeal (12.50)—all having previously achieved the Olympic “A” standard—won their heats to advance to the semifinals scheduled for Sunday June 20th.
Harrison, the world record holder in the 100m hurdles, projected focus in her post-race interview: “My mindset is to come out here and win every round.”
In the women’s 1,500m semifinals, Elle Purrier St. Pierre (4:09.18) and Nikki Hiltz (4:05.87) won their heats. Twelve runners advance to the final on Monday. Julia Heymach of Stanford is the only collegiate athlete to advance to the final.
Nikki Hiltz was the fastest time qualifier of the day in the women’s 1500m, securing her spot in the finals on Monday. Photo by Jay Bendlin
In Hiltz’s post-race interview, when asked what they would do with their day off, they had a joke for the local crowd, saying “I’m going to go hike Spencer’s Butte! Just kidding.”
Hiltz wasn’t joking around when about the final on Monday though.
“I’m in the best shape of my life,” Hiltz said. “I think it’s going to take a sub-4 to make the team and you know with the workouts I’ve been doing with Mac [Mac Fleet, her coach], I feel ready.”
In the men’s 800m semifinal, Clayton Murphy won the first heat, running 1:46.26, and Bryce Hoppel won the second with a 1:46.00 finish. The top eight semifinalists advanced to Monday’s final.
“The track is unbelievably fast. The fans are unbelievably great,” Murphy said. “It feels like we’re back for track and field.”
Kendall Ellis (50.83)—followed closely by Allison Felix (51.01)—and Quanera Hayes (50.07) took away heat wins in the women’s 400m semis. The final will be contested on Sunday June 20th.
In the men’s 400m semifinal, Michael Cherry took the win in the first heat running 44.50, and Michael Norman ran 44.73 to win the second semi-final heat. The top eight finalists advanced to the final, which will be contested on Sunday June 20th.
Garrett Scantling (left) embraces Harrison Willams (right) after the Decathlon 400m. Photo by Sarah Northrop
Today marked the first day of competition for the men’s decathlon. The multi-sport event will be contested over days two and three of the trials. The athletes competed in 100m sprint, long jump, shot put, high jump and the 400m today. After today’s series of competition, Garrett Scantling leads the event with a total of 4,494 points. He is followed by Kyle Garland (4,424) and Zach Ziemek (4,409).
In the qualifying round of the men’s javelin, Mark Anthony Minichello (76.63), Curtis Thomposn (76.23) and Capers Williamson (75.94) led the top 12 competitors in the field to the finals, which will be contested on Monday.
Kenny Bednarek (10.07), Trayvon Bromell (9.84), Marvin Bracy-Williams (10.00) and Ronnie Baker (9.88) took the wins in the men’s 100m heats to advance to the semis, happening on day three of the trials. University of Oregon freshman Micah Williams advanced to the semifinals as well.
Twelve athletes advanced to the final in the men’s triple jump, led by Will Claye (16.85), Donald Scott (16.81) and Chris Benard (16.55), all of whom have the Olympic “A” standard. Twelve athletes also advanced in the qualifying round of the men’s pole vault. Eleven out of 12 of those competitors cleared 5.65m.
Ryan Crouser’s Shot Put World Record Performance in Front of His Home Crowd
Photo by Matt Parker
Ryan Crouser came home.
Competing in his home state, in front of a crowd that included family members he hadn’t seen since Christmas 2019, at the new version of the stadium in which he had some of his first track meets as a kid, Crouser threw 23.37m, setting a new world record in shot put.
After leaving the state to throw the shot put for the Texas Longhorns, the Portland, Ore., native found himself under the spotlight at the 2020 Olympic Trials back in Oregon where it all began.
Crouser says he has known it was possible for him to throw a world record since 2019. A world record has been a dream of his since childhood.
“From the time I started throwing it was really a dream,” Crouser said. “I think any little kid who does track and field or any sport, you dream about breaking a world record...There were so many times I was throwing the six pound shot out behind the school, throwing by myself and putting my hands above my head and yelling, ‘New world record!’”
And this record certainly doesn’t come out of nowhere. Crouser is the 2016 Olympic gold medallist and 2019 World Championship silver medallist. In the year leading up to the Trials, Crouser was named a finalist for the Male Track and Field World Athlete of the Year by World Athletics in 2020. He was undefeated in all 10 of the meets he competed in during that season, had a world-leading throw of 22.91m—third on the all-time list. Crouser also had 36 throws of 22m or better, 14 of those being farther than 22.56m.
The three time USA National Outdoor Shot Put Champion (2016, 2017 and 2019) and two time USA National Indoor Shot Put Champion (2019 and 2020) went into the Olympic Trials as not only the nationwide favorite but also the state of Oregon favorite.
After breaking the 21-year-old meet record on his first throw of 22.92m from a static start in the qualifying round, Crouser knew he had more in the tank for the finals later that day.
And he definitely did.
Photo by Matt Parker
Throwing just shy of his preliminary record on his first three attempts, Crouser still hadn’t performed like he knew he could. With his fourth throw of the finals, Crouser broke Randy Barnes’s world record that had stood for 31 years. His 23.37m heave officially secured his berth in Tokyo. Crouser’s world record was also the first ever shot put world record to be set at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Crouser grew up watching footage of Barnes, as well as German shot putter, Ulf Timmermann that were dvd formatted versions of old super 8 tapes. And then he and his dad would go out to practice. They would imagine the marker from Crouser’s best throw in practice belonged to either Barnes or Timmermann.
“On the last throw of practice, I had to beat that. So I got used to coming from behind, and yeah, I don’t know how many times I beat Ulf Timmermann or Randy Barnes in practice,” Crouser said with a chuckle.
The consummate athlete, Crouser already has his sights set on furthering his PR: “I think I can still go farther.”
In the meantime, he says, it’s time for a burger tonight, and then getting back to work for Tokyo.
Day One Recap: Ryan Crouser Breaks 31-Year-Old World Record to Kick off the Track and Field Olympic Trials
Ryan Crouser celebrates his World Record mark on day one of the Olympic Trials. Photo by Matt Parker
By Kate Walkup and Caela Fenton
To open the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field at Hayward Field, Ryan Crouser broke a 21-year-old meet record with his throw of 22.92m in the prelims of the men’s shot put. Crouser’s preliminary throw gave him the top seed by nearly four feet going into the finals. In his fourth throw of the finals, the first 2021 Olympic Trials champion broke Randy Barnes's 31-year-old world record throwing 23.37m—the first ever shot put world record set at the U.S. Olympic Trials.
Crouser’s record received a standing ovation from an admiring Hayward audience, and he discussed how special it was to set it at Hayward Field in his post-race interview.
“What makes Hayward special is not just the phenomenal stadium, it’s the fans. It’s TrackTown, USA for a reason,” Crouser said. “The pandemic has definitely pushed people apart, and kept them socially distanced, it was cool to see people start to come together.”
Abbey Cooper ran away from the rest of the field in the first heat of the women’s 5,000m, soloing her way to the Olympic “A” standard with her 15:07.80 finish.
Cooper, who competed in the 5,000 in the 2016 Olympics, was awarded the Rio 2016 Fair Play Award after she and New Zealand athlete Nikki Hamblin fell during their heat but helped each other to cross the finish line. Cooper was injured in the fall and was unable to compete in the final.
“The past five years since Rio have been so hard, so much harder than I ever could have imagined,” Cooper said. “Thank God I didn’t know how hard it was going to be. I kept going because this is a calling for me.”
