This weekend was probably seen as just the "weekend before Penn".
You know, relatively quiet, everybody getting ready to REALLY show their stuff at the Penn or Drake Relays, or for distance runners, at the Payton Jordan meet, a week hence.
But no, those antsy little Collegians had to go and start the party early!
So this "quiet" weekend EXPLODES with a Collegiate Record in the 400!
Courtney Okolo broke her own CR, running away from Chrisanne Gordon's 51.03 with a blazing 49.71, becoming the first Collegiate Woman to run under 50 seconds!
She also gets the Collegiate Senior Class record.
She moves from 20th to 13th on the A-T US list as well!
Besides Gordon, Felicia Majors ran 52.19 to finish ahead of Georgeanne Moline's 52.39!
Okolo also ran anchor on Texas's 3:27.29 4X400 Relay.
Gordon ran the 2nd leg, while Zola Golden started it off, and Morolake Akinosun ran the 3rd leg!
Other good 400's abounded!
At the Tom Jones meet, Michael Cedeno's 44.79 beat David Verburg's 45.11, and Arman Hall's 45.17.
Back in 8th place was Belgium's Jonathan Borlee's 45.87!
Verburg also ran a 20.85 over 200 meters!
Also at Tom Jones, Italy's Libinia Grenot's 51.63 beat Shakima Wimbley's 51.75.
At the LSU Alumnai meet (where Okolo ran her CR!), Vernon Norwood's 45.01 beat Michael Cherry's 45.17.
Wil London, a Baylor Frosh, ran 45.28.
The Michael Johnson meet winner was Jeremy Wariner's 45.72.
A fairly slow time, but still a winner!
Phyllis Francis ran a solid 50.80 to beat Jamaica's Patricia Hall, who ran 51.64.
Remember Strymar Livingston?
In HS, he was best known for running fast 600's INdoors!
Well, he doubled at the Kansas Relays, running an 800 in 1:49.83, and a 400 in 46.17.
The leading Collegiate 800 man--Shaquille Walker--ran a good 400 in 46.68!
The Collegiate Women's PV scene keeps rising higher--literally speaking!
Megan Clark started things off by PR'ing at 15-2.25 at the Duke Invite--her home turf!
This moved her from 7th A-T Collegiate to 3rd!
It also moved her from 19th A-T US, tied with 2 others, to 9th, tied with 1 other.
She missed her 3 attempts at 15-5.75!
But wait!
Just hours later, the action at the McDonnell Invite placed Clark's mark on the back burner!
Lexi Weeks broke her own Frosh Class record by soaring over 15-2.75!
(Reminiscent of the 2015 INdoor season, when then-Razorback Sandi Morris broke the CR with her 15-1.75, only to see Demi Payne go 15-2.25 the very next day!)
Weeks moves from 8th A-T Collegiate to 3rd--ahead of Clark (See above!) who fell to 4th!
On the A-T US list, it gets even better!
Lexi moves from 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other, all the way to 9th!!
The aforementioned Ms Morris didn't do too shabby either!
She added a quarter inch to her OUTdoor PR, her 15-9.25 winning the event.
She remains 3rd A-T US.
But she improves her A-T World standing from 11th, with 2 ties, to 11th, but with no ties!
Also doing well was Lexi's twin sibling--Tori--who got her OUTdoor PR up to 14-5.25.
She missed 3 tries at 14-9.
BTW, Morris took 3 tries at 16-2!!
Desiree Freier, competing unattached--probably redshirting!--got over 14-0.50!
Other good PV marks included Rachel Baxter's 14-3, a one inch PR!
It improves her own HS Junior Class record!
It also moves her from 4th to 3rd on the A-T HS list!!
Andrea Willis improved to 13-9, moving her from 19th A-T HS, tied with 2 others, to 13th, tied with 4 others!
Morgann LeLeux improved to 14-9.50!
She went all the way from 23rd A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other, into 9th!!
She misses the US list by just a half inch!!
The Weeks girls arent't the only Collegiate Frosh having a good year!
Mackenzie Shell added a few inches to her PR, reaching 14-5.50!
A year or two ago, that mark would have gotten her on the Collegiate DDD.
But now she'll need to add another 1.25 inches to make the list!
And she'd better hurry, as Katie Nageotte's 14-6.75 from 2013 will be next to leave the list, making 14-7.25 the new 24th place standard!!
Chris Nilsen got over 17-6.50, making him 22nd A-T HS, tied with 3 others!
Scott Houston got over 18-6.50.
So did Chase Wolfle--in a different meet.
Behind Wolfle was Dylan Bell's 18-2.50!
Wolfle is a Texas A&M Senior!
Before leaving this historic event, I should mention a tweet from Jenn Suhr.
In it she was terse--her tweet reading "4.95 today. Awesome!".
That was it!!
I didn't see any result or comments or tweets that backed Suhr's message up!
Did she or didn't she Vault 16-2.75??
I saw her name listed as an entrant in some meet---for the life of me, I can NOT remember which meet it was!--I searched for it, but couldn"t find it again!
However, that same meet's results later said she was a DNS--a non-starter!
Then a couple of hours later came her mysterious tweet!
I PM'ed PoleVaultPower about it, but as of a couple of hours ago, she hadn't replied yet!
So until I get some definitive answer to this, I will hold off revising my Record Book!!
The sprint events saw some good activity.
Dafne Schippers opened her OUTdoor season with her fastest opener--by 0.38 seconds!!--in the Tom Jones meet in Florida.
Her 22.25 (against an 0.2 wind!) in the 200 tells the World she's ON for Rio.
One comment I saw suggested that since her season opener was 0.38 better than all her others, that she might also improve her PR this year by 0.38!
That would make her the WR holder--with a time of 21.25!!
(Anybody wanna place bets??)
Speaking of Schippers--but especially her homeland of the Netherlands--there's a bit of confusion as to whether her nation broke its 4X100 Relay record at the TJ meet.
A team listed as "Unattached A" ran 42.22.
In the same results, the Netherlands team is shown as running just 44.89.
BUT--several sources say that 42.22 was actually the Netherlands team, as Schippers ran 2nd leg!
I'm sure the answer will emerge soon, but for the time being, I'll accept it as their new National Record.
It moves them from 13th to 11th Nation on the World list!
Femi Ogunode tied his PR--and his National Record of Qatar--with his 9.91 winner at Tom Jones!
Isaiah Young was 2nd in 10.03, with Nickel Ashmeade getting the same time in 3rd.
Marquis Dendy was 12th (among all the sections!) with 10.34--which appears to be a PR!
The wind for Ogunode was 0.6.
Trayvon Bromell opened his OUTdoor season with a 10.04.
On Twitter, he lamented always opening in the 10's!
(Oh woe is me--eh??!!)
Richard Kilty ran the 200 in 20.60, while Ronnie Baker--in a separate heat--ran 20.64.
Blessing Okagbare fought a wind of 0.3 to run 22.82.
Morolake Akinosun rode a breeze of 3.5 (!) to go sub-11--time of 10.97!
She's having a good year, so it wouldn't surprise me to see her run a legal 10.97--or faster!
In the TJ meet, Simone Facey's 11.00 beat Murielle Ahoure's 11.06, Candyce McGrone's 11.13, and back in 6th, HS PRO Kaylin Whitney's best season opener ever, her 11.24!
Wind was just 0.4.
For Whitney,it's the HS PRO record, as well as the HS PRO Senior Class record!
Quinera Hayes, who recently ran 49.91 in the 400 (See a previous post!), was 8th in that 100, time of 11.27.
