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Lead Stories: Friday, May 16, 2008

Chris Derrick: Perseverance
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #1)

Posted May 13th, 2008 at 2:22 PM by Chris Derrick

Section: News & Results, Elite Athlete Blogs, High School, Chris Derrick

Welcome to the official blog of Chris Derrick; the 2007 Gatorade High School Cross Country Runner of the Year and 5k record holder! Make sure to bookmark chrisderrick.thefinalsprint.com and check back every other Tuesday for Chris’ latest entries as he completes his senior year of high school running and begins his NCAA career at Stanford!

I’d like to begin my blogging experience by sharing one of the most epic runs I’ve ever had, and one that encapsulates my team as well. First a little background. Like most distance runners, we at Neuqua Valley are pretty weird. One of our more minor quirks is our belief in the Interval Gods*. The Interval Gods hate us. They have cursed us and given us crappy weather at all of our meets and interval workouts this track season. What’s more they are trying to kill us: right after we left the NTN meet in Portland there were mudslides and now, just weeks after we left Arcadia, it is threatened by wild fires.

Fortunately we’ve managed to stay (for now) one step ahead of them. We only got a break from the interval Gods wrath at the Aracadia Invite. Arcadia doesn’t really count as we are fairly certain the Interval Gods live there. We tried to appease them by feeding some squirrels in a local park and it was going swimmingly until Danny Pawola offered them extra-sour-rye bread, which they hated. I’ll let that little tidbit set the scene for our tale…
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Dathan Ritzenehin:
Homeward Bound: New Beginnings and Role Reversals
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #5)

Posted May 6th, 2008 at 4:30 PM by Dathan Ritzenhein

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Dathan Ritzenhein

Welcome to the official blog of top U.S. distance runner Dathan Ritzenhein! Check back every other Tuesday for Ritz’s latest entry at http://dathanritzenhein.thefinalsprint.com/ as he prepares to represent the United States at the 2008 Beijing Olympics!

Sunday night, a night of great races [at the Peyton Jordan Cardinal Invitational], made me want to be out there racing. Even though I was at home, already in my pajamas, I wanted to be there racing. Watching Brent Vaughn grit his teeth down the homestretch, and Shalane [Flanagan]’s American Record was also exciting. I would check the computer intermittently to catch an update of the races. Stanford is such a great place to go if you want great weather and fast times. No other place or meet has the predictability and guarantee that Stanford can offer.

It is always one of the hardest things to do; watching races when you are sitting at home, but I just have to keep my head down and work hard know that I will be ready for August 24th.
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Nick Symmonds:
Outdoors is Here!
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #12)

Posted May 6th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by Nick Symmonds

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Elite Athlete Blogs, Nick Symmonds

Welcome to the official blog of elite American middle-distance runner Nick Symmonds. Be sure to check every other Monday at http://nicksymmonds.thefinalsprint.com/ for Nick’s latest entry! For more information about Nick, also please visit: www.nicksymmonds.com

I freaking love the outdoor season. After a long, cold, and wet winter / early spring comprised of boring days filled almost entirely with training, the track season comes and we get to finally see our hard work pay off. I got to see a bit of this over the last two weeks as I opened up my outdoor season in Philadelphia and Palo Alto.

Going out to the Penn Relays wasn’t originally in the plans but Coach Gags and I thought it would be a good idea to get a nice effort in before my first 1500m. Also, Penn is the most exciting place to race and nothing like it will get you as pumped up for an upcoming season. I ran a 1200m in a U.S. DMR [Distance Medley Relay] and was very pleased with my performance. I basically decided to treat it as a workout and just ran it as hard as i could. In doing this I split 2:51.1 and found out that I am really really strong right now! I was able to give my USA team a good lead but we were unable to finish that way and the Kenyans won (yet again!).
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American Record for Flanagan At Cardinal Invitational

Posted May 5th, 2008 at 12:30 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

She’d never run a 10,000m race before, but Shalane Flanagan can safely say that she’s already mastered the distance on only her first try at Sunday’s Peyton Jordan Cardinal Invitational. Helped by excellent pacemaking provided by Kenya’s Rose Kosgei and a spirited battle with New Zealand’s Kim Smith which went right to homestretch, the 26 year-old Olympian toppled Deena Kastor’s American record with a sparkling 30:34.49 clocking.

“Thanks to the New York Road Runners, they set me up with a rabbit and that gave me a cushion,” Flanagan told a clutch of reporters after the race. “It really worked out very well.”
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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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TFS Running Podcast 139: Gatorade XC Runner of the Year CHRIS DERRICK

Posted May 1st, 2008 at 1:30 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, Track & Field, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts, High School

On Episode 139 of TheFinalSprint.com Podcast, the most listened to running podcast in North America, I had the pleasure of being joined by Chris Derrick of Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, Illinois.

In January Derrick was named the 2007-2008 Gatorade National Boys Cross Country Runner of the Year. He also finished second behind TFS Elite Athlete Blogger Michael Fout at the national Foot Locker Cross Country Championships and most recently ran the fastest 5k ever (13:55:96) in a high school race at the Arcadia Invitational.

In the interview, Derrick talks about his recent successes and why he’ll head to Stanford this fall instead becoming an Illini. Download the podcast to hear Derrick discuss these topics, as well as, whether the current crop of elite high school runners (Derrick, Fout, Puskedra, Lowe, Fernandez, etc) could match the level of success already achieved by Hall, Webb, and Ritz, his answers to our new “Rapid Fire Questions” segment, and much more!