Josette Norris (15:32.58) took the win in heat two.
Valarie Allman threw a meet record of 70.01m on her second throw in the women’s discus preliminary round. Her record-breaking throw moves her into the second spot in the world this year.
Jenny Simpson (4:11.34), Dani Aragon (4:13.34) and Elle Purrier St. Pierre (4:11.78) won their respective heats of the first round of the women’s 1500m. The top six athletes from each heat advance to the semi-finals, which take place tomorrow night.
Jenny Simpson and Nikki Hiltz lead the way in heat No.1 of the women’s 1500 meters, earning them the top two qualifying times on the day, 4:11.34 and 4:11.42 respectively. Photo by Matt Parker
Simpson, who is attempting to make her fourth Olympic team, noted in her post-race interview that the Trials are a time during which she is emotional and grateful for having seen generations of athletes move through the event. The presence of so many collegiate athletes also impacted her race strategy.
“The collegians are really sharp, they’re really race ready, so if I really leave it to the last 200,” the 35-year-old said. “They've got a decade of youth on me now, so I wanted to make sure I was in it the entire way.”
Five collegiate athletes advanced to the semis in the event.
Allyson Felix (50.99), Quanera Hayes (52.34), Wadeline Jonathas (50.64) and Kendall Ellis (51.02) crossed the finish line first to advance in the women’s 400m. The top three finishers in each heat and the next four fastest runners advance to the semifinals on Saturday.
Felix is attempting to qualify for her fifth straight Olympic Games, her first after giving birth to her daughter.
In the first round of the men’s 400m, Trevor Stewart (44.75), Michael Cherry (44.86), Elija Godwin (44.81) and Wil London (45.46) won their respective heats to advance to Sunday’s semifinals. The top 16 in the first round advance and will compete in the semifinals tomorrow.
Abraham Alvarado (1:48.35), Donavan Brazier (1:45.00), Michael Rhoads (1:48.64) and 2021 NCAA 800m champion, Isaiah Jewett, (1:47.83) won their respective heats of the men’s 800m to advance to Monday’s finals. Brannon Kidder took second to Brazier in the second heat of the event, clocking a personal record of 1:45.06 and achieving his Olympic “A” standard.
Gabby Thomas ran 11 seconds flat to win the first heat of the women’s 100m dash first round, achieving the Olympic “A” standard in her personal-record race. Cambrea Sturgis (11.15), Javianne Oliver (10.96) and top qualifier Sha’Carri Richardson (10.84) also won their heats of the event to advance to the semifinals.
Keturah Orji jumped 14.29m to lead the top 12 women in the triple jump to the finals on Sunday. Twelve athletes advanced in the women’s high jump qualifying round by jumping a height of 1.87m. Rudy Winkler threw 79.13m to lead the top 12 in the men’s hammer throw into the finals scheduled for Sunday.
To conclude the first day of the Olympic Trials, Woody Kincaid won the men’s 10,000m final, running a time of 27:53.62. Grant Fisher (27:54.29) and Joe Klecker (27:54.90) finished second and third to complete the 10,000 Olympic team. Kincaid ran a bell lap of 53.47 to propel him to the win.
“It was hard to stay patient early in the race,” Kincaid said. “Patience was a big part of what helped me stay in that race today.”
Woody Kincaid (Center) celebrates atop the podium with Bowerman Track Club teammate Grant Fisher (Left) and Joe Klecker (right) after the men’s 10,000 meter final on Friday. Photo by Adam Eberhardt
Abbey Cooper Solos to Olympic Standard in 5,000m Prelim
Photo by Matt Parker
By Caela Fenton
Until 45 minutes before her race, Abbey Cooper wasn’t even thinking about trying to go for the Olympic standard. But, as she was preparing for what was hopefully to be her first of two 5,000 meter races in the coming days, her coach, Chris Layne, came over to her with some game-changing news.
Cooper explained in her post-race interview: “He came over to us and said, ‘Hey, it’s going to be 97 degrees on Monday for the final. You don’t have the standard, there isn’t enough time to chase it, if it’s slow, I want you to consider going for it.’ And I was so frazzled and just kind of thought it through and I was praying, up to the start line—so not the most ideal amount of time to think about it.”
Cooper and her coach, understandably, had assumed that given how fast the field is running, that it would be almost impossible to think that the women’s 5,000m final would be slower than the required Olympic standard. The original plan had been to survive and advance in the qualifying heat, and then go out with the field to standard in the final. But, one can’t predict the weather, especially in Eugene.
Apparently the 29-year-old New Balance athlete didn’t need much time to rethink her race strategy. Cooper absolutely ran away from the field from 1200 meters on, soloing her way to that much needed sub 15:10 Olympic standard with only the crowd to push her. She finished with a time of 15:07.80.
Cooper, a Christian, describes her decision to go it alone at the 1200 meter mark as stepping out in faith: “The best times in my life have been the times I’ve stepped out in faith and God has just met me every time.”
This is the fastest Cooper has run since 2015, despite a decorated running resumé that includes seven individual NCAA titles while at Dartmouth, narrowly missing making Team USA in 2012, and then snagging a spot in 2016. She gained notoriety at the Rio Olympics, when she and fellow competitor Nikki Hamblin fell in the 5,000m qualifying heat. The two athletes helped each other to finish the race and were later awarded the Rio 2016 Fair Play Award for their display of sportsmanship and Olympic spirit. Cooper was injured in the fall, and was unable to compete in the final.
Photo by Matt Parker
When asked whether getting back to the Olympics after the fall and subsequent injury in 2016 was part of what motivated her performance tonight, Cooper got candid, saying: “From the bottom of my heart, though I have goals of going back to the Olympics I hope multiple times and having a totally different experience, that [her Olympics in 2016] was a supernatural experience with everything that happened there. I feel really called and desire to be back on that stage in a different capacity. But I don’t feel resentful of what happened there. I just want to have another experience to add to it.”
She describes the years after the Rio Olympics as “harder than I ever could have imagined....I kept going because this is a calling for me. I love this sport, but the joy of it is robbed sometimes when you’re in a cyclical pattern of injury.”
Cooper has enjoyed more consistency this past year than she has in her professional career, in part thanks to some tweaks in training that she and her coach, Chris Layne, have made. This includes sacrificing some mileage volume and swapping in cross-training for the sake of consistency in training. She thinks that three visits to altitude this year, an intensified focus on recovery, and training with new training partner, Sammy George (who also raced the 5,000m), have also helped elevate her performance. With this fitness in the bank, even a minor hamstring string tweak 12 days ago didn’t phase her too much.
Up next for Cooper is some serious recovery so that she can be ready for Monday’s final. This includes getting her feet up, an ice bath and using her Normatec boots. But more than anything, she thinks that her elation at today’s result will help ensure a speedy recovery because, as she puts it, “a cheerful heart is good medicine!”
USC Claims Team Title on Final Day of NCAA Championships
The Women of Troy were crowned the 2021 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Champions on Saturday. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. – After taking the first title of the day in the women’s 4x100-meter relay with a time of 42.82, USC continued to pile up the points on the final day of the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Hayward Field. The Trojans won the NCAA championship with 74 points.
Second place Texas A&M (63 points) finished the night with a record-breaking performance in the 4x400-meter relay. Their finishing time of 3:22.34 broke the meet, collegiate and facility records set by Oregon in 2017. Freshman sensation Athing Mu anchored the Texas A&M relay, splitting a time of 48.85.