She added a 200 in 22.89!
The LSU Men's 4X400 Relay team ran a Collegiate-leading time of 3:00.38!
In Hurdles action--both Highs and Intermediates--
Kori Carter ran 56.54 to beat Turquoise Thompson's 56.64.
Not a great time, but good to see ANY time from Ms Carter!
Jasmine Camacho-Dunn, a Kentucky Frosh, ran the 100H in 12.83 (1.1 wind) to beat the 12,97 of Heptathlete Kendell Williams!
A 2.7 wind helped Phylicia George win in 12.67 over Jackie Coward's 12.74 and Jasmin Stowers's (!!) 12.78!
Ashley Spencer ran a World leading 400H time of 54.70!
She beat Arizona Collegian Nnenya Hailey's 54.98, the Collegiate leader!
Hailey is now 21st A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!
Pushed OFF my DDD was a legend--Tonya Buford's 55.12 from 1992!
In a 100H battle between women better known as Heptathletes, Payton Stumbaugh beat Akela Jones, 12.83 to 12.94, with a 1.7 wind at their backs!
Byron Robinson ran the 400H in 49.10.
He's a Collegian at Texas.
Tiffany McReynolds ran 12.88, while vet Ginnie Crawford ran 12.97.
The TJ meet saw Tiffany Porter run 12.72.
Jason Richardson's 13.33 World leader beat Ronnie Ash's 13.47.
Lolo Jones withdrew from the Drake Relays field due to some injury---seriousness unknown--though she appears ready to still try for Rio!
Finally (in the Hurdles category, that is!), 12.97 Jamaican Omar McLeod did NOT race the 110's!
He instead ran what sources say is the fastest 100 by a sub-13.00 110H guy--a 9.99!!
Wallace Spearmon was left far behind in 4th, time of 10.18!
McLeod rode the strongest legal wind available, a 2.0!
Field events weren't exactly on Spring Break either!
Keturah Orji emerged in her first OUTdoor TJ competition with a solid 46-3.50!
Not a PR, but it was backed up with a 46-3.25 jump!!
Also got a 45-7!
Hannah Carson improved her PR in the JT to 198-3, moving her from 13th A-T Collegiate all the way to 3rd!
She also moves from 9th to 5th on the A-T US list!!
Frosh Mackenzie Little had a good 181-10 throw.
She's less than 5 feet from the Frosh Class record of 186-4!
On the HS Javelin scene, Sophia Rivera improved to 180-4, moving her from 6th A-T HS to 3rd!!
Elena Bruckner had a Discus toss of 186-10.
This moves her from 10th A-T HS to 4th!!
I have an old mark to report that I neglected to report earlier!
Tara Novy threw the Discus 200-5 to make her 12th A-T Collegiate!
Frederic Dacres got a World leader in the DT with his 223-2.
Jade Lally of Great Britain threw the Discus 208-8, beating Whitney Ashley's 204-1 and Kelsey Card's 203-9.
However, it was the latter mark that made the most list impact!!
It makes her 11th A-T Collegiate, and 19th A-T US!!
Vet Liz Podomenick threw 202-3!
Jarvis Gotch caught some strong winds (2.7 and 2.3) to LJ 27-4.75 and 27-0!
Chelsea Carrier-Eades had a Heptathlon score of 5930 points!
I'll close with all the Middle and Long Distance news!
Alysia Montano opened HER OUTdoor season with a good 800 of 2:01.27.
Laura Roesler did the Flower Girl one better, running 2:00.72 in a different meet!
Dana Mecke was 2nd in that race, time of 2:02.20.
At Stanford, colorfully-attired Maggie Vessey beat the more nondescript dressers with a 2:02.18.
Sabrina Southerland ran 2:03.81 behind her!
Charlene Lipsey's 2:01.88 beat LSU's Morgan Schuetz's 2:02.29.
Brandon McBride ran a good 1:46.14.
Also in 800 news, World Class 400 woman Novlene Williams-Mills opened her try at 800 in 60, but faded to 2:11.08.
(Might as well use this space to announce that Alexa Efraimson will open her 2016 OUTdoor season in a Payton Jordan 800!!)
Drew Hunter became the 3rd fastest HS'er over 1500 meters, his 3:42.42 at the Larry Ellis Invite good for 3rd in the race!
In a post-race interview, he termed his effort "average"!
HA!!
Nicole Tully ran a good 4:10.13 over 1500.
Henry Wynne's 3:38.05 beat Justyn Knight's 3:39.23.
Mississippi State Senior Marta Freitos ran 4:11.52.
Cale Wallace of Arkansas added a 3:40.67.
At Stanford, Annmarie Schwanz (of Fresno State) won in 4:14.89, with Cardinal Elise Cranny's 4:16.37 taking 5th!
Brannon Kidder used a strong kick to win the 1500 in 3:40.11
Sean McGorty took 3rd with 3:42.22, while Grant Fisher was 5th in 3:42.85!
(Compare the above to Drew Hunter's 3:42.42!!)
In longer stuff, Fiona O'Keefe ran with the Big Girls--meaning Pro's and Collegians!--but held her own, taking 10th out of 22 runners in a 5000, her time of 16:28.35 making her 17th A-T HS!!
Aisling Cuffe was 3rd in that race, time of 16:16.02.
A HUGE name in HS T&F history--Kim Gallagher-- was erased from my DDD by O'Keefe's entry!
Her 16:34.7 from 1979 remains the Frosh Class record!
Sadly, Ms Gallagher--also the former HSR holder in the 800 at 2:00.07, since beaten by Mary Cain--died way too young at Age 38!!
Ashley Higginson ran a fast 3000SC, time of 9:42.18.
It was essentially a solo effort, as 2nd was about 13 seconds back!
In old news, another mark I failed to report was Danielle Winslow's 9:48.81.
Well, I DID report it, but failed to mention it made her 24th A-T Collegiate!!
At the Virginia Challenge meet, Steepler Leah O'Connor ran a good 5000 time of 15:38.23, beating Katrina Coogan's 15:50.51, and fellow Steepler Nicole Bush's 15:51.13!
A good HS 3200 time was run by Judy Pendergast, a 10:07.18.
And that London Marathon!!!
ALMOST a World Record by Men's winner Eliud Kipchoge!!
A crowd of 7--including Dennis Kimetto, Ken Bekele, and Wilson Kipsang!--hit 10K in a blazing 28:37!
Fifteen K was reached in 43:17, and after slowing (!!) a bit, they hit the Half in a record 1:01:24!!
Still on course for the WR after 30K in 1:27:13--a record by itself!!--it became a 2-man race between Kipchoge and Stanley Biwott!
Running side-by-side for a few miles, Kipchoge broke away, stretching his lead to the finish, sprinting hard the final 2K, but falling 8 seconds short of Kimetto's 2:02:57 WR!!
(At the finish, Eliud put his hand to his forehead, indicating strong disappointment at not knowing how close he was to the record!!)
His 2:03:05 moves him from 8th A-T World to 3rd!
(At least on MY list, which includes Boston times!!)
Kipchoge also gets Wilson Kipsang's Age 31 record (Kipsang's former "WR" of 2:03:23)!!
Biwott's 2:03:51 makes him 8th on my list!
Bekele took 3rd in 2:06:37.
The Women's race also started fast--They were at 2:17 pace after their first few kilometers.
But the group of 7--like the Men!--soon slowed to 2:20 pace, then got progressively slower, running a 5:52 mile split around the 30 to 35K part of the race.
