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Sprint Finishes Highlight Final Day Of USA Championships
Posted June 28th, 2009 at 11:29 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
The USA Outdoor Championships wrapped up four days of competition here today with three thrilling sprint finishes –and a relative runaway– in the four middle distance finals contested. But in some ways, the meet isn’t over because a number of athletes lack the qualifying marks in their events needed to enter the 2009 IAAF World Championships in August in Berlin and will spend much of the next month chasing those standards.
The runaway went to the University of Colorado’s Jenny Barringer in the 3000m steeplechase. Leading from gun to tape, Barringer went out at a moderate pace, and led a pack of six athletes, including Olympians Anna Willard and Lindsey Anderson, and NCAA East Regional steeplechase champion Bridget Franek of Penn State. Coming out of the water jump with three laps to go, Barringer pushed off the barrier hard and opened a gap on the field, passing the finish post with a two second advantage. Her lead would grow each lap, and sprinting the final 100m, Barringer finished in 9:29.38. It was her second USA steeplechase title.
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Rupp Selects Johnson As Agent
Posted June 28th, 2009 at 7:30 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Race Results Weekly has learned that NCAA and USA 10,000m champion Galen Rupp of the University of Oregon has chosen 400 meter world record holder Michael Johnson to be his agent. RRW was informed of Rupp’s decision, which came this morning, by a shoe company executive who had spoken to one of the key agents who was trying to secure Rupp as a client. Two other prominent agents, who also did not wish to be identified, confirmed that Rupp had signed with Johnson.
Rupp’s decision is surprising, considering that Johnson, who represents Olympic gold medalist Jeremy Wariner, does not have any other distance running clients.
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Top Women All Smiles After 1500m Final
Posted June 28th, 2009 at 7:27 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Sometimes it’s possible for a race to have more than one winner, like in yesterday’s women’s 1500m final at the USA Outdoor Championships here.
The big winner was Shannon Rowbury. The 24 year-old from San Francisco, who was seventh at last summer’s Beijing Olympics, defended her national title by running a sizzling 60.3 seconds for her final 400m to catch a breakaway bid for victory by Christin Wurth-Thomas. Rowbury clocked 4:05.07 to Wurth-Thomas’s 4:06.00, impressive times considering they ran the first lap in about 68 seconds.
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Manager Says Webb Out Of 1500m Final
Posted June 28th, 2009 at 1:29 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
The manager for USA mile record holder Alan Webb says his client won’t contest today’s 1500m final at the USA Outdoor Championships here.
“Alan hurt his left hamstring during Thursday’s 1500m warm up,” said Ray Flynn of Flynn Sports Management through a written statement. “He further strained it during the race. The decision was made after extensive therapy with Dr. Justin Whittaker that he could not compete in today’s race.”
This is yet another setback for the 26 year-old Webb who had hoped to make it to the IAAF World Championships this year after failing to qualify for last year’s Olympic Games (he finished fifth in the USA Olympic Trials). Webb looked solid in the opening round here, closing hard in the third of four heats to finish second by a whisker over USA indoor 3000m champion David Torrence in 3:42.35.
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Goucher and Tegenkamp Roll to 5000m Titles
Posted June 27th, 2009 at 2:14 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Upholding their status as pre-race favorites, Kara Goucher and Matt Tegenkamp both rolled to victories at 5000m here tonight, closing the second day of action at the USA Outdoor Championships at the University of Oregon’s Hayward Field.
Goucher, who is in the midst of training for her first appearance at a World Championships marathon in Berlin in August, broke away with fellow Olympian Jen Rhines with three laps to go. Approaching the bell together, Goucher simply ran the faster final circuit, clocking 64.9 seconds to Rhines’s 70.6. It was Goucher’s second consecutive USA title at the distance.
“I almost fell twice,” said Goucher of the slow early laps which led to her modest 15:20.94 finish time. “You just have to not let it bother you.”
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Salazar To Coach Ritzenhein
Posted June 27th, 2009 at 1:47 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field
On the heels of his runner-up finish in the 10,000m last night at the USA Outdoor Championships here, Dathan Ritzenhein told reporters gathered for the Track & Field Writers of America (TAFWA) awards breakfast this morning that he had chosen three-time New York City Marathon champion Alberto Salazar to be his new coach.
“I’m going to be joining Alberto and Galen up there,” said Ritzenhein referring to Portland about 125 miles north of here. “There’s only so far you can get on your own.”
Ritzenhein, who was coached a the University of Colorado by Mark Wetmore, split with his professional coach, Brad Hudson, after last April’s Flora London Marathon where he finished 11th in a personal best 2:10-flat. Ritzenhein was disappointed with his performance and said today that aspiring to be a 2:08 marathoner wasn’t good enough when the world’s best were running much faster. Salazar not only has the know how, but incredible assets as his disposal at the Nike World Campus, including state of the art training facilities and sports scientists.
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Sell Is First To Enter USA Marathon Championship In New York
Posted June 26th, 2009 at 10:29 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons
The New York Road Runners announced yesterday that Brian Sell was the first athlete to enter the USA Men’s Marathon Championship, a race within a race at the 2009 ING New York City Marathon set for Sunday, November 1.
Sell, 31, of Rochester Hills, Mich., finished third at the 2008 USA Olympic Trials Marathon held in New York’s Central Park, but this will be the first time he will run the ING New York City Marathon. In addition to the usual prize money on offer, the Road Runners have put up a special $150,000 prize money purse for the championship. Sell, like the dozens of other Americans who will eventually enter, will be competing hard for the $40,000 first prize.