“I think that’s what pulled me to run the split that I did,” Mu said about USC’s lead going into the final leg.
Athing Mu splits a 48.85 anchor leg in the 4x400, leading Texas A&M to a new collegiate record, 3:22.34. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Earlier in the day, Mu—the collegiate record holder in the 400 meters and the 800 meters—broke her own collegiate record in the 400 with a time of 49.57. Mu will run the 800 at the Olympic Trials in the hopes of making the U.S. Olympic team.
“When I go out to run the 400, I feel like it’s more of a fierce race,” Mu said. “I feel like I can chill just a little bit more in the 800 because it’s my event. I definitely have to come out here with the winning mentality [for the 400].”
Anna Cockrell of USC crossed the finish line with a sizeable lead over the field in the women’s 100-meter hurdles, clocking a time of 12.58.
USC’s Anna Cockrell wins the 400m hurdle and 100m hurdle national titles at Hayward Field on Saturday. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
After winning the 100-meter hurdles, Cockrell doubled back just 40 minutes later to win the 400-meter hurdles with a personal record of 54.68, extending her 2021 collegiate lead. Queen Harrison is the only other woman to have accomplished the hurdle-event double win back in 2010.
“Ever since I came to college this was my dream, to be able to double,” Cockrell said. “I knew only one other person had done it, and it’s been my dream, it’s been my goal for years.”
To follow Cockrell’s double win, Cambrea Sturgis of North Carolina A&T doubled back to win the 200-meter dash in 22.12 after taking the win in the 100-meter dash, clocking a time of 10.74. Sturgis, who ran the fourth fastest time in collegiate history and took the 2021 collegiate lead in the 200, also ran the fastest NCAA time in all-weather conditions. The +2.2 m/s wind prevented a record in the event.
Anna Camp of BYU ran a 62.11 for her bell lap and finished with a time 4:08.53—nearly a second faster than her personal record—to give her the 1,500-meter title. Camp’s kick in the final 200 meters blew her past Sage Hurta of Colorado who finished second in 4:09.42.
“I usually don’t like to go until about 100 meters left depending on how my legs feel,” Camp said. “I feel good about the way I executed it.”
In her first NCAA final as well as her first year competing in the event, Mahala Norris of Air Force won the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase in 9:31.79.
“A win on my home turf is always what I’ve wanted,” said Norris, a Roseburg, Ore., native.
The performance put Norris sixth on the all-time collegiate list with a six-second personal record. Her final surge coming off the last barrier propelled her past Joyce Kimeli of Auburn who finished second in 9:31.84 and Katie Rainsberger of Washington who finished third in 9:32.12.
Indoor 2021 NCAA pentathlon champion Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M won the heptathlon with 6,285 points. Gittens also competed in the high jump and the long jump at the NCAA Championships, placing third in the high jump and second in the long jump.
“This weekend has been the hardest weekend of my collegiate career,” Gittens said. “To be able to finish such a difficult meet and finish top three in all three of my events means a lot.”
Michaela Meyer of Virginia took the win in the women’s 800-meter dash with a personal record of 2:00.28. Her kick down the home stretch pushed her past Laurie Barton of Clemson who ran a personal record of 2:00.65 to place second.
NC State’s Elly Henes celebrates as she wins the women’s 5000-meter national title at Hayward Field. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
South Carolina freshman Rachel Glenn won the high jump, clearing 1.93 meters. Jorinde Van Klinken of Arizona State took the 2021 collegiate lead on her final throw of the meet with her personal record and meet record throw of 65.01 meters in the women’s discus. Ruth Usoro of Texas Tech jumped 14.19 meters to claim the triple jump championship.
To close out the individual portion of the NCAA Championships, Elly Henes of North Carolina State won the women’s 5,000 meters with a time of 15:28.05. Her bell-lap kick gave her the edge against Katie Wasserman of Notre Dame who placed second in the event with a time of 15:28.68. Henes’s mother—also her coach—was the last North Carolina State NCAA Champion in that event.
LSU Crowned Champions as Hayward Magic Shines
The LSU Tigers celebrate after claiming the Men’s Outdoor National Title at Hayward Field. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. – LSU’s win in the opening 4x100-meter relay set the tone for the night of men’s finals at the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Oregon put up a fight, but the Ducks fell to the Tigers (84 to 53) at Hayward Field on Friday evening.
Oregon freshman Cole Hocker outdistanced Notre Dame senior Yared Nuguse in the final straightaway to win the men’s 1,500 meters to kick off the individual events.
Cole Hocker adds a third NCAA title to his belt, winning the 1500m at Hayward Field on Friday. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
After getting tripped up with less than 400 meters to go, Hocker’s kick propelled him into the lead down the homestretch in front of his home crowd.
“I fell back a couple of feet and then immediately had the energy to move back up,” Hocker said. “I was just locked on to that last 200 and back into my race plan.”
The victory gave Hocker his third NCAA title in a personal record time of 3:35.35. Hocker won both his events—the mile and the 3,000 meters—at the 2021 NCAA Indoor Championships earlier this year.
In his second of three events, LSU’s Terrance Laird leaned at the line to snatch the win in the 100-meter dash. Laird also anchored LSU’s 4x100-meter relay team, edging Georgia (38.48 to 38.54) at the line.
“We got the ball rolling with the 4x100 and we just capitalized on that momentum,” Laird said.
Running the fourth fastest time in collegiate history, LSU freshman hurdler Sean Burrell won the men’s 400-meter hurdles with a personal record and 2021 collegiate-leading time of 47.85 to add to LSU’s growing point total.
JuVaughn Harrison of LSU cleared 2.33 meters to win the men’s high jump and best the field by four inches. Harrison was also the winner of the long jump on Wednesday; he won both of those events at the 2019 NCAA Championships.
“I think having a few attempts under my belt [going into Trials] is a good thing to have,” Harrison said.
A fast final 200 meters for Oregon’s Cooper Teare gave him the meet record, a personal record and the victory in the 5,000 meters. Teare crossed the finish line in 13:12.27—more than six seconds faster than the previous meet record. Teare also broke Bill McChesney’s Oregon school record that had stood for 39 years.
“I figured coming in it would be a fast race,” Teare said. “It was about making sure no one got away.”
Oregon’s Cooper Teare crosses the line with a new 5,000 meter personal best, the NCAA Championship meet record, and a new Oregon school record, clocking 13:12.27. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Duck teammate Hocker also clocked a personal record in the 5,000 with a time of 13:18.95, leading him to a fourth-place finish after coming off his 1,500 victory.
“I was super happy coming off the 1,500 title and I was just trying to hang in and finish the best I could,” Hocker said. “They ran smart, they took it out fast and they made me run and I respect that—I was happy with the way I closed it.”
Isaiah Jewett of USC took the lead in the bell lap of the men’s 800-meter dash, ultimately carrying him to a winning personal-record time of 1:44.68. Freshman Brandon Miller of Texas A&M went to the front with Jewett, but finished just behind in 1:44.97.
Florida freshman Joseph Fahnbulleh caught three sprinters in the final 50 meters of the men’s 200-meter dash to win in 19.91—the eighth-fastest time in collegiate history.