The lead group included Florence Kiplagat, Tigist Tufa, Mary Keitany, and eventual winner Jemima Sumgong!
But a multiple-runner stumble--throwing Keitany, Aselefech Mergia, and Sumgong to the London pavement--broke up the group!
Sumgong was seen rubbing her head after regaining entry to the front runners, and was sent to the hospital afterwards for a check-up!
However, that didn't stop her from making a strong breakaway from defending London Champion Tufa, winning in 2:22:58 over Tufa's 2:23:03, and Kiplagat's 2:23:39!
Sara Hall was the lone American elite in the race!
She started great, hitting 13.1 in 1:14:22.
But a couple of 18+ 5K's slowed her to a 2nd half of 1:15:44, and a final time of 2:30:06, still a one-plus minute PR in her 3rd-ever marathon!!
She finished in 12th place!
BTW, Tatyana McFadden won AGAIN!!
In a dead-out SPRINT finish over the final 1000 meters or so!!
(2nd was close enough to hold hands, if they'd wanted to!! LOL)
Amazing athlete!!
Fantastic PERSON!!
I'll close (FINALLY!!!) with a pretty major announcement!
Genzebe Dibaba had announced she would run a track 10000 in Dubai to qualify for Rio, intending to possibly double in the 5000 and 10000!!
But a day before Saturday's race, she withdrew, her coach saying she sustained a slight injury to a toe, sending her to cross training for 2 weeks.
However, he also said she might race the 10K in the Oslo meet!
See you after Penn and Drake!!
(I'm thinking of doing a separate post for Payton Jordan!)
Sunday, April 24, 2016
Thursday, April 21, 2016
Trends & Trivia in Track (& Field)
My mind is like a hoarder's house!
Cluttered to the nth, and needing a Yard Sale to rid it of its excess baggage!
So Come one, Come all--everything here is FREE!!
Age Records
But closer to the core, CLASS Records!
One of my personal favorite sections of my T&F Record Book is my Class Records.
This means the best ever from the 9th Grade in HS to one's Senior year of College!
(I keep these in my Miscellaneous folder, for what that's worth! LOL)
For the most part, Class Records are fairly straightforward.
A student (athlete) starts HS, goes 4 years, then becomes a college student (athlete) for 4 more years.
Yes, several athletes will redshirt (sit out) a year--normally their Freshman year--while they adjust to College life and Collegiate T&F training (& heavier throwing implements, higher hurdle heights, etc).
They still have all 4 years of eligibility!.
Normal Ages for HS'ers are from 14 through 18.
Some don't begin until they're 15, and graduation might come AFTER they've turned 19--but usually only by 1 to 4 months!
Basically the same with Collegiates!
If they begin at 18--and redshirt 1 year--they will graduate at Age 22.
Occasionally, they will be a few months past their 23rd birthday.
The problem (for me, and Class Record keepers in general) are the outliers--the ones who stretch their College careers PAST the 5th year!
These athletes tend to be in the high-23's, and several are 24, 25, even 26!!
(The latter is rare. The best known example was Henry Rono, who shattered several CR's in 1978, when still a Washington State Senior at Age 26!)
But this year, Demi Payne is ending her Collegiate OUTdoor eligibility at Age 24.
When she competes at the NCAA meet, she'll be 24 years and 8+ months old!
The question becomes--Is it fair to have one almost 25 compete against athletes early-23 or 22 years old?
(A very few might even still be just 21--although high-end 21.)
I say NO!!
BUT the "official" record keepers---in this case, the NCAA and Track and Field News--say it's okay.
(The NCAA gave Conor McCullough a 6th year of eligibility in 2015!)
On the HS level, the recent outlier has been Weini Kelati.
T&FN took care of that, saying she would NOT be eligible to break HSR's (or Class Records!) in 2016, but would be included on lists!!
I VERY reluctantly agreed with T&FN on the latter!
And while I included McCullough's 2015 marks on my Collegiate DDD, and will include anything Payne does this year--I do so reluctantly as well!
There should be a LIMIT to the Age of a HS Senior and a College Senior!
No one past Age 19 years and 6 months as of August 31st of their Senior year should be either listed or eligible for Records---of ANY KIND!!
I say August 31st, as HS Seniors can set HSR's and make HS lists up to that date, as long as they're not yet competing for their College team!
As for College Seniors, no one OLDER THAN 23 (as of the NCAA Championship meet of their Senior year!) should be either listed or eligible for Collegiate Records--especially Senior Class Records!!
That said, I will continue to honor all marks that T&FN does!
But I will mention their Age when doing so, if I feel they're "too old"!!
Here's some "odd" trivia about Class Records!
Did you know that Ed Cheserek holds the HS Soph Class record in the 3000SC??
He ran 9:00.11 in the 10th Grade!!
(What could he run now??!!)
The 10.98 run by then-amateur Candace Hill last year is the Soph Class record!
But no Class Record is faster until you reach the Collegiate Junior Class record, which is 10.92!!
Mary Cain's amateur 800 HSR of 1:59.51 as a Junior isn't bettered until the Collegiate Junior Class
As for her 4:04.62 in the 1500, no one tops that until the College Senior class!!
Vashti Cunningham holds all 4 HS Class Records in the HJ!!
This is for OUTdoors, of course!
If you remember, she jumped 6-4.25 just before turning Pro, thus completing her hold of the HS HJ Class Records!
Kendell Williams might be on her way to holding all EIGHT Class Records in the Heptathlon!!
She holds all 4 HS records in the event, and the Collegiate Frosh and Soph Class Records--so far!
This year, she needs to beat Akela Jones to keep the streak going--and score at least 6391 points!
Are there any events where the progression of marks gets better each year--from the HS Frosh Class record to the Collegiate Senior Class record?
Yes!!
But it's rare!
On the Men's side, only the Long Jump meets that requirement!!
But the Women do it in THREE events--the 10000, the 3000SC, and the Pole Vault!
In the latter event--the most often competed in--the progression goes like this (starting at HS Frosh)--
13-3 to 13-8 to 14-2 to 14-7.50 to 14-10 to 15-0 to 15-1.50 to 15-5.75.
I have a STRONG feeling that won't last out the the next few months!!
We speak often--at least in the past 2 or 3 years--of the year being the "Year of----name the event".
In 2014, for the Men, it was the "Year of the HJ".
In 2015, for the Women, it became the "Year of the PV".
What about THIS year??
And how is it measured?
For me--and this blog--I suggest it should be the event which, by year's end, has the most 2016 marks on one of my DDD's, or Top 24 A-T Performers lists!
Using that, here's the CURRENT top candidates for "Year of---"!
For HS Men, so far, it's the Shot Put, with 3 marks from 2016!
The PV has 1, while all others have none!!
For Collegiate Men, the Javelin Throw leads with 2.
The 800, 110H, PV, DT, HT, Decathlon, and 4X400 Relay have 1 each, while all the rest have zip!
For US Men, the 200 leads with 2.
The DT, JT, and HT have 1 apiece, while all the other events have none!
For the World Men, the Marathon leads with 2.
The 200 has 1.
All others have ZERO!!
For HS Women, it's the Pole Vault, with 4.
The Hammer throw has 3.
The 1500, TJ, and JT have 1 each, while all the others strike out!
For Collegiate Women, the PV matches the HS'ers with 4!
The 10000, 3000SC, and the 4X400 Relay have 2 apiece.
The 100, 5000, HJ, SP, DT, JT, HT, and the 4X100 Relay have 1 each.
All others---none!
