TheFinalSprint.com - Track & Field, Marathons, Racing News, Training Advice, Elite Athlete Blogs, Interviews, Podcasts, Videos and More! - TheFinalSprint.com is the Premier Destination for Track & Field, Marathon, Cross Country, Olympic and Road Racing Enthusiasts.

Lead Stories: Saturday, November 22, 2008

Wariner, Merritt Easily Qualify for 400 Meter Finals

Posted July 1st, 2008 at 12:30 AM by Jay Hicks

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics

All 400 meter roads lead to Waco, Texas, three runners from Baylor University made it to the 400-meter finals Saturday night in Hayward Field.

Jeremy Wariner said, “I came to qualify and get a preferred lane for the finals tomorrow. LaShawn [Merritt] and I were not trying to kill each other. Making the Olympic team is not guaranteed, so I have to focus on running my own race.”

In the first heat Reggie Witherspoon (44.99) a Baylor alum took the heat, followed by Darold Williamson, also a Baylor University alum.

In the second heat, number one ranked 400 meter runner Wariner (44.66) won his quarterfinal heat in 44.69, ahead of LaShawn Merritt (44.76).
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

Wariner’s Olympic Preparation To Begin
in Australia

Posted December 7th, 2007 at 12:00 PM by J. R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics

In lieu of a cold, harsh indoor season, world and Olympic 400m champion Jeremy Wariner will begin his 2008 Olympic-season campaign outdoors in Australia. Although he usually begins racing in March, he is set to begin his season next year in February, a warm summer month in the Southern Hemisphere. He will be joined in Sydney and Melbourne by 100m world-record holder Asafa Powell, his training partner Darold Williamson and his coach Clyde Hart.

The 23-year old Texan said, “I am looking forward to running in Australia in February. I am excited about competing here for the first time as I prepare for the summer Olympics in Beijing.”

Read the rest of this entry »

2 comments, add yours | Permalink

U.S. stars invade Shanghai

Posted September 27th, 2007 at 3:30 PM by Hariz Siddiqui

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Team USA standouts Tyson Gay, Sanya Richards, Jeremy Wariner, Michelle Perry, Allen Johnson and Lauryn Williams will lead an accomplished group of U.S. stars Friday at the 2007 Shanghai Golden Grand Prix in China.

This third edition of the Golden Grand Prix in Shanghai has been designated as a qualifying event for the IAAF / VTB Bank World Athletics Final 2008. Competing athletes at the meet will have the opportunity to get an early start on qualifying for next year’s final, to be held September 13-14.

Current world and U.S. men’s 100m and 200m champion Tyson Gay will compete in the 100 meters in a field that includes fellow Americans JJ Johnson and Marcus Brunson. The men’s 110m hurdles also should prove interesting as four-time world champion Allen Johnson and 2007 World Outdoor Championships bronze medalist David Payne do battle with world record holder and reigning world and Olympic champion Liu Xiang, who will compete in front of an enthusiastic hometown audience.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

Team USA ties gold medal record; Lagat and Felix make history

Posted September 2nd, 2007 at 10:00 AM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Special Features, Live Race Coverage

It was a night of firsts, and one of history, for Team USA Sunday night in the final session of competition at the 2007 IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

With victories in the men’s and women’s 4×400m relays, the United States became the first country to sweep all four relays at a World Outdoor Championships.

Bernard Lagat became the first man to win the 1,500/5,000m double at Worlds, and the first American ever to medal in the 5,000.

Allyson Felix became the second woman in history to win three gold medals at a single World Championships, as the relay team of Dee Dee Trotter, Felix, Mary Wineberg and Sanya Richards ran the fastest time in 14 years.

The men’s 4×400m relay of LaShawn Merritt, Angelo Taylor, Darold Williamson and Jeremy Wariner ran the third-fastest time in history.

Breaux Greer became the first American since the inaugural World Championships in 1983 to win a medal in the men’s javelin.

At the close of competition, Team USA tied the all-time World Championships record for gold medals with 14, matching its feat from 2005, and tied the American all-time medal tally at a World Outdoor Championships with 26. Team USA led a medal table in which a record 46 countries won medals; Kenya had five gold and 13 overall, and Russia had four gold and 16 overall. The other occasion on which the United States won 26 medals, in 1991, just 29 countries were on the medal table.

Not a bad night.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

USA sweeps 4×100 relays, Walker takes first U.S. gold in pole vault

Posted September 1st, 2007 at 12:10 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Special Features, Live Race Coverage

Team USA swept the men’s and women’s 4×100m relays for the first time in 20 years, and Brad Walker won Team USA’s first-ever men’s pole vault gold Saturday night at the 2007 IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Nagai Stadium.

With one day of competition and six final events remaining, Team USA remains atop the medal tables with 22 medals, including 11 gold.

