If you were wondering when the 2014 Outdoor season was REALLY going to start, the Texas Relays supplied a definitive answer:
NOW!
The Pole Vault continues to shine.
Indoors, you had Lavillenie's WR, plus Petrillose's CR, and HSR's by King and Freier!
Well, Desiree Freier has continued to direct the spotlight at this exciting field event.
She is now the OUTdoor HSR holder, to add to her INdoor HSR!!
She went over 14-3.25, breaking Morgann LeLeux's 2011 HSR of 14-2.75!
Besides 1st A-T HS, this was the Senior Class record too!
Kaitlin Petrillose has moved successfully outdoors as well.
After breaking the INdoor CR with 15-1, she has moved to 4th A-T Collegiate OUTdoors, vaulting 14-9 to win at Texas.
She is tied with 1 other.
She jumped all the way from 22nd place, where she was tied with 2 others!
And she also moved onto the A-T US list Outdoors.
She's 18th A-T US, tied with 3 others!
Martina Schultze also jumped well at Texas, her 14-5.25 making her 17th A-T Collegian, tied with 3 others.
Trayvon Bromell had quite a time.....or time(S) at Texas.
He first won his heat in 10.02, which was a new Collegiate Frosh Class record!
It also placed him 22nd A-T Collegiate, tied with 3 others.
Then he broke his OWN Frosh Class mark with a 10.01 final!
It also tied him (with 2 others) for the World Age 18 record!!
Plus, he moved up 3 spots on the A-T Collegiate list, to 19th, also tied with 3 others there!
The Women's Javelin was good at Texas.
Kara Patterson is coming back from injury and an off-year.
She won with a Texas Relays MR of 198-4.
In 2nd was Marija Vucenovic, whose 186-1 moves her from 20th A-T Collegiate up to 13th!
Then came Hannah Carson, who continues her PR surge in 2014.
Now a Soph in college, her pre-2014 PR dated from 2007, when she was an 8th grader!!
She threw the Jav 177-3.
Not yet in the Top 24 A-T Collegians, but getting there!!
Shelbi Vaughan is another coming back from a sub-par 2013.
The HSR holder in the DT at 198-9 from 2012, she finally nipped that with a PR throw of 198-10 at Texas.
This makes her 12th A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!
Ryan Crouser also PR'ed at Texas, his SP of 69-9.50 moving him to 15th A-T Collegiate!
Sticking to the field events for a moment, but moving to the World stage, Zheng Wang of China broke her own National record with a toss of 254-10 in the HT.
This makes her 5th A-T World!!
It's also the Age 26 record!!
There was a fantastic race in the Men's 4X100 University Relay at Texas!
Florida just edged out Texas A&M at the tape, 38.29 to 38.30.
These were new School records for each!
Florida is the # 3 School A-T Collegiate.
Texas A&M is number 4 School!!
One other HSR was set at Texas (besides Freier's!).
St Thomas Aquinas (FL) broke the 4X200 Relay HSR with their 1:33.47.
The record they beat?
Would you believe the 1:33.87 set by the legendary Poly/Long Beach team of 2004?
Aquinas averaged about 23.37 per 200 leg!!
Not a record, and not at Texas, but there was a CLASSIC 3200 meter race at the Mt Carmel HS Invitational!
The great Sarah Baxter, probably heavily favored to cruise to a victory, found herself in a bit of a RACE!!
With PR's of about 4:56 and 10:35 in the 1600 and 3200, Bethan Knights was not expected to seriously challenge one of the superstars of HS track and field.
But she ran the race of her life (thus far!), TYING (!!!) Baxter in a very good time of 10:07.52!!
Has anyone ever heard of a TIE in a race longer than, say, 200 meters??
I'm 100% against running the 1600 and 3200 distances (in place of the 1 Mile and 2 Mile), so these times will NOT be on my Top 24 lists!!
But it seems we can add Bethan Knights of CA to the growing list of HS middle and long distance SUPERstars!
Hopefully, ALL of them (Alexa Efraimson, Elise Cranny, Hannah Debalsi, Tessa Barrett, Caroline Alcorta, Baxter & Knights....along with a few other rising stars!) will meet in a race over Two Miles or 5000 meters.