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Logan Confirms Olympic Trials To Return To Eugene
Posted June 26th, 2009 at 6:56 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics
Addressing reporters at the annual awards breakfast for the Track & Field Writers of America (TAFWA), USA Track & Field CEO Doug Logan confirmed that the Olympic Trials would return here in 2012.
“We’ll be here in 2012,” said Logan who also announced an extension of USATF’s marketing partnership with shoe and apparel company, Nike.
Logan explained that the format of the meet would likely be changed to shorten the number of competition days. He said a “three plus three” format was likely: six competition days to be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday of consecutive weekends. The 2008 Trials were held over a span of ten days and featured eight competition days, a format which generated more broadcast television hours, but made for thin programs on certain days.
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Begley and Rupp Get Two Dramatic USA 10000m Victories
Posted June 26th, 2009 at 4:03 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
A terrific evening of middle and long distance running on the first day of the USA Outdoor Championships here was capped by emotional victories at 10,000m by Olympians Amy Begley and Galen Rupp. Both runs were historic: Begley broke the stadium record for the distance while Rupp became the first man ever to win the NCAA and USA 10,000m titles in the same year.
“It was unbelievable to do it in a Duck uniform,” said a teary-eyed Rupp who ran his last race wearing the colors of the University of Oregon. “I’ll remember it for the rest of my life. It was just magical.”
Rupp had the easier time of the two champions. In an uneven race where Abdi Abdirahman did most of the early leading, Rupp and two-time Olympian Dathan Ritzenhein followed a mid-race move by James Carney and broke clear of the field.
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Symmonds Enters Championships Savoring Home-Track Advantage
Posted June 25th, 2009 at 6:48 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Unshaven, his light brown hair only loosely coiffed, reigning USA 800m champion Nick Symmonds was the picture of relaxation at yesterday’s kick-off press conference for the USA Outdoor Championships which begin here today. Symmonds, who lives and trains here with the Nike-sponsored Oregon Track Club Elite, enters the meet with both the confidence of a defending champion, and the added advantage of running on the track where he regularly trains and has achieved the best performances of his career.
“It’s really important that the U.S. Championships are here,” said Symmonds with his characteristic rapid-fire delivery. “I can feel the confidence that comes with that and the lift the crowd gives you.”
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Who had the more impressive Boston Marathon debut?
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- Rupp Completes NCAA Distance Double
The University of Oregon’s Galen Rupp made his last race as a collegian a memorable one, winning the NCAA Division I 5000m title last night in Fayetteville, Ark., and becoming the first athlete since Stanford’s Brad Hauser in 2000 to take the 5000m/10,000m doube at these championships. Moreover, he became the first NCAA distance […]
- All-Athletics.com Has Been Relaunched
The website All-Athletics.com has been relaunched, according to site founder and general director, Dr. Bojidar Spiriev. With an emphasis on statistics, Dr. Spiriev claims that over 4,000,000 individual results are accessible in the site’s database across all athletics disciplines, covering 200,000 athletes from 110,000 competitions. The site also carries news, including stories from […]
- Rupp Captures NCAA 10,000m Title
Competing in his last NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, University of Oregon senior and Olympian Galen Rupp finally won the national collegiate title at 10,000m, beating his key rival and the NCAA record holder at the distance, Kenyan Sam Chelanga of Liberty University, into third place. Arkansas senior Shawn Forrest, an Australian, finished second. […]
- NCAA Championships Off To a Soggy Start
The NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships, America’s most compelling athletics competition for teams, got off to a soggy start at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville yesterday. Sunny conditions in the afternoon gave way to heavy rain with lightning, forcing a lengthy rain delay. The last races of the night […]
- Toronto Meet To Be Streamed On ESPN360.COM
Thursday’s Festival of Excellence athletics meeting in Toronto will be streamed live at ESPN360.com, the Bristol, Conn., broadcaster announced today. Track’s biggest superstar, Usain Bolt, will be competing in the 100m.
The broadcast is free, but there’s a catch: ESPN360.com content is only available when viewing the website thorough certain internet providers. ESPN says […] - Big Win For Rose Kosgei in New York
Rose Kosgei got arguably the biggest win of her career here today, winning the 38th NYRR New York Mini 10-K in Central Park. The 27 year-old mother broke the tape in 32:43, becoming the first Kenyan to win the Mini, the oldest all women’s road race in the world, since Tegla Loroupe in 2000. […]
- Mini 10-K Complete Field Released
The New York Road Runners released the bib number listing for Sunday’s 38th NYRR New York MINI 10-K. The all-women’s race, which has attracted about 6000 entrants, begins on Central Park West and finishes inside of the park adjacent to Tavern on the Green at the finish line of the ING New York City […]
- In memory of Adam Jacobs, support the Challenged Athletes Foundation
In memory of Adam Jacobs, founder of The Final Sprint, please donate so that someone with dreams as big as Adam can reach their goals too.
- Prokopcuka, Johnson Headline Austrian Women’s Run
Two-time ING New York City Marathon champion, Jelena Prokopcuka (right) of Latvia, and 2004 IAAF World Cross Country champion, Benita Johnson of Australia, are the top athletes contracted to take part in next Sunday’s Austrian Women’s Run, an all-women’s 5 km road race in Vienna. It will be the 22nd edition of the event […]
- El Boumlili and Gromova Run Away With Rock ‘n Roll Marathon Wins
Khalid El Boumlili of Morocco and Yuliya Gromova of Russia scored runaway victories at today’s Rock ‘N’ Roll Marathon in San Diego, Calif., the race which began the entertainment revolution in marathon running.
El Boumlili, who finished third at the 2008 Boston Marathon, was part of a large lead pack at 10 km (31:42), but soon […]
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