The men’s 4×100m victory made Tyson Gay the third man in World Championships history to win three gold medals at a single championship, but that feat was by no means assured heading into the relay.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

The Golden League continues at Meeting Gaz de France in Paris

Posted July 6th, 2007 at 12:45 PM by Jamal Walker

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

The women’s 400 meters and men’s 400m hurdles will be the most anticipated events at the second event of the IAAF Golden League, the Meeting Gaz de France Paris Saint-Denis in France. The IAAF Golden League 2007 offers a $1 Million Jackpot, which represents international athletics’ biggest annual payday. Athletes must win at all six meetings to acquire at least a share.

• The women’s 400 meters will see a rematch of the 400 final from the U.S. Championships, as 2007 U.S. champion DeeDee Trotter is challenged by 2007 NCAA champion and 2007 U.S. runner-up Natasha Hastings, 2007 U.S. third-place finisher Mary Wineberg and 2006 IAAF Athlete of the Year, Sanya Richards. Richards is a contender for the Golden League Jackpot, having won the women’s 400m at the ExxonMobil Bislett Games, and is determined to win after her surprising fourth-place finish in Indy.

Read the rest of this entry »



Comment on this post | Permalink

Nike Prefontaine Classic 100m, 400m fields announced

Posted June 10th, 2007 at 3:00 PM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Sanya Richards, Allyson Felix, Bershawn Jackson, Lauryn Williams, Darold Williamson, Torri Edwards and Leonard Scott are just a few of the big names who will compete in the men’s and women’s 100 and 400 meters Sunday at the 2007 Nike Prefontaine Classic at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

The fourth event of USA Track & Field’s 2007 Outdoor Visa Championship Series, the Nike Prefontaine Classic will be televised live on NBC, Sunday, June 10, from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time.

A star-studded field will enter the women’s 100 meters, headlined by reigning world sprint champions Lauryn Williams and Allyson Felix. Williams won the 100m at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships, and Felix, who ended the 2006 season ranked #1 in the world at 200 meters for the second year in a row, won that event at the 2005 Worlds in Helsinki. Also keep an eye on 2003 world champion Torri Edwards, who won here last year (11.08 seconds) and owns the fastest time in the world so far this season of 10.90 seconds.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

adidas Track Classic: Wariner dominates field in 400m

Posted May 20th, 2007 at 6:00 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

American Jeremy Wariner, a 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist who is represented by Michael Johnson, was able to top Olympians Darold Williams and Jamaica’s Michael Blackwood for yet another win in the 400m at today’s adidas Track Classic.

Wariner, who was initially behind Blackwood, took the lead after the first turn and ran away with the race. He finished and won the event in 44.60; a time that was a bit slower than Wariner would have liked because of the wind on the backstretch.

Wariner is already talking about eclipsing Johnson’s 400m world record at this year’s World Championships. Although Wariner doesn’t possess the same breakaway speed as Johnson, he does seem have the type of endurance and passion that will be necessary for such a feat.

Complete Results:

1 JEREMY WARINER USA 44.60
2 CHRIS BROWN BAH 45.10
3 SANJAY AYRE JAM 45.25
4 MICHAEL BLACKWOOD JAM 45.38
5 DAROLD WILLIAMSON USA 45.40
6 DERRICK BREW USA 45.77
7 MILTON CAMPBELL USA 46.25
8 JAMEL ASHLEY USA 46.49
9 DAVID NEVILLE USA 47.09

For more information, please visit: www.adidastrackclassic.com

One comment, add yours | Permalink

Wariner wins in Osaka

Posted May 8th, 2007 at 8:28 PM by thefinalsprint.com

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Olympic and World champion Jeremy Wariner won the men’s 400m with a world leading time Saturday at the 2007 Osaka Grand Prix in Japan, which is a stop on the 2007 IAAF World Athletics Tour.

Wariner dominated his fellow competitors at Nagai Stadium in finishing in 44.02 seconds, while easing up towards the finish line. Wariner’s training partner Darold Williamson was the runner-up, crossing the line in 44.68. Wariner’s performance was a Japanese all-comer’s record and the fastest ever recorded in the month of May.
Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink

World Athletics Final: American Men Finish 2nd Overall; Johnson, Gay Impress

Posted September 24th, 2006 at 5:00 AM by Martha Jones

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

The American Men’s Team came close to winning their fourth team victory at the World Athletics Final. However, in the end, the Europeans held the lead and came away as the Final champions for the men. The American Women finished a lowly sixth, with the Russians winning the team title.

The American Men’s Team, having fallen short of overall victory, were still able to tie the record for wins at the meet. They were victorious in a total of eight events: 100, 200, 400, 110 hurdles, 400hurdles, triple jump, 4×100 relay and 4×400 relay.

Here are a few of the highlights for the Men’s Team:

• As a last minute addition, Allen Johnson, the 35-year-old, four-time world champion, beat out world record-holder Liu Xiang in the 110m hurdles.
• Olympic relay gold medalist Darold Williamson , the anchor of the 4×400m relay, rallied back from third-place to win the event by .03 seconds.
• Tyson Gay won the 200m with the third-best time in history (19.68 seconds). His time trails only Michael Johnson (19.32) and X-Man Xavier Carter (19.63).

Read the rest of this entry »

Comment on this post | Permalink