For US Women, the PV ALSO leads in a big way with 4!!
With 1 each are the 400, 100H, SP, JT, and the HT.
All others have none!
The World Women are led---sic!!--by the PV!!
There's 3 already from 2016 on that list!
The Marathon has 2.
The 100H gets 1.
All the others--zip!!
Speaking of Age Records (which I was a LONG time ago!!), following are the Oldest an athlete has been to achieve a mark--the marks selected by me!
This is for OUTdoors only!
(I'll list the time/distance/height--not the event--in their usual order, then give the athletes name and his/her Age.)
The marks given should be seen as "under" or "sub" that mark!!
9.90 (Justin Gatlin at 33) 10.90 (Merlene Ottey at 37)
20.00 (Floyd Heard at 34) 22.00 (Ottey at 35)
44.00 (Michael Johnson at 33) 50.00 (Jarmila Kratochvilova at 33)
1:43.00 (Johnny Gray at 32) 1:58.00 (Jearl Miles-Clark at 37)
3:30.00 (Mo Farah at 32) 3:58.00 (Maracica Puica at 35)
3:50.00 (Mike Boit at 32) 4:30.00 (Puica at 35)
7:30.00 (Bernard Lagat at 35) 8:30.00 (Edith Masai at 39)
8:10.00 (Farah at 31) 9:20.00 (Regina Jacobs at 35)
12:50.00 (Brahim Lahlafi at 32) 14:30.00 (Liliya Shobukhova at 30)
27:00.00 (Haile Gebrselassie at 35) 30:20.00 (Berhane Adere at 30)
2:05:00 (Geb at 35) 2:20:00 (Irina Mikitenko at 36)
8:00.00 (Ezekiel Kemboi at 31) 9:20.00 (Marta Dominguez at 34)
13.00 (Allen Johnson at 35) 12.50 (Gail Devers at 36--She ran 12.50 exactly at 37!)
48.00 Felix Sanchez at 34) 53.00 (Marina Styepanova at 36)
7-9 (Stefan Holm at 32) 6-7 (Inga Babakova at 36)
28-0 (Larry Myricks at 33) 23-0 Jackie Joyner-Kersee at 34)
59-0 (Jonathan Edwards at 32) 50-0 (Francoise Mbango at 32)
19-6 (Sergey Bubka at 33) 16-0 (Yelena Isinbayeva at 31)
70-0 (Brian Oldfield at 40) 70-0 (Larisa Pelechenko at 36)
230-0 (Virgilius Alekna at 40) 230-0 (Zdenka Silhava at 34)
300-0 (Jan Zelezny at 35) 230-0 (Barbara Spotakova at 30)
270-0 (Igor Astapovich at 37) 250-0 (Anita Wlodarczyk at 30)
8500 (Dan O'Brien at 32) 6500 (JJK at 36)
My final subject are the HS 10000's--for both Men and Women!
The Men's HS Top 24 Performers list has just 12 marks of under 30:00!!
The slowest mark (24th place) is 30:30.2.
But even worse, only 5 marks date from this century--from 2002 to 2012.
The other 19 are from 1964 (!!) through 1985!!
That's right--there are NO Men's 10K marks on my list from between 1986 and 2001!!
The Women's list shows a WORSE trend, if that can be believed!
Their slowest mark (again, 24th A-T HS) is a ridiculous 36:19.84!!
There are just 7 Women who have run faster than 35:00 in HS!!
As with the Men, the 21st Century SUCKS!!
Just 4 marks date from this century!
One each in 2002 and 2005, then 2 in 2012!
All the others are 1996 or earlier!
What can be done?
What SHOULD be done--to rectify this??
I URGE someone like Flotrack, or Mile Split, or just some innovative Guy or Gal--or some Meet Director (Brooks PR, NBN, even the Pre Classic!!) to put on a track 10000--one each for Men and Women.
They should invite the Top 20 to 30 distance runners from each gender to the event!
All the best--from the top 1500/Milers, to the distance (3000 on up!) specialists--and tell them to leave nothing behind---except some blood, sweat, and tears!!
I guarantee that BOTH Top 24's would be DRASTICALLY revised!!
With just ONE race each!!
Well, that's all I have!
(Time to break out the champagne, bells and whistles!! LOL)
See you soon--with hopefully TONS of good marks from this weekend!
Cluttered to the nth, and needing a Yard Sale to rid it of its excess baggage!
So Come one, Come all--everything here is FREE!!
Age Records
But closer to the core, CLASS Records!
One of my personal favorite sections of my T&F Record Book is my Class Records.
This means the best ever from the 9th Grade in HS to one's Senior year of College!
(I keep these in my Miscellaneous folder, for what that's worth! LOL)
For the most part, Class Records are fairly straightforward.
A student (athlete) starts HS, goes 4 years, then becomes a college student (athlete) for 4 more years.
Yes, several athletes will redshirt (sit out) a year--normally their Freshman year--while they adjust to College life and Collegiate T&F training (& heavier throwing implements, higher hurdle heights, etc).
They still have all 4 years of eligibility!.
Normal Ages for HS'ers are from 14 through 18.
Some don't begin until they're 15, and graduation might come AFTER they've turned 19--but usually only by 1 to 4 months!
Basically the same with Collegiates!
If they begin at 18--and redshirt 1 year--they will graduate at Age 22.
Occasionally, they will be a few months past their 23rd birthday.
The problem (for me, and Class Record keepers in general) are the outliers--the ones who stretch their College careers PAST the 5th year!
These athletes tend to be in the high-23's, and several are 24, 25, even 26!!
(The latter is rare. The best known example was Henry Rono, who shattered several CR's in 1978, when still a Washington State Senior at Age 26!)
But this year, Demi Payne is ending her Collegiate OUTdoor eligibility at Age 24.
When she competes at the NCAA meet, she'll be 24 years and 8+ months old!
The question becomes--Is it fair to have one almost 25 compete against athletes early-23 or 22 years old?
(A very few might even still be just 21--although high-end 21.)
I say NO!!
BUT the "official" record keepers---in this case, the NCAA and Track and Field News--say it's okay.
(The NCAA gave Conor McCullough a 6th year of eligibility in 2015!)
On the HS level, the recent outlier has been Weini Kelati.
T&FN took care of that, saying she would NOT be eligible to break HSR's (or Class Records!) in 2016, but would be included on lists!!
I VERY reluctantly agreed with T&FN on the latter!
And while I included McCullough's 2015 marks on my Collegiate DDD, and will include anything Payne does this year--I do so reluctantly as well!
There should be a LIMIT to the Age of a HS Senior and a College Senior!
No one past Age 19 years and 6 months as of August 31st of their Senior year should be either listed or eligible for Records---of ANY KIND!!
I say August 31st, as HS Seniors can set HSR's and make HS lists up to that date, as long as they're not yet competing for their College team!
As for College Seniors, no one OLDER THAN 23 (as of the NCAA Championship meet of their Senior year!) should be either listed or eligible for Collegiate Records--especially Senior Class Records!!
That said, I will continue to honor all marks that T&FN does!
But I will mention their Age when doing so, if I feel they're "too old"!!
Here's some "odd" trivia about Class Records!
Did you know that Ed Cheserek holds the HS Soph Class record in the 3000SC??
He ran 9:00.11 in the 10th Grade!!
(What could he run now??!!)
The 10.98 run by then-amateur Candace Hill last year is the Soph Class record!
But no Class Record is faster until you reach the Collegiate Junior Class record, which is 10.92!!
