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Faces in Races: Abdi, Rupp, Meb highlight Men’s 10000m
Posted July 4th, 2008 at 4:47 PM by Jared Markowitz
Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics
The men’s 10000m final at the 2008 US Olympic Trials should be a wide-open affair, with several men who could potentially take the title. Leading the way will be Abdi Abdirahman, whose 27:16.98 at the Prefontaine Classic a few weeks ago makes him a slight favorite. He will have to battle with 2004 Olympic Marathon silver medalist Meb Keflezighi, 2007 USATF 10k national runner-up Galen Rupp, Colorado alum Jorge Torres, and rising stars Josh Rohatinsky and Scotty Bauhs. Dathan Ritzenhein, a 2008 Olympian in the marathon, is also entered in the race but has been focusing on marathon preparation.
As in the other races, the top three finishers in this race who have achieved the A standard will make the US team in the 10000m. The A standard in this event is 27:47:31, which has been achieved by six athletes (Abdi, Rupp, Meb, Torres, Ed Moran, James Carney) in the qualifying window. These six athletes can afford to focus on place while the other competitors must keep an eye on the clock to see their Olympic dreams fulfilled. Below we profile three of the competitors (Abdi, Meb, Rupp) and offer some thoughts on how we think this race will play out.
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Running Film Festival to Premier During Olympic Trials; Support Ryan Shay Memorial Fund
Posted May 28th, 2008 at 9:30 AM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results, Announcements, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, Resources, Olympics, Trail / Ultra
RFF Release: When nearly 200,000 athletes and fans converge on Eugene, Oregon, for the 2008 U.S. Track & Field Trials, there is no doubt they will enjoy the beautiful scenery and the competitive spirit of “Track Town USA.”
However, when they leave Hayward Field for some well-deserved down time, hundreds will head to the movies. That’s right! Hollywood comes to Eugene, as the city plays host to the first film festival ever devoted to the subjects of track & field, marathon running, and cross country: the Running Film Festival (RFF), scheduled for July 3 – 5 on the University of Oregon campus.
RFF is the brainchild of running enthusiasts and industry entrepreneurs, who formulated the idea after assessing the vast, yet underexposed, collection of celluloid devoted to the sport. The festival signed a title sponsor to join presenting sponsors TheFinalSprint.com and Running Times, and a great event was born. A portion of the proceeds from the RFF will be donated to the Ryan Shay Memorial Fund
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“Running Film Festival” in Eugene Sure to Be An Unforgettable Experience
Posted May 25th, 2008 at 3:30 PM by Jesse Squire
Section: News & Results, Announcements, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics, Trail / Ultra, High School
I’m going to this summer’s Olympic Trials—my first-ever Trials trip—and I’m getting pretty excited. Not just about the meet, but everything else as well. It seems like everyone in Tracktown USA is going all-out to make it an unforgettable experience.
The community at large is putting on a massive “Eugene ’08 Festival” complete with a temporary sports bar, music stage, kids’ activities, and excursions to sites like Pre’s Rock and the Nike campus. The whole effect is like the NCAA basketball tournament combined with the Newport Jazz Festival and the Ann Arbor Art Fairs, with the Tribeca Film Festival on top.
In fact, one entry from Tribeca will be shown in Eugene. Without a doubt, the biggest off-track happening during the Trials will be the upcoming Running Film Festival (RFF)– where a percentage of ticket sales will benefit the Ryan Shay Memorial Fund. Entries are still being accepted, but the schedule of feature-length films, documentaries and shorts currently includes the following:
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Film Festival to Complement Olympic Trials in Eugene
Posted May 21st, 2008 at 3:30 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics, High School, Road Racing
After spending hours at the track watching the 2008 USA Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field in Eugene, Ore., this summer, track fans can retreat to the cool darkness of a movie theatre to take in the inaugural Running Film Festival, presented by Nissan and sponsored by TheFinalSprint.com and Running Times magazine.
“Everyone knows ‘Pre,’ ‘Without Limits,’ and ‘Chariots of Fire,’ but there are dozens of other movies and documentaries that runners will enjoy,” said Adam Jacobs editor-in-chief of TheFinalSprint.com. “We created an event that brings together great films, talented directors, elite athletes, and people who simply love the sport. Movie makers have the chance to screen their films for appreciative audiences with entertainment that fits seamlessly with the spirit of Eugene 08.”
Jacobs said that while the festival would include some world premieres, the core of the festival would be established running films like “The Long Green Line,” “Spirit of the Marathon,” “Run For Your Life,” “Indulgence,” “Run Like Hell,” and “Showdown.” The entire line-up will be posted at http://www.runningfilmfestival.com.