Maybe at Arcadia or NBN??
Or even at Payton Jordan??
Bernard Lagat succeeded on his promise.
He broke the US Road record for 5000 at the Carlsbad race, his AR 13:18 taking 2nd to Dejen Gebrmeskel's 13:11.
Julia Bleasdale took the Women's race in 15:04, moving her to 3rd A-T GB in the Road 5K.
Brenda Martinez led the Americans in 4th, her 15:21 a Road PR!
On a personal note, I just became a paid member of the TFAA (Track and Field Athletes Association).
This is the group who are seriously challenging USATF to answer the many questions left from the INdoor USATF meet.
Especially the DQ's of Gabe Grunewald and Andrew Bumbalough!
Jordan Hasay's decision to withdraw from Sopot solved the problem with the Grunewald DQ.
She was reinstated, and ran in Sopot.
But despite CLEAR evidence that absolutely ZERO contact was made between Bumbalough and Galen Rupp during their 3000 in Albuquerque, Bumbalough's DQ remains on the books!
That needs IMMEDIATE resolution!!
(Hey, Alberto!! Withdraw your damn protest!! Tell USATF you made a mistake, and that you're sorry for the MESS you initiated!! It's easy, Alberto....Just Do It!!!)
Then, USATF can begin to try to solve all their other problems!
Suffice to say, I feel GREAT that I joined TFAA's cause!!
Please join them, and recommend that your friends and family do too!!
See you soon with (hopefully) more great marks from the already-productive 2014 OUTdoor season!!
Thanks for the great post, as usual! It's sure is fun following the vaulters this year. I'm especially impressed with the "small vaulters" who have been grabbing most of the attention.
ReplyDeleteDo you have accurate (or at least credible) height and weight data for Lavillenie and Freier?
Wikipedia lists Lavillenie at 5'9" and 152 lbs. That's VERY small for a world class vaulter, much less the breaker of the one of the most legendary records in the sport. I know he's small, but I'm wondering if he's really that small?
Desiree Freier is said to be "five feet tall", again extremely small for a major record holder. (Jenn Suhr is six feet tall!) Is she really that small? Do you know her weight? In her pictures she looks quite solid and muscular. Her great asset now is a very aggressive pole plant and takeoff. This has been a weak area for American women vaulters for years, but Freier is a notable exception. In this respect, she reminds me of the world's first female sixteen footer, Svetlana Feofanova, who has always been considered small for the event at 5'5", but compensated with a very aggressive technique.
It will be interesting to see how much further improvement we will see from Lavillenie, already in uncharted territory, and Freier, who I expect will improve her HSR a few more times this season.
Thank you!
All the sources list Lavillenie as 5-9.
ReplyDeleteFreier herself says she's 5 feet even!
However, she's just 17 (Born July 24, 1996), so could still grow a few inches.
Not into the technical aspects of field events (or running!), just the records & marks, so can't speak to her technique.
But she (and/or her coach) seems to know her event.
In interviews, she speaks in technical terms (size of poles, speed on runway, etc), so she sounds like a serious vaulter--meaning she's a student of the event.
The Age 17 mark is 14-9 by Liz Parnov of Australia from 2012.
Freier has said she practices at 14-6 quite often.
I expect she'll clear that height soon.
Maybe even 14-9 or 14-10.
I doubt her height (or lack thereof) has made much difference.
In fact, maybe it helps!
(Again, I'm NOT a technique person, so can't really speak intelligently on this.)
I saw a video of her HSR (the outdoor version!!), and she cleared the bar by a good 6 to 8 inches...or at least that's what it looked like to me!
She was way above the bar!!
But yeah, the PV has been the "star" event of the year, both indoors and out.
I'd give second place to the women's mile, with Cain's marks, plus fast miles by Winslow and Conley, and of course the 1500 WR by Dibaba!
It's been a much better year overall than I expected!!
Outdoors seems to be continuing the indoor explosion of records.
Texas had TWO HSR's, plus all the other great marks.
Could've been even better if that wind in the Women's 100H had been just a tad less.
Kendra Harrison would've had a MASSIVE PR with her 12.68....but the wind was 2.1.