Mary Cain's amateur 800 HSR of 1:59.51 as a Junior isn't bettered until the Collegiate Junior Class
As for her 4:04.62 in the 1500, no one tops that until the College Senior class!!
Vashti Cunningham holds all 4 HS Class Records in the HJ!!
This is for OUTdoors, of course!
If you remember, she jumped 6-4.25 just before turning Pro, thus completing her hold of the HS HJ Class Records!
Kendell Williams might be on her way to holding all EIGHT Class Records in the Heptathlon!!
She holds all 4 HS records in the event, and the Collegiate Frosh and Soph Class Records--so far!
This year, she needs to beat Akela Jones to keep the streak going--and score at least 6391 points!
Are there any events where the progression of marks gets better each year--from the HS Frosh Class record to the Collegiate Senior Class record?
Yes!!
But it's rare!
On the Men's side, only the Long Jump meets that requirement!!
But the Women do it in THREE events--the 10000, the 3000SC, and the Pole Vault!
In the latter event--the most often competed in--the progression goes like this (starting at HS Frosh)--
13-3 to 13-8 to 14-2 to 14-7.50 to 14-10 to 15-0 to 15-1.50 to 15-5.75.
I have a STRONG feeling that won't last out the the next few months!!
We speak often--at least in the past 2 or 3 years--of the year being the "Year of----name the event".
In 2014, for the Men, it was the "Year of the HJ".
In 2015, for the Women, it became the "Year of the PV".
What about THIS year??
And how is it measured?
For me--and this blog--I suggest it should be the event which, by year's end, has the most 2016 marks on one of my DDD's, or Top 24 A-T Performers lists!
Using that, here's the CURRENT top candidates for "Year of---"!
For HS Men, so far, it's the Shot Put, with 3 marks from 2016!
The PV has 1, while all others have none!!
For Collegiate Men, the Javelin Throw leads with 2.
The 800, 110H, PV, DT, HT, Decathlon, and 4X400 Relay have 1 each, while all the rest have zip!
For US Men, the 200 leads with 2.
The DT, JT, and HT have 1 apiece, while all the other events have none!
For the World Men, the Marathon leads with 2.
The 200 has 1.
All others have ZERO!!
For HS Women, it's the Pole Vault, with 4.
The Hammer throw has 3.
The 1500, TJ, and JT have 1 each, while all the others strike out!
For Collegiate Women, the PV matches the HS'ers with 4!
The 10000, 3000SC, and the 4X400 Relay have 2 apiece.
The 100, 5000, HJ, SP, DT, JT, HT, and the 4X100 Relay have 1 each.
All others---none!
For US Women, the PV ALSO leads in a big way with 4!!
With 1 each are the 400, 100H, SP, JT, and the HT.
All others have none!
The World Women are led---sic!!--by the PV!!
There's 3 already from 2016 on that list!
The Marathon has 2.
The 100H gets 1.
All the others--zip!!
Speaking of Age Records (which I was a LONG time ago!!), following are the Oldest an athlete has been to achieve a mark--the marks selected by me!
This is for OUTdoors only!
(I'll list the time/distance/height--not the event--in their usual order, then give the athletes name and his/her Age.)
The marks given should be seen as "under" or "sub" that mark!!
9.90 (Justin Gatlin at 33) 10.90 (Merlene Ottey at 37)
20.00 (Floyd Heard at 34) 22.00 (Ottey at 35)
44.00 (Michael Johnson at 33) 50.00 (Jarmila Kratochvilova at 33)
1:43.00 (Johnny Gray at 32) 1:58.00 (Jearl Miles-Clark at 37)
3:30.00 (Mo Farah at 32) 3:58.00 (Maracica Puica at 35)
3:50.00 (Mike Boit at 32) 4:30.00 (Puica at 35)
7:30.00 (Bernard Lagat at 35) 8:30.00 (Edith Masai at 39)
8:10.00 (Farah at 31) 9:20.00 (Regina Jacobs at 35)
12:50.00 (Brahim Lahlafi at 32) 14:30.00 (Liliya Shobukhova at 30)
27:00.00 (Haile Gebrselassie at 35) 30:20.00 (Berhane Adere at 30)
2:05:00 (Geb at 35) 2:20:00 (Irina Mikitenko at 36)
8:00.00 (Ezekiel Kemboi at 31) 9:20.00 (Marta Dominguez at 34)
13.00 (Allen Johnson at 35) 12.50 (Gail Devers at 36--She ran 12.50 exactly at 37!)
48.00 Felix Sanchez at 34) 53.00 (Marina Styepanova at 36)
7-9 (Stefan Holm at 32) 6-7 (Inga Babakova at 36)
28-0 (Larry Myricks at 33) 23-0 Jackie Joyner-Kersee at 34)
59-0 (Jonathan Edwards at 32) 50-0 (Francoise Mbango at 32)
19-6 (Sergey Bubka at 33) 16-0 (Yelena Isinbayeva at 31)
70-0 (Brian Oldfield at 40) 70-0 (Larisa Pelechenko at 36)
230-0 (Virgilius Alekna at 40) 230-0 (Zdenka Silhava at 34)
300-0 (Jan Zelezny at 35) 230-0 (Barbara Spotakova at 30)
270-0 (Igor Astapovich at 37) 250-0 (Anita Wlodarczyk at 30)
8500 (Dan O'Brien at 32) 6500 (JJK at 36)
My final subject are the HS 10000's--for both Men and Women!
The Men's HS Top 24 Performers list has just 12 marks of under 30:00!!
The slowest mark (24th place) is 30:30.2.
But even worse, only 5 marks date from this century--from 2002 to 2012.
The other 19 are from 1964 (!!) through 1985!!
That's right--there are NO Men's 10K marks on my list from between 1986 and 2001!!
The Women's list shows a WORSE trend, if that can be believed!
Their slowest mark (again, 24th A-T HS) is a ridiculous 36:19.84!!
There are just 7 Women who have run faster than 35:00 in HS!!
As with the Men, the 21st Century SUCKS!!
Just 4 marks date from this century!
One each in 2002 and 2005, then 2 in 2012!
All the others are 1996 or earlier!
What can be done?
What SHOULD be done--to rectify this??
I URGE someone like Flotrack, or Mile Split, or just some innovative Guy or Gal--or some Meet Director (Brooks PR, NBN, even the Pre Classic!!) to put on a track 10000--one each for Men and Women.
They should invite the Top 20 to 30 distance runners from each gender to the event!
All the best--from the top 1500/Milers, to the distance (3000 on up!) specialists--and tell them to leave nothing behind---except some blood, sweat, and tears!!
I guarantee that BOTH Top 24's would be DRASTICALLY revised!!
With just ONE race each!!
Well, that's all I have!
(Time to break out the champagne, bells and whistles!! LOL)
See you soon--with hopefully TONS of good marks from this weekend!
Monday, April 18, 2016
April FLOOD of Great Marks!
April showers?
Nah!
Let's call it a FLOOD!!
(And here's all the reasons why!)
Starting with today's Boston Marathon--on the 50th Anniversary of the 1st Woman to finish the race!!
After a slow/slower/slowest start (at 2:34 pace after 1st 10K!), four Ethiopians took over from early leaders Neely Spence Gracey and Sarah Crouch (!!), and gradually pulled away before the Newton Hills.
No, Gracey and Crouch weren't showboating---they led because everyone else was WALKING!!
Anyway, it soon came down to Tirfi Tsegaye and a surprise late surge by Alsede Bayle, who shocked Tsegaye when she blasted past, then ran away to a 2:29:19 to 2:30:03 win!
