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Lead Stories: Friday, August 29, 2008

Sam Chelanga Ready To Compete For Liberty Flames

Posted August 5th, 2008 at 9:00 AM by Cheryl Lowe

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, Track & Field, Special Features, Interviews, College

Sam Chelanga can easily be described in two words: light and fast. Chelanga, a native of Nairobi, Kenya, is bound to run extremely well as he competes as a sophomore for the Liberty Flames cross country and track teams starting this fall.

Some might say that Chelanga is the epitome of the next level of distance runner, and one that has loads of untapped potential in the near future. He has had recent success in both the 5,000 and 10,000-meter distances on the track, clocking personal records of 13:24.73 and 28:15.99 respectively.

Chelanga started competing in the United States when he spent the 2006-07 school year running cross country and track for Farleigh Dickinson University in New Jersey.

After winning the NCAA Mid-Atlantic Regional and Northeast Conference cross country titles at Farleigh Dickinson, Chelanga was ready to make a change.
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Mt. SAC Relays: Distance Carnival Highlights

Posted April 19th, 2008 at 5:39 PM by Stephanie Lowe

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, College, High School

The 50th Annual Mt. SAC Relays are underway this weekend in Walnut, Calif. The meet includes top high school, collegiate and professional track and field athletes. The Relays began Thursday, April 17, and will conclude Sunday, April 20.

Friday’s exciting Distance Carnival and Invitational was covered live on Flotrack and the Mt. SAC website. The highlights of the evening were the men’s invitational 3000-meter steeplechase and the women’s invitational 5000-meter run.

Anthony “Fam” Famiglietti won the steeplechase with a time of 8:26.94, barely missing the meet record of 8:26.6 set by Marc Davis in 1993. He led the race from the starting line and finished ten seconds ahead of runner-up Jordan Fife’s finish time of 8:36.69.
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Josh McDougal: “Running Is What I do, Not Who I Am”

Posted April 12th, 2008 at 2:45 PM by Stephanie Lowe

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Motivation, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics, Special Features, Interviews, College

Liberty University senior Josh McDougal is confident as he prepares for this summer’s U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials. This past fall, McDougal became the 2007 NCAA Division I cross country national champion after he out-kicked Oregon’s Galen Rupp by one second. He was unsatisfied with his performances in the 5000 (5th place) and 3000 (6th place) at the 2008 NCAA Division I Indoor meet March 14-15, but remains optimistic as he builds his base for the trials.

“It’s been a rough few weeks,” McDougal said. “[But] I’m in good shape now.”
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Rupp Hopes Wanamaker Mile Will Help Him Get to Beijing, Faster

Posted January 29th, 2008 at 5:00 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, College

When he steps on the track Friday night for the Wanamaker Mile at the 101st Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden, Galen Rupp will be looking well past the finish line, all the way to Eugene, Ore. It will be there in six months time that the 21 year-old NCAA 10,000m record holder will be trying to make his first Olympic team, and he wants to be ready if his 10,000m qualifying race comes down to a kick.

“Obviously, the 10-K is my best event and that’s what I’ll be running this summer and at the Trials,” Rupp said at today’s New York Track Writers’ luncheon as he sat next to his coach, Alberto Salazar. “The goal this winter is to drop down in distance.”

Rupp, who is on a leave of absence from the University of Oregon, has yet to break four minutes for the mile. He has terrific endurance, evidenced by his 27:33.48 10,000m personal best. But improving his raw speed, Salazar said, will give him another tool to win longer races, even if it means losing in the short term.

“I’m going to take my licks,” said Rupp boyishly.
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McDougal Concludes Busy Weekend with 7:57 3K

Posted December 2nd, 2007 at 10:28 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Liberty senior Josh McDougal, seeking a second NCAA automatic qualifier in as many days at the Liberty Kickoff, fell just short on Sunday afternoon at the Tolsma Indoor Track Center. However, his official time of 7:57.90 set a facility record and earned provisional qualification to the national meet.

The race, which wrapped up the three-day, season-opening meet in Lynchburg, Va., was McDougal’s (Peru, N.Y.) third in the last two weeks. The stretch began with his NCAA National Cross Country Championship in Terre Haute, Ind., on Nov. 19 and also included a 13:45.16 5K performance on Saturday.

The 3K field included just two entrants, McDougal and Liberty student Sam Chelanga, who placed second in Saturday’s 5K. McDougal pushed the pace from the very beginning, with Chelanga in tow, and the duo clocked 2:34 for the opening kilometer. McDougal then started to break away from Chelanga just before the mile mark, which the senior crossed in 4:10.
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McDougal Concludes Busy Weekend with 7:57 3K

Posted December 2nd, 2007 at 10:28 PM by Martin Kennedy

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Liberty University senior Josh McDougal, seeking a second NCAA automatic qualifier in as many days at the Liberty Kickoff, fell just short on Sunday afternoon at the Tolsma Indoor Track Center. However, his official time of 7:57.90 set a facility record and earned provisional qualification to the national meet.