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Great Line-Ups for Sunday’s adidas Track Classic
Posted May 15th, 2008 at 9:00 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Organizers have secured great line-ups for Sunday’s adidas Track Classic at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif., and that includes the middle and long distance events.
The men’s 1500m is shaping up to the the top event, led by double world champion and two-time Olympic medalist, Bernard Lagat. Commonwealth Games medalists Nick Willis of Australia and Nate Brannen of Canada are also in the field, along with perennial Canadia star Kevin Sullivan and former NCAA ace Lopez Lomong. Nick Symmonds will be moving up from his usual specialty, the 800m, while 5000m man Adam Goucher will be moving down for a speed workout.
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Star-Studded Meet At Stanford Tomorrow Night
Posted May 4th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Track & Field
Just 18 miles north of this San Jose suburb, one of the most important meets for distance runners held in the United States will take place at Stanford University. Packed with talent, the Peyton Jordan Cardinal Invitational turns the running industry on its head: top stars actually pay entry fees to compete and there are no appearance fees or cash prizes.
So what’s the draw? Perfect weather for achieving all-important Olympic Games qualifying times. When the sun sets at this time of year in Palo Alto, the winds calm down and the temperature drops, becoming comfortably cool. There is already very low humidity.
The key races are the top sections of the men’s and women’s 5000m and 10,000m, led by double world champion Bernard Lagat. Although he won the world titles last summer at both the 1500m and the 5000m, he doesn’t have an Olympic Games “A” standard time in the longer distance: 13:21.50. Working with other coaches, managers and the New York Road Runners, the men’s 5-K will be set-up by pacemaker Christian Hesch for a 13:10 to 13:20 finish time.
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World Cross Country Championships: An African Master Class
Posted March 31st, 2008 at 9:00 AM by Jimmie R. Markham
Section: News & Results, Cross Country, SoundOFF, Columns
Just how dominant were the Africans at yesterday’s IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland? Almost absolutely. Embarrassingly so. Of the 166 finishers, the top 18 were either African or African-born. Of the top 50, 88% were African or African-born. Even when we go all the way down to the top 100, Africans still accounted for 63% of the places! Of the bottom 50, only 30% were African or African-born. Figuratively speaking, Africans hardly even left the rest of the world’s cross-country runners table scraps. That’s dominance. Here’s a chart showing just how dominant Africans were in the race:
The African women were nearly as dominant. In comparison to the men’s race, 15 of the top 18 women were African or African-born. Here are the numbers for that race:
The fact that Kenenisa Bekele could stop for a full 15 seconds to put his shoe back on and still beat the first non-African finisher Jorge Torres of the United States by a minute and 25 seconds (not to mention that he beat “African beater” Craig Mottram by a full two minutes and 2 seconds!) shows just how far the rest of the world has to go to catch up with the Africans.
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Torres. McGregor Lead USA World Cross Squads
Posted March 20th, 2008 at 10:30 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Cross Country
Jorge Torres and Katie McGregor will lead the USA senior squads for the upcoming IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland, on March 30, USA Track & Field announced yesterday.
Torres has been in fine form this winter season, running two cross country races in Europe before taking second at the USA Cross Country Championships in San Diego last month, and winning the USA Men’s 8-K Championship in New York City last Saturday. McGregor, whose family has Scottish roots, has had similar success this season, taking fourth at the national cross country meet and second at last Saturday’s invitational 8-K in New York City. She was also second at the USA 15-K Championships in Jacksonville, Fla., and fourth at the AT&T USA Indoor Championships at 3000m.
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Torres, Flanagan Victorious at Central Park Challenge
Posted March 15th, 2008 at 12:50 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Road Racing
At the inaugural Central Park Challenge here today, which incorporated the U.S. Men’s 8-K Championship, Jorge Torres (Pictured) and Shalane Flanagan won their respective races convincingly. But the paths taken to their titles were completely different.
In the men’s race, all eyes were on U.S. mile record holder, Alan Webb, running in only his fourth professional road race and his first race of 2008. Webb was on the lead with Christian Hesch at the first mile (4:36), and was right behind Andrew Carlson at the two mile mark (9:05). Carlson began to push the pace in the third mile (13:37), but Webb and Christian Hesch surged through the 5-K mark (14:10) where primes were awarded for the top-3 men (Webb was first with Hesch just behind).
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Jorge Torres Edges Andrew Carlson for USA Men’s 8K Championship
Posted March 15th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results
Building on a strong, second-place performance at the USA Cross Country Championship, Jorge Torres outlasted Andrew Carlson to win today’s USA 8K Championship in Central Park.