Oregon’s Emmanuel Ihemeje wins the triple jump national title in front of a home crowd. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Emmanuel Ihemeje of Oregon won the triple jump with a personal record and 2021 collegiate leading jump of 17.14 meters. Kigen Chemadi of Middle Tennessee State grabbed the 3,000-meter steeplechase title, clocking a time of 8:28.20—a personal record and the 2021 collegiate lead. North Carolina A&T sophomore Randolph Ross sprinted to the win in the 400-meter dash, also recording a personal record and 2021 collegiate lead.
Robert Dunning of Alabama took first in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 13.25 and Turner Washington of Arizona State won the discus with a throw of 63.42 meters.
North Carolina A&T closed out the men’s championships with a win in the 4x400-meter relay, outdistancing runner-up Stephen F. Austin (3:00.92 to 3:01.52).
The NCAA Championships conclude Saturday at Hayward Field.
Collegiate Record and Fast Times on Day 2 of the NCAA Championships
Oregon’s Carmela Cardama Baez is the first Duck to win the 10,000-merers at the NCAA Championships since Kathy Hayes in 1984. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. – Camryn Rogers of California set the tone for day two of the NCAA Division I Track & Field Championships, breaking the collegiate record not once, but twice, in the women’s hammer throw. Her 75.52-meter winning toss was more than four meters farther than second place.
BYU’s Courtney Wayment was the fastest qualifier in the women’s 3,000m Steeplechase, running 9:32.52 on Thursday. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
“The plan was to get the job done, have a great competition and leave it all out on the field,” Rogers said. “I think today is a reflection of all of the really great training sessions we’ve had all year and up until this point.”
The events that came after Rogers’s record-breaking performance on Thursday afternoon followed suit. Eleven of the 12 qualifiers in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase ran personal records in the semifinals. Auburn’s Joyce Kimeli (9:35.57) and Washington’s Katie Rainsberger (9:36.71) clocked the sixth and seventh fastest times in collegiate history in the first semifinal.
In the second semifinal, Courtney Wayment of BYU (9:32.52) and Aneta Konieczek of Oregon (9:34.37) ran even faster, setting the stage for a dramatic showdown in Saturday’s final.
Carmela Cardama Baez of Oregon won the 10,000 meters with a strong finish and a personal record of 32:16.13, turning in the fourth-fastest time in meet history. Just prior to 800 meters to go, Cardama Baez made a move on Mercy Chelangat of Alabama, who had led the majority of the race. The national runner-up in 2019, Cardama Baez is the first Duck to win the 10,000-merers at the NCAA Championships since 1984.
“I knew [Chelangat] was really strong and if I let her go and wait too long, she would get me in the kick,” Cardama Baez said. “I really wanted to make it honest and give myself a shot. Today I was just happy to be here. This was my last race as a Duck. I just wanted to run for myself and have fun with it.”
Only five centimeters separated first and third place in the women’s long jump final. Tara Davis of Texas won the event (6.70m), trailed by Tyra Gittens of Texas A&M (6.68m) and Jasmine Moore of Georgia (6.65m).
“I’m very lucky to have come [to Hayward Field] and test the waters,” Davis said about competing in Eugene before the Olympic Trials. “Not many athletes are able to test the new stadium, and I’m just lucky to get the first take on the long jump pit.”
Champions were also crowned in four other events. Lisa Gunnarsson of LSU cleared 4.40m to win the women’s pole vault. Marie-Therese Obst of Georgia launched a throw of 59.69m to win the women’s javelin. Adelaide Aquilla of Ohio State recorded a best mark of 18.98m to take the victory in the women’s shot put. After two days of competition, Karel Tilga of Georgia earned the decathlon title with 8,261 points.
The women will return to Hayward on Saturday to close out the NCAA Championship finals.
Tara Davis claims the long jump national title with her fifth round jump of 6.70m(21-11.75). Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Long-standing Meet Record Shattered in NCAA Men’s 10,000 Meters
Tulsa’s Patrick Dever makes a crafty inside move over the final 100 meters to take the men’s 10,000-meter national title. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. – Meet and personal records fell during night one of the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Hayward Field on Wednesday.
Senior Patrick Dever from the University of Tulsa leaned at the line in a historic 10,000-meter performance. Dever finished with a record-shattering time of 27:41.87. The electricity from the Hayward fans propelled the top 10 finishers under the 28-minute barrier, under the Olympic Trials standard and under the previous meet record of 28:01.30 set by Suleiman Nyambui in 1979.
“I knew I was capable of a big performance, but I wasn’t really sure I was capable of that,” Dever said. “I knew I needed to leave something for the home straight and I just stayed patient and I was able to sneak the win.”
Senior Yared Nuguse of Notre Dame and freshman Cole Hocker of Oregon won their respective heats of the 1,500-meter semifinal, punching their tickets to the finals on Friday. Nuguse holds the top spot in the final with a semifinals time of 3:37.36. Hocker will enter the final seeded fifth with a semifinals time of 3:38.34.
“The prelims are always tricky because that’s the objective — getting through with a minimal amount of effort but like a lot of times, you still have to give it your all in the last 200 (meters) to secure your spot,” Hocker said. “I think I did a really good job of balancing that today. I didn’t want to leave anything up to chance when there’s no reason I should. I’m happy with how it went.”
Oregon senior Charlie Hunter won his heat of the 800-meter dash to secure his eighth-place seed going into the finals on Friday. The 2021 NCAA indoor 800-meter champion ran a time of 1:47.80.
Oregon’s Charlie Hunter receives a warm welcome from the home crowd as the NCAA Championships return to Hayward Field at the University of Oregon. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
“I think I’m already there, mentally,” Hunter said about feeling prepared for the finals. “I just need to stay happy, stay relaxed and recover well from today. I think I’m ready to do something special.”
Freshman Yusuf Bizimana of Texas turned in the fastest semifinals time, finishing in 1:46.90.
Sophomore Turner Washington of Arizona State claimed the championship title in the men’s shot put with a personal record of 21.10 meters, while Texas senior Adrian Piperi earned the second-place trophy with a season best of 20.71 meters.
Four other NCAA Champions were crowned on Wednesday night. Sophomore Branson Ellis of Stephen F. Austin won the pole vault, clearing 5.70 meters. Freshman Tzuriel Pedigo of LSU grabbed the championship in the javelin with a throw of 76.98 meters. LSU junior JuVaughn Harrison leapt 8.27 meters to win the long jump. Thomas Mardal, a senior from Florida, threw a massive 76.74 personal record to win the hammer throw.
LSU’s JuVaughn Harrison is one of two Tigers to claim a national title on Day one of the NCAA Championships, winning the men’s long jump. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
The women’s events begin Thursday before the men are back on the track for the finals under the lights of Hayward Field on Friday.
2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field Medals Unveiled
The 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field medals honor the past and celebrate the future of the incredible Hayward Field at the University of Oregon with wood inlays made from salvaged historic Hayward Field materials. Photo by Jake Willard
By Jessi Gabriel
TrackTown USA today revealed the competition medals for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field.
The medals honor the past and celebrate the future of the incredible Hayward Field at the University of Oregon with wood inlays made from salvaged historic Hayward Field materials and an homage to the tower forming the basis of the TrackTown20 logo at the heart of the design.
The road to these Olympic Trials has not been an easy one. We are immensely proud to have created medals that stand up to the journey the athletes have made to get to the starting line and fight for their spots on Team USA. We knew we needed medals that truly reflected the accomplishment of earning an Olympic berth in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Photo by Otto Horiuchi
The wood components on the gold, silver, and bronze medals are made from the stairs of the Bowerman Building, on which thousands of athletes throughout the years left their spike marks as they prepared for practice and competition. The wood inlay features a landscape of trees and hills that speaks to the natural beauty of Eugene, Springfield, and Oregon.