Also could've had 2 great times to put on my HS 2 mile list, but that damn 3200 reared its ugly head at Mt Carmel!!
I'm excited by yet ANOTHER great distance talent emerging in the female HS ranks....Bethan Knights!!
But never heard of a TIE in a 2 mile race before!
Haven't seen a video or seen any details of the race, but I doubt the tie was intentional!!
Must have been one HELL of a sprint finish down the final straight!!
Just now watching YouTube videos of Desi -- I love the way she vaults with such abandon! There's a good slow motion video of her outdoor record at Texas Relays. It's a GREAT vault, but not quite the margin of clearance you suggest. Her left leg and hip are quite close to the bar before she reaches her maximum height -- she might have made another inch higher with that vault, but not more. However, after that narrow gap (not contact) with the bar early, she gets big hip height indicating the potential to go much higher, possibly soon if she gets good vaulting conditions -- warm day, nice tailwind, etc. In Texas she should have plenty of good opportunities with great vaulting conditions.
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see her get Parnov's age 17 record. This is fun for me in a nostagia way. In 1963 I set a world age 17 record in the vault at 14'8 1/2" (totally demolished soon after by Paul Wilson). Parnov is higher and Freier could very well get that. A lot of the college girls should watch Freier to see how it's done right!
Her (lack of) height is not a big impediment at the heights she's jumping now, but will very likely be an obstacle to much more improvement once she gets over 15'. I really hope I'm wrong about that because I like this girl a lot. She's got the guts and aggressiveness for greatness. I always thought Sveta Feofanova got the very best out of her physical attributes with a similar aggressive style. She is very short for a world-class vaulter at 5'5", and Desi is a lot shorter than that. It does matter in how high she will ultimately be able to hold on the pole.
Being tall in the pole vault is kind of like being tall in the high jump. It's definitely an advantage, but some short guys (and gals) have done well too. Still, the great majority of world-class athletes in these events are fairly tall. It helps. So if Desi is going to reach world-class levels over the next several years -- which I'd love to see -- she's going to have to bring exceptional speed, strength, and technique. She's already strong in these areas or she wouldn't be the HS record holder, but there's still a long way to go to sixteen feet. But I shouldn't get ahead here -- she's still in HS and doing fantastic. And, as you pointed out, she might still grow a few more inches. I hope so!
Bethan Knights -- she must have surprised Baxter big time, and maybe herself too! This could be a big motivator for Sarah to pick it up a bit. She should be breaking 10:00 in the two mile. She's been on everyone's radar screen for a long time now, and we expect a lot from her.
Two other former HS vault stars haven't reached their full potential.
ReplyDeleteMorgann LeLeux and Shade Weygandt.
Both were class record holders in HS, and did okay in college, but never reached 15.
LeLeux's indoor PR is better than her outdoor, 14-9 to 14-6.75.
And Weygandt's out PR is 14-9.
Both SHOULD have reached 15 by now!
Weygandt's about 1 yr older than LeLeux.
Also, T&FN had a chart or list once several years ago of height reached over one's head in the HJ.
In other words, if you're 6-0 tall and you HJ 7-6, you've gone 18 inches over your head.
Can't remember who led the list, but I think the record was something like 23 inches!!
That would mean someone 5-8 tall had HJ'ed 7-7!!
Was it Conway??
I remember Paul Wilson.
I remember a great photo in one of the 1964 issues of T&FN--maybe on the front page??--of Wilson, Lindgren, and Ryun together!!
BTW, another female HS vaulter to look for this year is a kid named Merritt.
Can't remember her first name right now.
But she broke both the frosh and soph class records (13-3 and 13-8) the past 2 yrs.
She's an 11th grader now, but haven't seen her name in results so far this year....indoors or out.
Hope she's not injured......or given up the sport!!
(Does she play soccer or basketball, etc??)
Forgot one thing.
ReplyDeleteAbout Baxter.
She doesn't have any speed, as far as I know.
No kick.
She's like Shalane Flanagan (even in appearance, somewhat!!).
She's relentless and tough, can hold a solid pace a long time.
Might be best at 10K, then the marathon!
