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Flanagan Edges Goucher in Olympic Trials 10k; Begley’s Strong Finish Earns Third

Posted June 28th, 2008 at 1:00 AM by Jared Markowitz

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics

The women’s 10,000m at the 2008 USATF Olympic Trials was billed as a “clash of the titans” and did not disappoint. Heavyweights Shalane Flanagan [Pictured] and Kara Goucher outlasted the field and the muggy conditions to stage an epic battle over the final three laps, with Flanagan using a blistering final quarter to secure the victory. The star of the night, however, was third place finisher Amy Begley. Begley needed the Olympic A Standard to make the team and got just that with a heroic effort that included pacing Flanagan and Goucher for long stretches and closing hard to finish just under the standard.

Going into the race, most people had their eye on the four Americans who had achieved the Olympic A standard (31:45.00): Flanagan (30:34.49), Goucher (31:26.48), Team USA Minnesota’s Katie McGregor (31:37.82) and Molly Huddle of Run Providence (31:27.12). The American Olympic team is comprised of the top three finishers in the Trials race who have also achieved the A Standard, either in that race or in a previous meet. This rule allowed the aforementioned “Big Four” to race for place while the rest of the field needed to worry about keeping the pace honest to achieve their Olympic dreams. The A standard became extremely difficult to attain on this night due to the warm and humid conditions (low 80s with significant humidity).

The Trials race started conservatively out of the staggered start, with Kara Goucher leading the field through a leisurely 81s first quarter. Sensing a lack of ambition from the leaders, Amy Begley and Melissa Cook moved up quickly to quicken the pace and keep the A standard in play. They were joined by NCAA champion Lisa Koll as well as Flanagan and Goucher. Shortly thereafter Magdalena Lewy-Boulet, the runner-up at the Olympic Marathon Trials this spring, took the lead in a reprisal of her impressive front-running display on the streets of Boston. By the halfway point the field was stretched out with a lead pack of Flanagan, Goucher, and Begley with Sara Slattery and Katie McGregor a few yards back. The 5000m split was reached in 16:11, meaning the pace needed to pick up significantly for anyone to reach the A standard and thus displace either McGregor or Huddle for the last Olympic spot. Unfortunately Molly Huddle had started to fade by this point and would finish in a disappointing ninth. The leaders continued to push the pace throughout the second half of the race, gapping the rest of the field and giving Begley a shot at the A standard. Flanagan, Goucher, and Begley all shared pacing duties until a Flanagan surge with 1200 to go dropped Begley. Goucher was not done yet, however, and quickly regained the lead with a kilometer to go, further ratcheting up the pace. Flanagan stuck to Goucher’s shoulder until 300 to go, where she unleashed a ferocious kick to gap Goucher and take the title in 31:34.81 to Goucher’s 31:37.72. Meanwhile Amy Begley was mounting a charge of her own to reach the A standard, blasting down the home stretch to dip under the A standard in a gutsy 31:43.60. She was followed by Katie McGregor and marathon Olympians Blake Russell and Magdalena Lewy Boulet. This was McGregor’s second straight fourth place finish at the Olympic Trials, a crushing reality for a superb runner.

After the race, the appreciative Hayward Crowd saluted its three newest Olympians: Shalane Flanagan, Kara Goucher, and Amy Begley. Flanagan, a native of Marblehead MA and a former UNC standout, has been a revelation the last two years in taking the American records in the indoor 3000m, outdoor 5000m, and outdoor 10000m. Shalane has revived her career after a severe foot injury caused her to miss the entire 2006 season and attributes much of her success to the emphasis on speed and strength given by her new coach, John Cook. Goucher, on the other hand, is originally from Minnesota but made her name as a standout at the University of Colorado. Kara and her husband Adam underwent similar revivals in their careers upon moving to Eugene to train with famed coach Alberto Salazar in 2004. Kara had a huge international breakthrough last year, taking home the bronze medal in the 10000m at the World Championships. Amy Begley is a 2001 graduate of the University of Arkansas and one of Goucher’s training partners in the Nike-Oregon Project. Her gutsy performance this evening was a 16 second PR and demonstrated an ability to run well in tough conditions, as will be necessary in Beijing this August.

So there you have it- the first three Olympians of the 2008 US Olympic Track Trials have been crowned in dramatic fashion. All three are deserving Olympians and should make the US a formidable force in the women’s 10000m in Beijing.