The TrackTown20 logo itself showcases the tower of the reimagined stadium and is reminiscent of the Olympic torch. Simple and powerful, the mark is suggestive of both the numbers ‘0’ and ‘1’ – for an event that was originally planned for 2020 but is instead taking place in 2021. The ribbon of the medal is tied through the negative space of the logo, bringing dimensionality into the traditional round form of the medals.
The medals for 4th-, 5th-, and 6th-place competitors don’t feature the salvaged wood but were instead constructed with a modern and unexpected all-black finish.
Photo by Otto Horiuchi
The medals were designed and crafted with support from Eugene-based companies AHM Brands and MAC Group.
The U.S. Olympic Team Trials is a collaboration between the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and USA Track & Field (USATF). TrackTown USA serves as the local organizing committee for the event, which will take place June 18–27, 2021 at Hayward Field. The event will be presented across NBC platforms.
Olympians and Olympic Hopefuls Share the Track at the Portland Track Festival
Hobbs Kessler’s 3:34.36 1500 meter run at the 2021 Portland Track Festival broke Alan Webb’s national high school record, as well as Jim Ryun’s American U20 Record. Kessler (pictured left) celebrates with training partner Mason Ferlic. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
PORTLAND, Ore. – Olympians and rising high school stars shared the track with the same goal in mind—a ticket to Tokyo—at the Portland Track Festival on Saturday night at Lewis and Clark College.
High school senior standout Hobbs Kessler of Ann Arbor Skyline (Mich.) finished fifth in the men’s 1,500 meters with a time of 3:34.36, shattering Alan Webb’s 20-year-old national high school record by nearly four seconds. Kessler also achieved the Olympic standard and finished under the NCAA record time of 3:34.68 set earlier this season by Yared Nuguse.
“I really just wanted to make the Trials,” Kessler said. “I thought 3:36 at best.”
Craig Engels won the event, finishing with a time of 3:33.64. Although the time and performance itself wasn’t impressive to him, Engels said he felt ready for the Olympic Trials.
“For the last year and a half, I don’t really know what my motivation has been,” Engels said. “Now my motivation is making the Olympic team for my family and myself.”
However, Kessler’s record-breaking race and the winning performance by Engels weren’t the only noteworthy 1,500m moments of the night. T38 para-athlete Nate Riech crossed the finish line with a new world best in the event with a time of 3:47.89, and five high school boys broke the 3:50 barrier in the boys’ elite 1,500m.
Gabriela DeBues-Stafford led the top six finishers in the women’s 800m dash under the two-minute mark.
Stafford broke Kate Grace’s meet record of 1:59.30 from 2017, running a 1.12-second PR of 1:58.70. Sabrina Southerland finished second to Stafford with a time of 1:58.82 and broke two minutes for the first time in her running career.
“I kept going 2:00.8 or 2:00.7, so it feels great to finally break it,” Southerland said. “It’s nice to know that I’m in shape now.”
Oregon Track Club Elite’s Sabrina Southerland on her way to breaking the 2-minute barrier in the 800-meters at the 2021 Portland Track Festival. Photo by Jake Willard
Following the women’s 800m performances, the top five men in the 800m crossed the finish line under the Olympic Trials qualifying time and the top two – Donavan Brazier and Tonatiu Lopez - finished with Olympic standards.
Lopez Lomong and Grant Fisher won their respective heats of the men’s 5,000m. Fisher finished with a time of 13:19.52, beating Lomong’s earlier time of 13:26.11. Fisher also broke the meet record of 13:19.78.
To conclude the Portland Track Festival, Australian Jessica Hull won the women’s 5,000m with a photo-finish lean at the line. She led the top three finishers under the 15-minute mark with a time of 14:57.00—her second time under 15 minutes.
“It wasn’t about time tonight,” said Hull. “It was about competing hard. Craig and Donavan put some pressure on to take the win tonight by running so well earlier, so I definitely felt like I had to grit my teeth on that final stretch for our team.”
Hull, already named to the Australian Olympic Team, will continue to train through the month of June while some of her competitors will shift their focus to their respective Olympic Trials. The 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track & Field will take place at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon, June 18–27, 2021.
Distance Runners Eye the Olympic Trials
High school junior Roisin Willis charges to the win at the Trials of Miles NYC Qualifier, becoming the third high school athlete to achieve the women’s 800m Olympic Trials Standard this year. Photo by Jay Bendlin
By Kate Walkup
Novice and veteran distance runners alike achieved Olympic Trials qualifying times at the Trials of Miles New York City Qualifier at Icahn Stadium on Friday night.
All eyes were on the B heat of the 800-meter dash, which featured high school sophomore Sophia Gorriaran of Moses Brown High School in Rhode Island, who had already obtained the Olympic Trials qualifying time. However, it was another high schooler, junior Roisin Willis of Stevens Point High School in Wisconsin, who had the fastest final kick down the home stretch to capture the win.
Willis crossed the finish line in 2:00.78, just missing the Olympic standard with a time of 2:00.78 while turning in the fastest high school 800m in the country this season. Gorriaran finished fifth in the heat with a time of 2:02.93.
“This race meant so much for me,” Willis said. “I was really trying to get that Olympic Trials qualifier, so that I knew that if I got that win, I would get that qualifier too.”
Mary Cain’s high school 800 meter record of 1:59.51 is looking more and more within reach for Willis as she seeks to break the two-minute barrier.
Distance specialist Sifan Hassan won the seeded heat of the women’s 800m but finished with a time of 2:01.54, which wasn’t quite fast enough to edge past Willis. However, Hassan’s back-half surge propelled her from last to first in the final 300 meters of the race.
Abraham Alvarado came away with a PR and Olympic Trials qualifying time in his 800 meter win in the men’s B heat of the race, clocking in at 1:46.15.
Eric Holt won the men’s 1,500 meters, snatching the Trials of Miles triple crown with a time of 3:39.85.
“It feels great. I love the fact that all my friends are out here supporting me,” Holt said. “I know I had more in the tank and I know I have more to give.”
Tonatiu López cruised to an easy win in the men’s 800 meters, crossing the line with a time of 1:45.24. Having already secured the Olympic standard, Lopez focused on his race strategy in preparation for Tokyo.
Tonatiu López continues his hot streak in 2021 with another victory at Icahn Stadium on Friday night. Photo by Jay Bendlin
Alexina Wilson just missed the Olympic standard in her dominant win in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, running a PR of 9:32.69. Wilson slowly stretched her lead throughout the entire race, finishing ahead of Katy Kunc who placed second with a time of 9:39.53.
In the men’s 3,000 meter steeplechase, Canadian Jean-Simon Desgagnes finished with a time of 8:29.41. Americans Mike Leet (8:29.68), Brandon Doughty (8:29.98) and Travis Mahoney (8:30.12) all came in under the Olympic Trials qualifying time.
“The guys were coming, but I’m glad they were because we could challenge each other,” Desgagnes said. “It’s definitely more fun racing each other instead of knowing you have the win.”
Olympic Standards Abound at the Track Meet
Great Britain’s Laura Muir takes down a talent field in the women’s 800 meter run at the Track Meet, leading five women under 2 minutes.