Doesn't have the speed or kick of Cain, Efraimson, or Cranny.
They all have the ability to kick it into high gear in a split second....the sign of a world class kicker!!
Baxter doesn't have that.
Like I said, don't know the details of the race, but I'd be willing to bet Baxter ran a steady 5:00 to 5:03 pace throughout, while Knights (Yes, her name has an "S" at the end!!) probably kicked hard.
Just like with Finn and Frazier.
Finn's another one with no real speed, while Frazier is another with a solid kick.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJust for fun, since we were talking about great performances by short athletes:
ReplyDeleteThe "world record" for high jumping over one's own height is 59cm co-held by Stefan Holm and Franklin Jacobs.
Holm was 1.81m tall (5' 11 1/4") and jumped 2.40m (7' 10 1/2") for a differential of 23 1/4". I don't have the stats on Jacob's jump.
I don't know if it's a record, but pole vaulter Greg Duplantis cleared more than 19', while standing only 5' 6" tall. I heard his height given as 5' 6" for many years, but then I saw some posts claiming he was actually only 5' 5", and then another claim that he was only 5' 4" tall! Then one day he appeared on the T&FN website, talking about his children's pole vaulting exploits I think, and I took the opportunity to ask him about his height when he made 19', and told him about the various claims floating around. He confirmed that he was in fact 5' 6" when he made his 19 foot vault -- a remarkable achievement! He said something like "the older I get the shorter I was!"
Becca Gillespie (polevaultpower) said that Greg Duplantis is the patron saint of all short pole vaulters!
Maybe Desiree Freier will occupy that exalted status for all short female vaulters!
(Sorry about the deleted posts. They were just early versions of this post that had typos. The site doesn't allow editing of posts, so the only way to correct a typo is the delete the faulty post and re-post the corrections.)
Aha!
ReplyDeleteIt was Jacobs, not Conway!
I knew it was an American who held that "record", just couldn't remember who.
BUT...I was right about it being 23 inches (height over head in the HJ)!!
Not looking for more praise from you----you given MUCH more than your fair share already!!!----but wondering if you read ALL the blogs between your comments.
There were about 6 posts you didn't comment on.....or make mention of in these last comments.
I'm patting myself on the back here (LOL), but I gotta say O'm totally proud & satisfied with my NCAA &NBIN posts.....as well as the two Meet Record prediction posts for those 2 meets.
Okay, enough of this for one day!!
But look for---MAYBE!!!-----one "extra" post coming up soon (today or tomorrow) which has to do with things that would improve our sport!!
Also, what do you think of the TFAA??
As you know, I just joined!
Anyway, thanks so very much for remaining a loyal fan & reader!!
I write my posts for EVERYONE......but occasionally start thinking I'm writing them for YOU ALONE!!!!
I do read all your posts, and often don't comment because I just have so many other projects going in my life that there just isn't time. In fact, I often think of responses to your posts, but never get around to writing them. Sorry. And sometimes I put myself on a "no posting" discipline, just to manage my time better. In fact, for a long time now the comments I have posted here are the only exceptions I have made to my current "no posting" policy!
ReplyDeleteBut know for certain that I do read all of your posts -- in full. I will make more comments over time, but if I don't comment it's not for lack of reading nor lack of interest -- it's just as I noted above, time management issues. I especially check this blog after a weekend, because your summaries are the best! You give all the most pertinent results, plus great commentary which I appreciate. Also, like you, I find the "records" angle most interesting, so I appreciate that you emphasize that.
Recently, when you posted the "number 24" marks for all events, men and women, I found that fascinating. It's a very revealing statistic! But I didn't comment, I know.
If those who post regularly on the T&FN website are neglecting your blog, it's their loss. The attitude towards you there still infuriates me, and I have been repeatedly tempted to write in your defense. But I know from past experience there that it would only end in an argument and I would ultimately regret that I said anything. I used to post there fairly frequently, but ended up disliking the arguments so much that I quit. Then later when I saw how you were being treated there, I felt especially justified in my "retirement" from that website. I still check there to keep up on some pertinent issues, but haven't posted in a long time.