Gracey SPRINTED---yes, I said SPRINTED!!--the final 400 or so (sub-70 seconds?) to finish 9th in 2:35:00 in her initial 26.2.
She'd been 14th at 90 minutes in, then 10th 30 minutes later, then 9th at the line!
Crouch ended just under 2:38, but was happy with her race!
The Men also started slow, and were about 2:14 pace after 10K.
They too came down to a 2-person race---Lelisa Desisa vs 21 year old Lemi Hayle.
After running side-by-side for a bit, Hayle surged, and Desisa couldn't respond.
Hayle's winning time was 2:12:44, with Desisa coming in several seconds back!
No American men in the top 10!
On to the TONS of material I have for you!
What a wild mid-April weekend!!
Something for everyone--whether a fan of World, Collegiate, or HS T&F!
Let's start with the Great Oak (CA) distance teams!
The Men's team broke a HSR they broke just a week ago!
They reduced their own HSR in the 4X1600 Relay by about 3 seconds, winning in 16:52.95 at Mt SAC!
Add a fast DMR of 10:01.71 and a fast 4X800 of 7:37.61!
But it wasn't just the guys who shone!
The vaunted G-O Women kicked some ass too!!
Their 4X1600 squad, anchored by Superstar Destiny Collins, ran 19:52.88.
As I noted in my last post, there's a 4XMILE Relay HSR of 19:56.75!
However, I don't know what the 4X1600 HSR is---as several times are just conversions FROM 4XMile's!!
If anyone has any information as to the fastest PURE 4X1600 Relay times for Girls--NO converted times!!---please tell me!!
As of now, the G-O Women will be given the 4X1600 Relay HSR---by me!
(Subject to change!!)
BTW, they also ran a fast DMR---11:41.54!
Due to amount of material, I will need to compact what remains as much as I can!
I'll split it into event groups!
Sprints first!
Jenna Prandini--former Duck, now Pro--beat current Duck Hannah Cunliffe in the Mt SAC 100, 10.95 to 10.99--a HUGE breakthrough for the new transfer from Oklahoma!!
Although not too surprising, given her INdoor 2nd in the NCAA 60!!
For Cunliffe, it's the new Collegiate Soph Class record, and makes her 8th A-T Collegiate!
No PR for Prandini, but almost so, as it's 10.92.
Cunliffe, Arianna Washington, Deajea Stevens, and Jasmine Todd broke the UO record for the 4X100 Relay, their 42.68 moving them from 7th A-T School to 3rd!
Stevens also won the 200, her 22.61 beating Cunliffe's PR of 22.71.
Yohan Blake ran his best time in 4 years--sprinting the 100 in 9.95 (1.4 wind).
He left 19.80 (200) Jamaican Rasheed Dwyer's 10.10 far behind!
He also anchored a Jamaican 4X100 Relay team called Anchor Racers, their time a good 38.45!
Walter Dix also returned from the "dead", running his fastest 100 since 2013--a 10.06, beating Christian Coleman's 10.11.
He also ran a windy 10.03!
Ameer Webb had a great double---his 19.91 in the 200 the Mt SAC Meet Record, and making him 20th A-T US!
He added a windy 100 of 9.90 (!), which beat newbie Pro Andre De Grasse's 10.04!
Webb also ran a leg on that 38.40 4X100 Relay team (Altis B) I reported in my previous post!
I mistakenly reversed the names of Wilfried Koffi--sorry about that!
Andre De Grasse also was on that team!
Tori Bowie blew away the field in the Chris Brown Invitational 200, her 22.26 not a PR, however!
She beat the 22.57 PR of Natasha Hastings and the solid opener of HS Pro Kaylin Whitney, a 22.84, which gave her 4th place!
And she gets the HS PRO 12th Grade record with this mark!
Yes, Whitney's still in HS!
LaShawn Merritt shocked a few folks when he used the FAST track at the Chris Brown Invite in the Bahamas to get a 200 PR of 19.78!!
His previous best?
Would you believe a 19.98---run in 2007??!!
On my Combined Events list for the 100-200-400, he moved from 6th A-T to 3rd!
His times of 10.47, 19.78, and 43.65 add to 1:13:90!
He's also now 15th A-T World!
He moves from 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other, all the way to 10th!
Other noteworthy marks in the short races included---
a 9.90 wind-aided (2.3) 100 for Tyson Gay, which beat Femi Ogunode's 9.94
Devon Allen's 20.68 200 (and 2 other events!)
Kirani James's 44.36, with Jeremy Wariner in 3rd with 45.55
a 49.5 relay leg by Allyson Felix (as part of a 3:32+ 4X400 Relay--she ran 2nd leg, I believe)
a non-PR 200 by HS'er Lauren Rain Williams, time of 23.07
Wayde Van Niekirk's 44.98 in the one lapper
a Collegiate leading 100 from Nathaneel Mitchell-Blake, time of 10.09
ditto (Collegiate leading) the 200 of 22.55 by Felicia Brown
a GREAT double by HOT HS Freshman Tyrese Cooper--46.52 in the 400, and a JUST windy (2.2) 200 of 20.46, which, if legal, would have DESTROYED the Frosh Class record of 20.99
the PR 100 by Brit Desiree Henry, time of 11.06 (She also ran 22.98 for half a lap!)
a non-PR in the 100H by HS'er Brittley Humphrey, time of 13.24--continuing the "Year of the 100H" for HS Women
Cindy Ofili's Collegiate leading 100H time of 12.66, not a PR
Johnny Dutch's fast 400H time of 48.36, leaving Javier Culson's 49.02 far behind
a 400 by USC's Kendell Ellis, time of 51.82
a 400H best by Jaidi Stepter, time of 55.90
the 51.62 in the flat 400 by Shakima Wimbley--the break-out star of 2015
(Wimbley also ran a leg on Miami's 3:31.73 4X400 Relay team!)
Michael Norman's non-PR 100 of 10.27, run AGAINST a wind of 1.2
a tight 100 race between winner Michelle Lee-Ahye (11.14), Murielle Ahoure (11.15), Veronica Campbell Brown (11.17), and Candyce McGrone (11.18)!
Need to report THIS result by itself!
Shaunae Miller ran a solid April 400 of 49.69---just missing her PR from 2015 by 0.07!--which beat Quinera Hayes's HUGE breakthrough time of 49.91.
Her previous best was almost a full second slower!!
It makes her 17th A-T US!!
The Field events provided an Easter Basket full of goodies for me to report!!
(Sorry--couldn't resist!! LOL)
In many ways, it was the Women's Pole Vault which was a Tale(s) of the Bunny!!
(PLEASE--no wise-ass remarks!! Leave those to yours truly!! LOL)
ANYWAYYYYY---
Diamara Plenell Cruz continues her Record-breaking 2016, her latest Puerto Rico National Record being 14-9.
In a different meet--a small affair in one of those Mid-USA states--Sandi Morris nabbed her OUTdoor PR, topping the bar set at 15-9!!
While she remains 3rd A-T US, this moves her from 17th A-T World to 11th, where she's tied with 2 others!
She took 3 shots at 16-2!!
Megan Clark tied the Mt SAC Meet Record with her 14-11.
She remains 7th A-T Collegiate, but moves up the A-T US list, from 22nd to 19th, where she's tied with 2 others!
I'll put this next PV result all by its lonesome!
Lexi Weeks's 14-10 created a lot of mayhem in my Record Book!!
She's the new Collegiate Frosh Class record holder!!