By Kate Walkup
The Sound Running Track Meet kicked off with Andrea Seccafien and Zouhair Talbi winning the women’s 10,000 meters (31:13.94) and men’s 10,000 meters (27:20.61), respectively, on Friday night in Irvine, CA.
Seccafien and Talbi set the tone for the meet, pushing each of their heats to Olympic standards for the top three finishers.
Seccafien’s final 800 meters propelled her into a significant lead, ultimately carrying her to a 30-second PR and a new Canadian record by almost 28 seconds. She clocked a 68-second lap before the bell, which extended her lead even further over the rest of the field.
The action that followed the next morning continued the excitement. A number of athletes recorded Olympic standards throughout the day; notable among the performances was Trayvon Bromell’s win in the men’s 100m dash with a time of 9.92 seconds.
The women’s 1,500m runners also came out ready to race. Olympic standards were achieved by top three finishers Katie Snowden (4:02.98), Kate Grace (4:03.54) and Jessica Hull (4:04.16).
Snowden moved from fifth to first in the final 100 meters, which ultimately pushed the top three under the Olympic-standard qualifying mark.
1,500m specialist Laura Muir pulled out a dominant win in the 800m, finishing under the Olympic standard in 1:58.71. After her victory, Muir explained that she had wanted to see where her quickness was at and teased the idea of focusing more on the 800m instead of the 1,500m in preparation for Tokyo.
“I just wanted to come out here and test my speed,” Muir said.
The top three finishers in the men’s 110m hurdles clocked in under the Tokyo standard as well, led by Omar McLeod with a time of 13.11 seconds.
Sifan Hassan put on an impressive show in the 5,000m to close out the meet, setting herself apart from the rest of the field right from the starting gun. Her performance, a solo 14:35.34 victory, reaffirmed the Dutch superstar as a medal favorite for the Olympic Games later this summer.
The top nine finishers in the women’s 5,000 all crossed the line under the Olympic standard, with American Josette Norris crossing the line in second in a huge personal best of 14:51.42.
A Record-Breaking Night at the Oregon Twilight Meet
Yared Nuguse just edges out Oregon’s Cooper Teare at the line, taking the win in 3:35.96 in the Bill McChesney Memorial 1,500m. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
By Kate Walkup
EUGENE, Ore. — The magic of Hayward Field was on full display as a record-breaking start to the Oregon Twilight meet on May 7 set the pace for a record-breaking finish at dusk.
The long-awaited Bill McChesney Memorial 1,500m didn’t disappoint, but the action on the track leading up to the much-anticipated final 1,500m heat made the buildup that much more compelling.
Adams State’s Eilish Flanagan set the tone for the night, breaking the women’s 3,000m steeplechase NCAA D-II record with a time of 9:40.68 in her dominant win. It was the first of many records to be shattered during the final regular season meet at Hayward Field.
Adams State’s Eilish Flanagan emerges from the water pit on her way to a new NCAA D-II steeplechase record, 9:40.68. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
Two-time NCAA champion and 2016 Olympic finalist Devon Allen won the 110m hurdles in a time of 13.40 seconds, breaking his own Oregon Twilight meet record. It was the former Duck’s first performance in the reimagined Hayward Field.
“We’re standing here so we get it but you have to come see it to believe it,” Allen said in regard to the new track facility. “It’s pretty awesome. I don’t see why anybody in track and field wouldn’t want to come run here.”
Devon Allen returns to Hayward Field and breaks his own Oregon Twilight meet record, clocking 13.40. Photo by Otto Horiuchi
To wrap up the action on Friday night, the Oregon duo of Cooper Teare and Cole Hocker set out to go one-two in the Bill McChesney Memorial 1,500m. However, Notre Dame’s Yared Nuguse had the stronger final kick down the home stretch in a race that ended in a photo-finish lean, securing him the win.
Nuguse also posted the top outdoor time in the U.S. this year, finishing in 3:35.96—a meet record.
If this wasn’t enough, Nuguse led the top seven finishers in the 1,500 to breaking the previous meet record of 3:38.60, giving a preview of what’s to come at the NCAA Championships next month.
Even though Hocker’s closing speed looked dangerous down the final stretch, his signature kick wasn’t enough to pass Nuguse or Teare. Teare went into the race with the fastest entry of the top three finishers, but his immediate speed off the starting line didn’t give him enough of a lead to hold off Nuguse’s kick.
“I was hoping to have someone to sit on until the last 200 (meters), but that’s not how it goes,” Teare said. “It’s been pretty consistent for me to hammer it and try to win from the front, but that’s hard to do, especially with this caliber of field.”
Finishing 0.01 seconds behind Nuguse in 3:35.97, Teare secured the second-place finish in preparation for the postseason. Hocker finished third in 3:36.47. Teare and Hocker now rank third and fourth on the Oregon all-time list.
“Looking at Pac-12s, the goal there is to win, win, win,” Teare said. “This was kind of that last fun race where you just get to go from the gun. I’m grateful for the opportunity and grateful to have awesome competition. Now, we switch the mindset a little bit and we go out there to win every race. It’s definitely a different strategy but I think that will play into our hands pretty well.”
The Pac-12 Championships come next for the Ducks to test the championship waters before stepping onto the big stage of the NCAA Championships and the even bigger stage of the Olympic Trials later next month.
UO Coach Johnson Dazzles at TrackTown Tuesday
Oregon track & field head coach Robert Johnson shares stories about his horizontal jumpers Rhesa Foster, Lexi Ellis and Isaiah Griffith. Photo by Jake Willard
By Caela Fenton (@caela_fenton) / TrackTown USA
The second TrackTown Tuesday of 2020 lived up to its mission statement to cover the sport at all levels–community, collegiate and elite.
First up was Oregon track and field head coach Robert Johnson and three of his jumpers: Rhesa Foster, Isaiah Griffith and Lexi Ellis, all of whom sit in the second place spots on the UO all-time indoor performance lists in either the long jump or triple jump. Griffith, in fact, informed the crowd, “I plan on winning both.”
The heart of the segment belonged to Johnson, who went off-script to fit in some real talk with the Eugene community about Hayward Field. Johnson said the most common questions he’s received about the field over the past two years have been: What’s up with that tall thing? (in reference to the tower attached to the stadium). According to Johnson, the tower was designed to resemble the Olympic torch. Is it going to be ready for PAC-12s? Johnson adamantly shut down rumors that the plan was to host PAC-12s elsewhere: “There have always been contingency plans because that’s just good organization–remember this time last year we were experiencing what people were calling ‘snowmaggedon,’” Johnson chuckled, “but the plan is still to host PAC-12s at our new stadium on May 16th.” He added that there would be a reveal ceremony for the athletes before that, since “There’s people on our team that have never run on Hayward Field and that’s crazy to me.” The venue has long been an important symbol not only of the UO program’s success, but also the broader Eugene community’s commitment to and appreciation of the sport and its history. Finally, so, exactly how many people is this stadium going to fit? Johnson’s answer to that was, it’s not 100 percent yet, but regular seating is expected to be around 12,700, and expandable seating going up to 27,500.
In the second segment, UO School of Journalism and Communications professor Lori Shontz, of “track class” fame, revealed her inspiration for the now highly-sought after class–the Croke Park Classic. This was a football game between Penn State (where Shontz formerly instructed) and UCF that was played in Ireland. Penn State developed a program for student journalists to cover the game like professionals. Shontz adapted the same model and since 2015 her track class has covered all major meets at Hayward Field. In total, students have produced 636 stories–169 of which were for professional publications. Shontz took the program a step further this past fall, organizing the opportunity for four UO students to travel to Doha to cover the 2019 IAAF World Championships, a dry run for when the event comes to Oregon in 2021.