I hope you won't get discouraged and cut down on your posting here. I would miss it, and I expect, over time, others will discover this blog and become dedicated readers, and maybe even comment. I hope so!
By the way, did I once read that you live in Bellingham? I used to live there too, but quite awhile ago. I lived in a nice old yellow two-storey house at 2320 Elizabeth Street. I wonder if that house is still there? If I was still in Bellingham, I would invite you out to lunch so we could talk track!
ReplyDeleteThanks....again!
ReplyDeleteI also have time management problems!
Too much to do, too little time!
I also have cut back on sites I comment on....and/or number of comments posted.
Right now, my 2 main "sites" are this blog.....and Twitter.
I find Twitter entertaining and informative.
In latter category, it offers instant results (even DURING a race/event!!!), photos, news items, plus insights into elite athletes personal lives & thoughts!
I still post at T&FN, but far less than before!
Also true for Conservatives4Palin (C4P).
Still comment occasionally there, but not as much as before.
Need more time for creative writing (Been a writer since 1965!), working on my T&F Record Book (the Book, not the Blog!), plus other stuff I like to do----watching movies, reading books, listening to music.....eating, sleeping, etc! LOL
Yes, I live in Bellingham.
Moved here in July 2003, so been here almost 11 years.
Lived at 1812 Texas St, 495 Westerly (w/ lady friend), in Sunset area, and since July 2010 in the Chuckanut Square Apts (Sr Public Housing) in Fairhaven District!
Love it here.
Buy my paper edition of T&FN at Fairhaven Runners, a great runners/walkers store 2 blocks from here!
Was a taxi driver for awhile, so know where Elizabeth St is.....& your former address!
Thanks again for all the comments.....today's and from before!
You asked about my view of TFAA. Well, I'm all for the athletes doing whatever they can to improve the sport and their place in it. USATF proved their incompetence yet again in Albuquerque. I hope TFAA goes somewhere, but I really don't pay much attention to the political side of the sport. Most bureaucracies seem to be staffed by incompetent people who are there to serve their own interests. For myself, it's not worth getting into conflicts with them.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, lest you think I'm just a field event or pole vault guy, I have followed all events since I first fell in love with track and field in 1958. The first track meet I ever attended was the 1958 Coliseum Relays, and Herb Elliott broke the (listed) world record in the mile! There were many other great performances that night, and most of the top athletes in the world were there.
I once competed in a decathlon and won, barely beating Geoff Vanderstock who later broke the world record in the 400m hurdles. Geoff and I were close boyhood friends since we were both on the Pomona YMCA gymnastics team starting at age eight. I was an influence in getting him into track. In my grade in junior high (Marshall Junior High in Pomona) we had two Olympic track and field athletes, a few NFL football players, and two major league baseball players, including one of the great relief pitchers of all time. Another guy ran on relay teams with Tommie Smith at San Jose State. So I got my start in a very rich sports environment! I was torn between pole vaulting and gymnastics until my family moved to Claremont when I started high school. Claremont didn't have a gymnastics team, so that's how I ended up concentrating on the pole vault. In my first year in Claremont, another kid moved there who was as much of a pole vault fanatic as I was. He won the Golden West Invitational the year after I did. A more recent alum of Claremont High is hurdler Kori Carter. I think she might eventually break the WR in the 400mh.
I began subscribing to Track & Field News with the April, 1958 issue. I just ate up all those statistics! I used to virtually memorize the whole issue in about one day. Then I would bring the magazine to school and during lunchtime a couple of my friends would quiz me -- with questions like "who is third on the list of high school broad jumpers this month?" I would immediately give his name, school, and distance. I could do this for the whole list for every event. I also had all the world and high school records memorized, as well as the history of the events and records going back a couple decades. But not any more -- I rely on YOU for that kind of data now!
To end with a track comment, yes, Sarah Baxter has no speed. You mentioned her similarity to Shalane Flanagan. I would add Jordan Hasay. More fun are the girls who can run both far and FAST. Mary Cain is the epitome of this, but Alexa Efraimson shows great promise too. Mary Cain can probably beat every boy in her high school at a mile, and most of them at 100 meters! She's a runner and, like Laura Roesler (only better), great at every distance!