Torres earned the 8K national title with a time of 22:41.2, finishing 0.7 seconds ahead of Team USA Minnesota’s Andrew Carlson (22:41.9). Jason Hartmann (22:48), James Carney (22:52.5), and Fasil Bizuneh (23:02.1) completed the top five.
Alan Webb (23:31.3) finished a disappointing 16th in what was only his fourth professional road race and 2008 racing debut. However, David Monti reports that Webb was sick on Thursday night, probably the result of food poisoning. He and his coach, Scott Raczko, considered scratching him from the race, but Alan decided to start. There is little doubt that it affected his performance today.
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- AT&T USA Outdoor T&F Champs: Thursday event previews
WOMEN’S STEEPLECHASE 1st ROUND, 4:15 p.m.
Key Athletes: Lisa Galaviz, Anna Willard, Lindsey Anderson
Galaviz, the defending champion, won the Belem GP race in May. Willard and Anderson recently placed first and second at the NCAA Championships. Willard won in 9:38.08, the current U.S. leader.
WOMEN’S 800 METERS 1st ROUND, 4:45 p.m.
Key Athletes: Alice Schmidt, Hazel Clark, Alysia […] - Exciting distance running documentary coming out on DVD
The long-awaited distance running documentary, “Showdown,” will be released soon on DVD, according to Peter Han who wrote and directed the hi-res video with Andrew Ernst.
The documentary focuses on the clash which was building between Abdi Abdirahman, Alan Culpepper, Meb Keflezighi, Dathan Ritzenhein, and Jorge Torres at the 2007 U.S. Cross Country Championships (Keflezighi ultimately […] - U.S. Athletics Championships open tomorrow in Indy
The AT&T USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, arguably one of the best track meets in the world for event-by-event depth, open tomorrow in Indianapolis and will serve as the binding selection meet for the U.S. team for the IAAF World Championships in Osaka in August.
Like last year, the meet will span five days and […] - Famiglietti wins U.S. 8-K title
Steeplechaser Anthony Famiglietti won today’s U.S. Men’s 8-K Championship in Central Park, his first victory at this event.
The 28 year-old New Yorker covered the three-loop criterium course in 22:35, six seconds ahead of second place Abdi Abdirahman of Tucson, Ariz. Bolota Asmerom of Oakland was third in 22:48.
Famiglietti, an Olympian, won $11,000 […] - Abdi, Torres, Famiglietti Headling US 8k Champs
The 2005 USA 8K and 2006 USA 10,000 meter champion Jorge Torres from Boulder, Colo. leads the field for the USA Men’s 8K Championship in New York City’s Central Park on Saturday, March 17.
Torres, 26, who ran 22 minutes, 47 seconds to win the U.S. title two years ago, will face formidable competition including […] - Goucher looks to break coach’s record in New York
When Adam Goucher lines up for the U.S. Men’s 8-K Championship on Saturday, March 17 in New York City’s Central Park, he’ll not only be trying to win his second national road racing title, but also knock off one of the country’s oldest national records, which happens to be held by his coach: marathon legend […]
- Live @ the USA XC Champs: Alan Culpepper wins the men’s USA XC Champs!
After an incredibly exciting race where Ritzenhein, Culpepper and Goucher stuck together in the lead pack, Alan Culpepper ultimately came out on top and became the 2007 men’s USA XC Champion!
Culpepper, who finished in 37:09, was a 2004 Olympian and has won two previous USA Cross Country 12 km titlist (1999, 2003). He was […] - Live @ the USA XC Champs: Ritzenhein in lead at 3k mark
AThe men’s race at the USA XC Champs is underway and Dathan Ritzenhein has taken the lead. Ritzenhein, the reigning USA Cross Country 12 km champion , was considered a top favorite coming into this weekend.
At the 3km mark, Ritzenhein is in first at 8:47. Goucher is in second in 8:54 and Jorge […] - Altitude, Mud To Play Big Roles At U.S. Cross Country Championships
Tomorrow’s U.S. Cross Country Championships at the Flatirons Golf Course here will offer both athletes and spectators a “Back to the Future” moment: for the first time since 1997 only one man and one woman will be crowned the open champions, and they will have to overcome both Boulder’s high altitude of 1655m (5430 feet) […]
- Top U.S. athletes head to Boulder for USA Cross Country Championships
One of the strongest fields ever heads to Boulder, CO, for the 2007 USA Cross Country Championships presented by Gleukos this Saturday, Feb. 9th.
This year’s field includes 12 U.S. Olympians and seven former USA Cross Country Championship titlists. With 2006 being the last year for a long-course and short-course two-day program, and now with the […]
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On July 20, 2008
Patty Barr said:
Ryan we are so excited for you. Know that the entire town has Ryan fever. You are such a great...