University of Oregon journalism professor Lori Shontz recalls her experience teaching “track class” with the TrackTown Tuesday crowd. Photo by Jake Willard
Shontz’s track class will be out in full force at the Olympic Trials this spring, where she’ll potentially be inspiring students to follow her own path. “It became very clear at a young age that I wasn’t going to the Olympics as an athlete,” said Shontz, “So I told my parents that I’d find another way to get myself there.”
The final segment featured new OTC Elite member Will Paulson. Born in the UK, Paulson attended Princeton and used his final year of eligibility at Arizona State. While at Princeton he narrowly missed out on the NCAA 1500m final in both 2017 and 2018, the latter by mere hundredths of a second. “Some people are complaining about the new Hayward, but I’m kind of glad to see it go,” joked Paulson, who definitely did not have the “Hayward Magic” experience. His fortunes turned after a year of hard work at Arizona State, after which he emerged as the PAC-12 champion in the 1500m.
Oregon Track Club Elite newcomer Will Paulson is welcomed to the TrackTown community. Photo by Jake Willard
Paulson, who holds citizenship for both Britain and Canada, ultimately made the decision to compete for Canada on the world stage. “Most of my mother’s family is still in Quebec, and I grew up speaking French at home,” Paulson explains of his decision. “Even though I grew up in the UK, I’m very connected to French-Canadian culture.”
Paulson was crowned the Canadian champion in the 1500m in 2019 and snagged a bronze medal in that event in his first appearance for Team Canada at the 2019 Pan Am Games.
Video by Jay Bendlin
TrackTown Tuesday Kicks off Olympic Year with a Bang
By Caela Fenton (@caela_fenton) / TrackTown USA
TrackTown Tuesday couldn’t have started its 2020 series off with a more riveting opener than the exclusive showcase of “The Hunt,” a short film documenting the time trial turned epic performance that went down in September at the iconic “track in the woods” on Nike’s Beaverton headquarters.
While any race on U.S. soil that sends three men to a 5,000m in 13:00 or below is noteworthy in rarity, on display in “The Hunt” are the unquantifiable aspects that go into breakthrough performance trust in teammates, energy from a psyched crowd, the abundance of f-bombs (a la Shalane Flanagan) needed to make it feel real.
Jeff Merrill and Julian Heninger recount their experiences from the Portland 5000 in front of the TrackTown Tuesday crowd. Photo by Jake Willard
The film exudes a kind of raw energy, one that filmmaker Jeff Merrill and race participant, Julian Heninger, likened to that of Hayward’s magic. In fact, the old Hayward Field inside rail was pulled from storage to stand guard at the race. Pointing to the knowledge of the crowd at the race, Merrill notes: “We had high school kids running across the track, bending down just to touch it.” Heninger, an Olympic marathon trials qualifier, was in the race so that there would be five finishers, the number required for it to be eligible to run the Olympic standard. “Varsity called and JV didn’t flinch,” he said good-naturedly of Bowerman Track Club Head Coach Jerry Schumacher reaching out to fill spots in a race that would feature some of the sport’s biggest names: 2016 Olympic gold medalist Matt Centrowitz, multi-time U.S. champion Lopez Lomong and 2019 USATF outdoor bronze medalist Woody Kincaid, paced by Mo Ahmed, holder of eight Canadian records, who had already achieved the Olympic standard.
The documentary is being toured next in New York and Texas. When it becomes available online it will be a must see for any runner needing a reminder of what the sport looks like at its best – in both its quantifiable and intangible senses.
The second segment of the evening featured University of Oregon distance athlete Carmela Cardama Baez and UO associate head coach Helen Lehman-Winters, who recounted Baez’s breakthrough performance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships last year with a second- place finish in the 10,000m. It was her first time at the meet.
Carmela Cardama Baez and her coach Helen-Lehman Winters share a laugh as the recall Cardama Baez’ second place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships in 2019. Photo by Jake Willard
Without eligibility left for cross country, Baez and Lehman-Winters were able to focus on performing well early in the indoor season. Baez ran a 15:25 5,000m in December, demolishing the UO record formerly belonging to renowned alum, Jordan Hasay. Baez and Lehman-Winters have big goals in mind for the upcoming Olympic year. As Baez phrases it, drawing from her experience as an international student from Spain, and a transfer to UO after spending two years at Florida State: “I haven’t come this far only to come this far.”
The third segment of the evening carried on this theme of track as a sport that tests not only one’s physical, but also mental endurance. New member of OTC Elite, Chanelle Price, was candid about the race anxiety and immense pressure to perform she faced in college, after dropping a 2:01 800m at the Prefontaine Classic in 2008…at age 17. Winning at World Indoor Championships six years later was what Price openly called her “first really good race since high school.” She’s navigated her way through a series of unsatisfying years in the sport with the assertion that, “when you’re thinking about giving up, remember your why.”
Oregon Track Club Elite’s Chanelle Price is introduced to the TrackTown community at the 2020 premier of TrackTown Tuesday. Photo by Jake Willard
If the rest of the TrackTown Tuesday series is anything like its opener, citizens of TrackTown USA are in for a special season.
Video by Jay Bendlin
Midnight Marathon - The Ultimate Test
Carrie Dimoff finishes 13th in the midnight marathon in Doha. Photo by Kevin Morris (@kevmofoto)
By Jessi Gabriel / TrackTown USA
DOHA, Qatar – The mantra of long-distance runner Carrie Dimoff’s team, the Bowerman Track Club Elite, is “Not professional, but not unprofessional.”
After a 13th place performance in the women’s marathon at the IAAF World Championships Doha 2019 on September 27 (and September 28), it would be hard to consider Dimoff anything other than a world-class professional athlete.
A mother of two and a full-time employee at Nike, where she works as a Footwear Innovator, the 36-year-old Dimoff may not have had the fastest seed time or the accolades of some of her competitors. What she did have, however, was the knowledge that she had prepared meticulously for the exceedingly difficult conditions presented by a marathon in Doha.
“Preparation is 95 percent of the success of a marathon,” said Dimoff. “I showed up at the start line the most prepared I’ve ever been.”
That preparation came in many forms. Dimoff and her coach, Elliott Heath, knew that the biggest factor over the 26.2-mile course would not be the other women racing. It would be the weather.
At 11:59 p.m., the starting gun went off. The time was chosen to ensure optimal environmental conditions. According to the local organizing committee, the air temperature at that time was 32.7 degrees Celsius (90.86 degrees Fahrenheit); the humidity was 73.3 percent.
The Doha city skyline as seen at 3 a.m. following the women’s marathon at the 2019 IAAF World Championships. Photo by Jessi Gabriel
To get ready for the brutal conditions she knew she would face during the race, Heath and Dimoff created a plan that included bouts of heat conditioning in the environmental chamber at Nike World Headquarters in Beaverton, OR.
“Really, the most important thing we did was heat conditioning,” said Dimoff. “We knew heat was going to be the biggest factor. We used the environmental chamber at Nike. For the first block, I ran eight straight days training in there and progressed from 60 minutes to 90 minutes. We set conditions for what we thought it would be like here [in Doha]. It was definitely a good exercise in one, understanding what it would feel like, and getting to know the discomfort, and two, learning my sweat rate, and how much I should be drinking, and how we could best train me to hydrate.”