She WAS 8th A-T Collegiate, tied with 4 others.
She's NOW 8th, but not tied with anyone!
She also becomes 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other!
And she beat some studs!!
Vet Mary Saxer's 14-6 took 2nd, while 15+ footer Katie Nageotte's 14-4 took 3rd!
Kristen Brown is another who reached 14-10.
In fact, while achieved in a different meet, it makes her tied with Weeks (See above!) for 23rd A-T US!!
Tori Pena's 14-10 took second behind Brown!
Finally (in the PV!!), 2 HS'ers got good marks!
(Three, if you include the non-PR 13-10 by recent 14-2 girl Rachel Baxter!!)
Carson Dingler and Andrea Willis topped 13-8 in separate meets, each making them 19th A-T HS, tied with 3 others, including each other!
As I said, there were other good Field event marks!
Amber Campbell tied her 2014 PR of 241-6 in the Hammer Throw at Mt SAC, then went to another meet, where she threw 241-1.
Marcel Lomnicky of Slovakia got a Hammer toss out to 252-5!
Courtney Jacobson took over the Women's HS leadership for 2016 in the HT with her 185-11.
It makes her 16th A-T HS!
Sophie Rivera's Javelin Throw measuring 176-3 is a slight PR, but leaves her 6th A-T HS.
Speaking of the Women's HS Javelin--watch for the NEXT meet of HSR holder Madison Wiltrout.
In her 1st meet back after surgery in 2015 (after breaking the HSR with her 185-8!!), Wiltrout threw 148-5.
Okay, so that's FAR removed from her HSR!
BUT--she said she was just testing her arm--and expects to let loose in her next meet!
That 148-5 was her only throw of the meet!
Greg Rutherford got a LJ mark of 27-2.75!
Vashti Cunningham opened her HS Pro career with a Mt SAC win, and a HS PRO record of 6-4.
It's the HS PRO record, and the HS PRO 12th Grade record!!
She'd wanted 6-7, but apparently the conditions weren't up to snuff!
But not bad for a newly-minted HS Profesh!!
Zibby Boyer took second with 6-2.75!
Akela Jones topped the bar set at 6-4.75 for a new Barbados National Record!
She moves up the A-T Collegiate list from 23rd, tied with 7 others (!), to 7th, tied with 5 others!!
Her 6307 in the Heptathlon wasn't a PR, but was listed on Tilastopaia as the Barbados National Record!
A quick explanation!
She scored 6371 points last year, which I duly noted as the NR, despite its "windy" classification!
So make your choice!
Is that 6371W the NR of Barbados, or this 6307 non-windy mark??
I say the former!!
WITH the "W" attached!!
Other good Heptathlon marks came from Annie Kunz (5904), Lindsey Schwartz (5991), Lindsey Lettow (5988), Kiani Profit (5977), Chari Hawkins (5968), and World Class 100H specialist Nia Ali (5870)!
Jessica Flax finished 2nd to Jones's 6307 with her 6068!
Christian Taylor opened with a TJ of 56-1.75.
Rushwal Samsai got a LJ World leader of 27-4.50.
He's a South African!
It came a bit after Greg Rutherford's mark (See above!), which temporarily was the World leader!
Victor Hogan, another from South Africa, took over the World DT lead (from Sam Mattis!!) with his throw of 221-10!!
Rodney Brown added weight (sic!!) to the DT circle with his 216-6!
Nick Scarvelis got a good SP mark of 67-0, the Collegiate leader!
The HS Men's SP is having a weighty (OK, so I'm FULL of these precious bon mots today! Kill me!! LOL) year in 2016!
Bronson Osborn added his 71-7.25 to the 70+ gang of Tripp Piperi and Jordan Geist!
He moves from 23rd A-T HS to 15th!!
He added a HS Discus leader of 204-4, barely topping Piperi's earlier season mark!
A few Female SP'ers had some fun too!
Jeneva Stevens threw the ball out 60-4, with Dani Bunch 2nd with 59-4.75.
But they were both beaten (in a separate meet!!) by Raven Saunders's mark of 60-11.25--not a PR!
Another non-PR came from Ryan Crouser, his toss measuring 70-0.25!
Before I leave the Field events, I must make a couple of corrections!
I reported marks from Heather Steacy (236-6 HT) and Taryn Suttie (58-8 SP) in my previous post, saying I wasn't familiar with them!
That might be because they're both from Canada, and while I LOVE that beautiful (Nay, GORGEOUS!!!) country, I'm just not as well informed about "foreigners" as I am with US folks!
Sorry, Gals!!
And yes, there's MORE!!
Too much for one post?
Tell me if you'd prefer me splitting these LONGGGG posts in half next time, posting twice!!
I'll do the Middle and Long Distances next, excluding the Boston Marathon results, already done (See above!).
Duane Solomon took the Mt SAC 800 with his 1:45.47.
Eliud Rutto was 2nd in 1:45.59.
Laura Roesler sprinted from 3rd or 4th to a win with her 2:01.54 at Mt SAC.
Kaela Edwards ran a good Collegiate time of 2:01.97 in 2nd, beating Raevyn Rogers's 2:02.81!!
Molly Ludlow was 7th in that race!!
Michael Slagowski's 1:48.70 missed my HS DDD by just 0.18 seconds!
Asbel Kiprop got the World leader with his 1:44.34!
In the 1500-Mile category, we saw a fast Mile from Austin Tamagno, time of 4:03.21.
Connor Dunne was 2nd, over 6 seconds back!
Tamagno wanted to go sub-4!!
He missed my HS DDD by 0.49 seconds!
David Torrence won the Mt SAC 1500 with his 3:40.67.
Nicole Sifuentes won the 1500 in 4:12.01.
Soph Rylee Bowen took the HS Mile in 4:47.26, beating the 4:48.34 of Amanda Gehrich!
As always, I saved the best (in the 1500-Mile category!!) for last!
Katie Rainsberger ran a fast 1500 of 4:17.52.
It makes her 12th A-T HS.
But that's not the best part!!
She WON the race at the Oregon Relays in Eugene, beating Pro vet Geena Gall (Listed that way in the results! Not Geena Lara anymore??) and Maggie Vessey (!!).
Sarah Baxter finished a far back 17th, running 4:34.24!
The Mt SAC Women's 5000 produced another surprise winner!
(Remember Marielle Hall coming from nowhere to run 15:19 there??)
Well, this time it was 29 year old Lauren Paquette, whose 15:20.44 is an OG Qualifier!
She turns 30 on June 27th, and had no times listed for 5000 as of 2014! (FAST Annual, thank you!)
Alphine Bolton was 2nd in 15:30.02, while Erin Finn (who is apparently redshirting this OUTdoor season at Michigan to train for and try for the OG--she ran unattached!) and Erin Teschuk were 5th and 6th with times of 15:38.20 and 15:41.35, respectively!
Syd Gidabuday of Adams State won the 5000 in 13:36.83, with Patrick Corona (?) and Mason Ferlic finishing a second or less behind!
At the Brian Clay Invite, Futsam Zinesellassie ran 13:37.89 for the win.
Alexi Pappas easily won the Eugene 5000 in 15:33.78!
In the BAA Road 5000--connected to the Boston Marathon weekend party!--Molly Huddle and Dejen Gebremeskel took the titles, times of 15:10 and 13:35, respectively!
Ben True was 2nd in the Men's race, with Stephen Sambu 3rd, while Huddle was by herself at the finish!
A good Women's 3000SC saw Eleanor Purrier's 9:47.17 beating Danielle Winslow's 9:48.81.
