Kind of an awkward title for this post, but hopefully you'll understand its meaning when you're done reading this.
This 2nd post (Did one awhile ago on the NCAA meet!) will tell all about the Professional activity this past week.
I'll mention the Bislett Games in Oslo, a NY Road Race, and the NY Diamond League meet.
Let's start with Mutaz Barshim and Bogdan Bondarenko.
In case you haven't heard, they made HJ history in New York City.
No, neither was able to get over 8-0.75 (2.46 in metrics).
But both DID make it over a bar set at 7-11.25!!
That was a first.
Barshim won, though in the hearts of the fans in the stands, both did.
His 7-11.25 is the new Qatari National Record.
It's the Age 22 record, and not shared by anyone else!
It's the new Meet Record.
It's the best-ever mark for 2nd place!
(Yes, he was 2nd, based on fewer misses!)
And he is now 2nd on the A-T World list, tied with one other.
That "one other" is Monsieur Bondarenko!!
He also made 7-11.25.
And he's the new Age 24 record holder.
It's the Ukraine National Record.
And he is also 2nd A-T World, tied with one other! (See above!! LOL)
Before I go on, let's back up a few days, to when the venerable Bislett Games took place in Oslo.
That DL meet was a farce, as DL's go.
In fact, it should have been called a BRONZE League meet.
Because the quality was THIRD-rate!! (Get it?? Bronze.....Third??)
Just 2 relatively minor Record Book-worthy marks came out of it.
And it was surprising to me, as the fields were stacked with some great athletes!!
Jairus Birech won the 3000SC in 8:02.37, and moves up one place on the A-T World list, from 17th to 16th.
(Evan Jager led this race at AR pace, but faded over the last 800, and missed the AR by just 0.16 seconds!!)
Henrik Ingabrigtsen broke the Norway National Record for the Mile for the 2nd time, running 3:50.73.
Genzebe Dibaba won a fairly good 5000 in 14:34 and change, but no marks changed anything in my T&F Record Book!!
Kim Conley ran a small PR, but missed the US list by just over a second!
But overall, a pretty dull meet, and definitely NOT of Diamond League-level quality!
But the NY meet reinvigorated the series, so let's continue recounting what happened.
Some of the best marks came from High School kids!!
The New York DL is famous for their "Dream" series of 100 meter and One Mile races.
But one great mark came from a HS girl who did NOT race in the High School Girls Dream Mile.
In the Elite Women's 1500, Alexa Efraimson blew her PR out the window with a fantastic "Cain-esque" time of 4:07.05.
Yes, she finished just 10th in the "Big Girls" race.
(Remember, Mary Cain finished 10th in the Moscow WC 1500!!)
But her time, improving her former best by almost NINE full seconds, places her second to Ms Cain on the A-T HS list!!
And just 2.43 seconds back!!
The winner of that race was, of course, Abeba Aregawi, whose 4:00.13 is the new Meet Record.
Between Aregawi and Efraimson were such women as Jenny Simpson, Treniere Moser, a reconstituted Morgan Uceny, running her fastest 1500 since 2012 (4:04.87), and Brenda Martinez, having a slight off day, running just 0.63 ahead of Alexa.
Finishing 2nd to Aregawi was 17 year old Ethiopian, Dawit Seyaum, who should be the clear favorite at the World Junior meet, if she runs there.
(Mary Cain is thinking of running the 3000 there, assuming she's going to enter!!)
Seyaum ran a super PR of 4:00.66!!
Speaking of Cain, she ran in the non-DL 800, and finished 4th in 2:01.67, a 2014 best time.
She looked much better than she did at the Pre meet!
Her next race, after attaining a NY Driver's License, and graduating from Bronxville HS, will be at USATF.
Will she do both the Senior AND Junior versions of USATF??
Wait to find out!
The Women's 3000SC was good.
Emma Coburn didn't run, but Stephanie Garcia did.
She ran a 12+ second PR, hitting 9:28.96, to move her from 21st A-T US all the way up to 5th!!
The winner, Sofia Assefa, set a Meet Record with her 9:18.58.
Returning to those HS races, the Miles were won by Grant Fisher and Sarah Feeny.
Fisher ran 4:02.02, which makes him 15th A-T HS.
Feeny ran a negative split (2:22 and 2:17) time of 4:39.23, good for 5th A-T HS!!
(Remember, I do NOT have 1600 times, or times converted from 1600's, on my Mile lists!!)
Earlier, another Mile took place!
This one was for "Youth".
And a TEN year old boy, Jonah Gorevic (of Rye, NY), ran it in 5:01.55, which they say is a WORLD Record for 10 year old boys!!
Let me say that again.
A TEN year old ran a MILE in 5:01.55.
(Jim Ryun reportedly ran his first timed mile at age 14---in 5:38!!)
The Girls 100 was won by Kaylin Whitney in 11.27.
A week or so ago, she'd run an 11.30, that making her 20th A-T HS, tied with one other.
The 11.27 moves her up to 17th place, tied with 1 other.
The Men's 400 was a class act.
LaShawn Merritt continued his winning ways, hitting the tape in 44.19, a new Meet Record.
Behind him, in 2nd, was South African Wayde Van Niekerk.
His 44.38 is a National Record.
Then came ageless Chris Brown, whose 44.61 is yet ANOTHER Age 35 record!!
(And it's the first sub-45 by someone 35 or older!!)
Jeff Henderson had a good LJ, hitting 27-4 for a Meet Record.
Kim Conley ran the 3000 in 8:44.11, finishing 5th (behind Mercy Cherono, Betsy Saina, and Sally Kipyego, among others), but missed my DDD list by 0.39 seconds!!
One other Meet Record was set by Robert Harting in the DT, his toss reaching 223-10.
In earlier DL's, in Rome and Oslo, Tianna Bartoletta got 2 PR's in the LJ.
She hit 22-9 in Rome, making her 14th A-T US.
Her Oslo jump of 23-0.25 improved her place to 7th A-T US!
Finally, in the NY Mini-10000, run through hilly Central Park, Molly Huddle beat a class field in a Women Only race American Record time of 31:37.
Second was 12 seconds back.
Forty-one year old Deena Kastor finished 6th in 33:17!
Well, there's still the New Balance National meet to report on, but that one is still ongoing, finishing up tomorrow evening!
I'll have another post dedicated to that meet, as well as whatever else pops up, from the HS scene or the Professionals, as the PTF is also finishing up tomorrow evening!
See you then!!
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