Essentially, the chamber created conditions similar to Doha, and by training in it, her body began to learn how to perform in such extreme conditions.
Dimoff also practiced hydration, getting to the point where she could consume 2 to 3 liters of fluids on a run without too much discomfort.
“We practiced drinking as much water as possible,” said Dimoff. “It really helped because my body was used to taking the fluids.”
In addition to teaching her body to adapt to heat and hydration, Dimoff also spent a month training at altitude in Park City, Utah. It was her first altitude stint, and she felt she reaped the benefits of the trip. She still worked remotely, but Nike was supportive of her decision to do whatever she could to go into the World Championships marathon as prepared as possible.
In Park City, Dimoff was able to go for 2.5-hour long runs, putting in work with members of the Bowerman Track Club. While altitude camps are now relatively common for professional distance athletes, with two kids and a full-time job, dropping everything to “just train” for four weeks hadn’t been a realistic option for Dimoff before her build-up to the marathon in Doha.
“Ready as I’ll ever be to take on the heat and humidity and the 26.2 miles of the Doha World Champs marathon course,” Dimoff wrote on her Instagram prior to racing. Photo by Carrie Dimoff (@fastcarrie)
Finally, in order to be physically able to run a marathon at midnight, knowing she would likely be running for close to three hours, Dimoff worked to prevent her body from adjusting to local Doha time. Along with her husband, John, she kept her sleeping schedule in line with Portland-time, 10 time zones earlier than Doha.
“We got in Tuesday, slept all day, and stayed awake all night,” said Dimoff. “It was pretty anti-social. We would wake up at 7 p.m., we ate breakfast at dinner time. The waitress got to know us really well because we were the only people ordering coffee at that time of night. We would watch the sunrise… and go to sleep at 8 or 9 a.m.”
Still, all the planning in the world doesn’t guarantee that you will be able to execute on the day. Heath knew there would come a point in Dimoff’s race where the reality of the conditions would take its toll.
“She prepared as well as she possibly could, but it’s hard to prepare for how you’ll feel 20 miles into an insanely hot, humid marathon,” said Heath.
Dimoff’s goal going into the race was to place as high as she could. Not knowing how she would feel, and not truly being able to predict what pace she would be able to run, she focused instead on place.
She had a bag of ice cubes with her in the call room and wrapped them in a towel when it was time to go to the start line. She ditched the towel before the gun and was able to start the race with ice cubes in her hand. Once the race got underway, Dimoff felt pretty good.
“It wasn’t hard at the beginning,” said Dimoff. “We tried to keep controlled for the first half. But people kept telling me my position and it kept going up.”
Her pacing was helped by U.S. teammate Roberta Groner, who ended up finishing sixth. Groner, a fellow mom with a full-time job, and Dimoff had competed against each other on several previous occasions, and knew they likely had similar fitness levels.
“It was pretty natural for Roberta and me to run together,” said Dimoff. “We went through halfway together. Chatting with her was a good gut check on how we actually felt.”
Dimoff on the marathon course with Team USA teammate Roberta Groner, who ended up finishing sixth. Photo by David Watkins
Having someone else there to gauge where they were each at physically and mentally made the first half of the marathon go by without too many issues.
“After halfway, it started to feel hard,” said Dimoff. “Which means I ran the entire second half feeling bad… I literally couldn’t drink enough to keep cool.”
Dimoff had 4.5 liters of fluids on the course, and she drank pretty much all of it. She estimates she ran nearly 20 miles of the race with a water bottle in her hand. Her stomach felt full, but she felt coolest when she was drinking.
People were pulling out of the race in front of her and behind her. Ambulance golf carts were shuttling those runners off the course, away from the oppressive heat and humidity. Still, she personally never considered not finishing the race.
“I didn’t really think about dropping out,” said Dimoff. “I was in 10th at halfway, and I felt engaged…once you got into the final lap, you struggled or slowed down, but at that point it wasn’t a decision.”
The majority of spectators that had been along the course eventually tired. There were stretches of the road where there weren’t any people around at all.
“It felt lonely; it felt like I was in last place,” said Dimoff.
For context, of the 68 women who started the race, 28 dropped out. The winner of the race, Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich, came into the race with a personal best time of 2:17:08, set in January of this year in Dubai. Her finishing time at this marathon? 2:32:43. She won by over a minute.
Dimoff’s time was a solid 2:44:35. Her personal best is 2:31:12.
“I was so excited to see the finish line,” said Dimoff. “I did it. No meltdown.”
Everything ached when she finished. She lay down on the floor in the recovery room with her feet up on a bench. But for a woman who makes her living trying to reach the greatest possible footwear solutions for athletes, and who works with a team charged with constantly developing, experimenting, and exploring, it was a successful experiment.
“This was such a test,” said Dimoff. “You’re never going to have to step up to a line to these kinds of conditions again.”
Price Claims Historic Gold in Hammer Throw at Doha 2019
DeAnna Price celebrates her victory in the women’s hammer throw at the 2019 USATF Outdoor Championships. Photo: Jake Willard/TrackTown USA
By Jessi Gabriel / TrackTown USA
DeAnna Price knew coming into IAAF World Championships Doha 2019 that she had a good shot at the podium in the women’s hammer throw.
But knowing that and executing on it are two different things. Crazy things happen at championship meets and the form-charts don’t always pan out. So even though Price came into the event with the year’s world-leading mark (78.24m – the American record, set at the 2019 USATF Outdoor Championships), nothing was guaranteed.
“It’s never a sure thing,” said Price. “You just have to go in and give yourself the best chance you can.”
During Friday’s preliminary round, she launched just one throw (73.77m), hitting the automatic qualifying standard in her first attempt and securing her spot in the final.
The 26-year-old, who was a decorated student-athlete and multi-time national champion at Southern Illinois University, entered the final as the favorite.
She left as a champion.
DeAnna Price answers questions during a press conference at the 2019 IAAF World Championships. Photo: Jessi Gabriel/TrackTown USA
Her first attempt in Saturday’s final proved enough to earn her the title – she threw 76.87m. The only competitor able to better that mark was Price herself, who managed to improve to 77.54m in the third round.
When her victory was confirmed, Price celebrated with her fellow medalists, overcome with emotion.
“At that moment, knowing that the season was done, and coming away as World Champion, it was thankful tears for the support I get from so many people,” said Price. “Like I say whenever I compete, whenever I throw: it’s never me, it’s we.”
Her gold medal is the first global medal of any kind for the U.S. in the women’s hammer throw. The United States is in the midst of a renaissance in the women’s hammer, with Price, Gwen Berry, and up-and-comer Brooke Anderson leading the charge. All three women are ranked in the top 10 of this year’s IAAF World Rankings and sit in the top three on the 2019 performance lists.
When asked what advice she might have for high school or collegiate throwers contemplating a future in the hammer throw, Price was encouraging.
“Keep going, keep driving” said Price. “You’re meant to shine, to be bright, to be beautiful, to be bold… I look forward to the next female to break my record, because I guarantee it’s going to happen.”
There is no doubt that her performance in Doha makes Price a medal contender for the Tokyo Olympics in 2020. Fans at the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials will be able to watch the qualifying and final rounds of the hammer throw during a free session at Hayward Field on Wednesday, June 24, and will be able to cheer Price on as she begins her journey to Olympic gold.