TO DOWNLOAD: Right click here and select “Save As”

Host: Adam Jacobs | Guest: Chris Derrick
Producers: Greg Cherniet, Adam Jacobs
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 13.6 MB | Length: 00:19:56

Episode Sponsored By: U.S. Army Special Forces

If your measure of success goes way beyond the mainstream, if you think limits are something to be pushed, if your greatest motivation is doing the impossible, we may have a career for you.

U.S. Army Special Forces.
Visit goarmy.com/specialforces.

There’s strong and then there’s Army Strong.

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TFS Running Podcast 132:
Ryan Hall Takes on the London Marathon: Part Deux

Posted April 9th, 2008 at 6:00 PM by Jimmie R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics, Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

Now several months removed from his victory at the USA Olympic Marathon Trials last November, Ryan Hall joins us for Episode 132 of The Final Sprint Running Podcast to share this thoughts on turning the page, the Olympic year, and beginning the next big chapter in his young, but already exhilarating career.

In the interview he talks about his preparations for his next race, this Sunday’s Flora London Marathon, his tapering strategy, expectations, not having a specific time goal, and many other details regarding his second trip across the pond.

Download the podcast to hear Ryan talk about how his younger brother Chad is adjusting to college life as he runs track and cross country for the University of Oregon. He also replies to some of the critical comments that readers have made on some of the other running websites about his faith. In addition, he explains why he enjoys blogging and he answers some of the questions that some of you have asked on his TFS Elite Athlete Blog (http://ryanhall.thefinalsprint.com), including questions about weight training for marathoners, why he’s running London instead of Boston, how he motivated himself back to the top of his game when he was struggling at Stanford and much, much more!

TO DOWNLOAD: Right click here and select “Save As”

Host: Jimmie Markham | Guest: Ryan Hall
Producers: Greg Cherniet, Adam Jacobs
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 17.7 MB | Length: 00:25:50

Episode Sponsored By: U.S. Army Special Forces

If your measure of success goes way beyond the mainstream, if you think limits are something to be pushed, if your greatest motivation is doing the impossible, we may have a career for you.

U.S. Army Special Forces.
Visit goarmy.com/specialforces.

There’s strong and then there’s Army Strong.

Interested in featuring The Final Sprint Podcast on your site, blog or My Space page? Click here to learn how!

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Ryan Hall: Confidence
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #3)

Posted February 16th, 2008 at 1:15 PM by Ryan Hall

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field, Olympics, Elite Athlete Blogs, Ryan Hall

Welcome to the official blog of top U.S. distance runner Ryan Hall as he begins his quest for Olympic gold! Check back every other Friday for Ryan’s latest entry.

Something that has been on my mind a lot lately is the importance of confidence. When I am in Mammoth training I sometimes like to shoot hoops after our evening weight lifting is complete. When I am shooting around I like to work on my visualization skills. Just moments before releasing the ball I see the ball going in.

In my mind I become border-line cocky with each passing shot. If I miss I instantly shake it off and visualize the next shot going in, swish. I tell myself there is no way I will miss, swish. I see the ball crisply cutting through the net, swish. It amazing how much better I shoot when I am overly confident. I know this is kind of a ghetto experiment but it has definitely shown me that I am a lot more likely to perform better when I am confident than when I am unsure.
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Ryan Hall: Vision
(Elite Athlete Blog - Entry #2)

Posted February 1st, 2008 at 1:45 PM by Ryan Hall

Section: News & Results, Marathons, Elite Athlete Blogs, Ryan Hall

Welcome to the official blog of top U.S. distance runner Ryan Hall as he begins his quest for Olympic gold! Check back every other Friday for Ryan’s latest entry.

One of my favorite aspects of training in Mammoth is the “vision” that I get while I am up here. Let me clarify what I mean by “vision.” Vision is my mind’s-eye image of what’s possible. Vision is what inspires me to action, gives me the ample motivation to change, and – above all – gives me the belief of what is possible. On my runs these past two weeks I see London. I have a strong vision for the amazing opportunity that awaits me on April 13th and what could happen there.
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Kipyego Too Tough To Beat in Women’s NCAA XC Champs

Posted November 19th, 2007 at 6:00 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Cross Country, College

From gun to tape, the women’s division of today’s NCAA Division I Cross Country Championships had only one leader: Sally Kipyego of Texas Tech. The junior from Kenya ran away from the field to defend her individual title in 19:30.9 (unofficial) over the 6 km course in Terre Haute, Ind.

Last year, Kipyego sprinted to the fore at the gun and never looked back. However, Kipyego was content to run most of the first mile with a lead pack this year that included three others: Colorado’s Jenny Barringer, the 2006 runner-up, Florida State’s Susan Kuijken, and Iowa’s Diana Nukuri.

Kipyego started to edge ahead on a long downhill just past the mile passing the 2 km in 6:26. Barringer, Kuijken, and Nukuri were only a second behind at the split before the field made their way up the course’s second long incline.

From that point on, Kipyego simply extended her lead over the chase pack — passing 4 km in 13:01, 11 seconds ahead of Barringer, Kuijken, and Nukuri.
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