The race, which wrapped up the three-day, season-opening meet in Lynchburg, Va., was McDougal’s (Peru, N.Y.) third in the last two weeks. The stretch began with his NCAA National Cross Country Championship in Terre Haute, Ind., on Nov. 19 and also included a 13:45.16 5K performance on Saturday.

The 3K field included just two entrants, McDougal and Liberty student Sam Chelanga, who placed second in Saturday’s 5K. McDougal pushed the pace from the very beginning, with Chelanga in tow, and the duo clocked 2:34 for the opening kilometer. McDougal then started to break away from Chelanga just before the mile mark, which the senior crossed in 4:10.
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TFS News Briefs: 12/02/07

Posted December 2nd, 2007 at 1:30 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field, TFS News Briefs

McDougal runs indoor 5000m in 13:45
Josh McDougal, a senior at Libery and winner ofthe 2007 NCAA Cross-Country Championships, ran an indoor 5000m time of 13:45.16 at the Liberty Kickoff. His time was good for first place and it earned him an automatic birth in the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships which will be held at the University of Arkansas on March 14-15, 2008. Read more at: [LibertyFlames.com, VA]

Wanjiru Runs 2:06:39 Debut Marathon in Fukuoka
Kenyan Samuel Wanjiru, the world record holder in the half-marathon, won his debut marathon in Fukuoka with an outstanding 2:06:39, a course record time. Deriba Merga of Ethiopia finished 2nd in 2:06:50, a PB by over 6 1/2 minutes and also under the previous course record of 2:06:51. Atsushi Sato of Japan was third in 2:07:13, also a PB. Wanjiru’s time is the 3rd fastest in the world in 2007 and ties him with fellow Kenyans William Kipsang and Felix Kimo as the 28th fastest marathoner of all time.Read more at: [IAAF]

Dallas White Rock Marathon Reaches Capacity
The 2007 Wellstone White Rock Marathon, set for 12/09/2007, has reached its capacity of 15,000 runners, up from 11,500 runners in 2006. Read more at: [Business Wire]
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Josh McDougal named USATF Athlete of the Week

Posted November 27th, 2007 at 4:43 PM by Jeanie Rebb

Section: News & Results, Cross Country

Josh McDougal has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week after winning the men’s NCAA Division I Cross Country Championship Monday, November 19 at the LaVern Gibson Cross Country Course in Terre Haute, Ind.

A senior at Liberty University, McDougal out-kicked Galen Rupp of Oregon in the men’s 10 km race in a thrilling homestretch battle, crossing the finish line in 29 minutes 22 seconds.

Rupp finished just one second behind in 29:23. McDougal is the first Liberty athlete to win an NCAA Cross Country title.
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TFS News Briefs: 11/21/07

Posted November 21st, 2007 at 11:50 AM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, Track & Field, Olympics, TFS News Briefs

China Withholding Beijing Pollution Data
Physicians for Australian Olympic athletes have requested data about Beijing’s pollution readings from August 2007, measured exactly one year before the 2008 Olympic Games, but to no avail. The readings were taken while a number of pollution-reduction measures were in place in Beijing, including banishing nearly half of the city’s 3 million automobiles from the streets. The Chinese have claimed that these measures reduced smog by 15-20%. Australian officials doubt these claims. Read more at: [The West Australian]

Galen Rupp is Team Player
Galen Rupp, even though he lost to Liberty’s Josh McDougal by 1 second in the NCAA Cross-Country Championships, is thrilled that his 2nd place finish was able to propel the Oregon Ducks men’s team to their first NCAA team championship since 1977, saying “It’s a great day for Oregon. This is the reason why I came back so quick after running (the World Championships) in Osaka. For the team. We have such an unbelievable group of guys and we have so much fun together.” Read more at: [The Register-Guard, OR]

Turkey Trotters and JFK Conspiracy Theorists Converge in Dallas on Thanksgiving
This year Thanksgiving Day happens to coincide with the 44th anniversary of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy in Dallas TX. Runners, tourists, presidential historians and conspiracy theorists will converge in downtown Dallas tomorrow to stuff downtown Dallas like a Butterball turkey. Over 30,000 runners plus another 20,000 volunteers and spectators in Dallas for the 40th Dallas YMCA Turkey Trot will be competing for parking space with an expected 2,000 people who plan to make their way to Dealey Plaza, the site of the assassination in 1963. Dealey Plaza is located just a few blocks away from the race course of the largest turkey trot in the country. Read more at: [Dallas Morning News][Wikipedia]
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McDougal Prevails Over Rupp at NCAA D-I Cross Country Championships

Posted November 19th, 2007 at 7:30 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, College

The coaches’ pre-meet rankings held up as the top-ranked Oregon men and Stanford women won the team titles at today’s NCAA Division I Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Championships at Terre Haute’s Laverne Gibson Championships Cross Country Course.

Liberty’s Josh McDougal took an exciting men’s race over a dry course with temperatures in the upper 50s.

Despite the near perfect racing conditions, the men’s race sent out slowly with nearly everyone still in contention through 3 km in 8:57, and the halfway point in 15:09.

“I wasn’t surprised that the race went out so slow,” said McDougal after the race. “Two years under nearly identical conditions, the race went out slow.”
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