For Purrier, this makes her 21st A-T Collegiate!
Some added Road Race news.
In the Milan Half-Marathon, James Wangai won in a fast 59:12.
The Milan FULL Marathon saw Kenneth Mungara AGAIN break his own Age 40 & over record with his 2:08:38.
In the Hamburg Marathon, Tesfaye Abere won in 2:06:58, while Meselech Melkamu took the Women's race in 2:21:54.
In my previous post, I reported TWO times as possibilities for Meseret Defar's winning time at the Carlsbad 5000--either 15:02 or 14:59.
It was the slower time!
And finally---REALLY!!!---an announced World Record attempt came from 3000SC'er Jairus Birech, who said he 'll go for it in the Rome DL!
And that is a WRAP!!
Nah!
Let's call it a FLOOD!!
(And here's all the reasons why!)
Starting with today's Boston Marathon--on the 50th Anniversary of the 1st Woman to finish the race!!
After a slow/slower/slowest start (at 2:34 pace after 1st 10K!), four Ethiopians took over from early leaders Neely Spence Gracey and Sarah Crouch (!!), and gradually pulled away before the Newton Hills.
No, Gracey and Crouch weren't showboating---they led because everyone else was WALKING!!
Anyway, it soon came down to Tirfi Tsegaye and a surprise late surge by Alsede Bayle, who shocked Tsegaye when she blasted past, then ran away to a 2:29:19 to 2:30:03 win!
Gracey SPRINTED---yes, I said SPRINTED!!--the final 400 or so (sub-70 seconds?) to finish 9th in 2:35:00 in her initial 26.2.
She'd been 14th at 90 minutes in, then 10th 30 minutes later, then 9th at the line!
Crouch ended just under 2:38, but was happy with her race!
The Men also started slow, and were about 2:14 pace after 10K.
They too came down to a 2-person race---Lelisa Desisa vs 21 year old Lemi Hayle.
After running side-by-side for a bit, Hayle surged, and Desisa couldn't respond.
Hayle's winning time was 2:12:44, with Desisa coming in several seconds back!
No American men in the top 10!
On to the TONS of material I have for you!
What a wild mid-April weekend!!
Something for everyone--whether a fan of World, Collegiate, or HS T&F!
Let's start with the Great Oak (CA) distance teams!
The Men's team broke a HSR they broke just a week ago!
They reduced their own HSR in the 4X1600 Relay by about 3 seconds, winning in 16:52.95 at Mt SAC!
Add a fast DMR of 10:01.71 and a fast 4X800 of 7:37.61!
But it wasn't just the guys who shone!
The vaunted G-O Women kicked some ass too!!
Their 4X1600 squad, anchored by Superstar Destiny Collins, ran 19:52.88.
As I noted in my last post, there's a 4XMILE Relay HSR of 19:56.75!
However, I don't know what the 4X1600 HSR is---as several times are just conversions FROM 4XMile's!!
If anyone has any information as to the fastest PURE 4X1600 Relay times for Girls--NO converted times!!---please tell me!!
As of now, the G-O Women will be given the 4X1600 Relay HSR---by me!
(Subject to change!!)
BTW, they also ran a fast DMR---11:41.54!
Due to amount of material, I will need to compact what remains as much as I can!
I'll split it into event groups!
Sprints first!
Jenna Prandini--former Duck, now Pro--beat current Duck Hannah Cunliffe in the Mt SAC 100, 10.95 to 10.99--a HUGE breakthrough for the new transfer from Oklahoma!!
Although not too surprising, given her INdoor 2nd in the NCAA 60!!
For Cunliffe, it's the new Collegiate Soph Class record, and makes her 8th A-T Collegiate!
No PR for Prandini, but almost so, as it's 10.92.
Cunliffe, Arianna Washington, Deajea Stevens, and Jasmine Todd broke the UO record for the 4X100 Relay, their 42.68 moving them from 7th A-T School to 3rd!
Stevens also won the 200, her 22.61 beating Cunliffe's PR of 22.71.
Yohan Blake ran his best time in 4 years--sprinting the 100 in 9.95 (1.4 wind).
He left 19.80 (200) Jamaican Rasheed Dwyer's 10.10 far behind!
He also anchored a Jamaican 4X100 Relay team called Anchor Racers, their time a good 38.45!
Walter Dix also returned from the "dead", running his fastest 100 since 2013--a 10.06, beating Christian Coleman's 10.11.
He also ran a windy 10.03!
Ameer Webb had a great double---his 19.91 in the 200 the Mt SAC Meet Record, and making him 20th A-T US!
He added a windy 100 of 9.90 (!), which beat newbie Pro Andre De Grasse's 10.04!
Webb also ran a leg on that 38.40 4X100 Relay team (Altis B) I reported in my previous post!
I mistakenly reversed the names of Wilfried Koffi--sorry about that!
Andre De Grasse also was on that team!
Tori Bowie blew away the field in the Chris Brown Invitational 200, her 22.26 not a PR, however!
She beat the 22.57 PR of Natasha Hastings and the solid opener of HS Pro Kaylin Whitney, a 22.84, which gave her 4th place!
And she gets the HS PRO 12th Grade record with this mark!
Yes, Whitney's still in HS!
LaShawn Merritt shocked a few folks when he used the FAST track at the Chris Brown Invite in the Bahamas to get a 200 PR of 19.78!!
His previous best?
Would you believe a 19.98---run in 2007??!!
On my Combined Events list for the 100-200-400, he moved from 6th A-T to 3rd!
His times of 10.47, 19.78, and 43.65 add to 1:13:90!
He's also now 15th A-T World!
He moves from 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other, all the way to 10th!
Other noteworthy marks in the short races included---
a 9.90 wind-aided (2.3) 100 for Tyson Gay, which beat Femi Ogunode's 9.94
Devon Allen's 20.68 200 (and 2 other events!)
Kirani James's 44.36, with Jeremy Wariner in 3rd with 45.55
a 49.5 relay leg by Allyson Felix (as part of a 3:32+ 4X400 Relay--she ran 2nd leg, I believe)
a non-PR 200 by HS'er Lauren Rain Williams, time of 23.07
Wayde Van Niekirk's 44.98 in the one lapper
a Collegiate leading 100 from Nathaneel Mitchell-Blake, time of 10.09
ditto (Collegiate leading) the 200 of 22.55 by Felicia Brown
a GREAT double by HOT HS Freshman Tyrese Cooper--46.52 in the 400, and a JUST windy (2.2) 200 of 20.46, which, if legal, would have DESTROYED the Frosh Class record of 20.99
the PR 100 by Brit Desiree Henry, time of 11.06 (She also ran 22.98 for half a lap!)
a non-PR in the 100H by HS'er Brittley Humphrey, time of 13.24--continuing the "Year of the 100H" for HS Women
Cindy Ofili's Collegiate leading 100H time of 12.66, not a PR
Johnny Dutch's fast 400H time of 48.36, leaving Javier Culson's 49.02 far behind
a 400 by USC's Kendell Ellis, time of 51.82
a 400H best by Jaidi Stepter, time of 55.90
the 51.62 in the flat 400 by Shakima Wimbley--the break-out star of 2015
(Wimbley also ran a leg on Miami's 3:31.73 4X400 Relay team!)
Michael Norman's non-PR 100 of 10.27, run AGAINST a wind of 1.2
a tight 100 race between winner Michelle Lee-Ahye (11.14), Murielle Ahoure (11.15), Veronica Campbell Brown (11.17), and Candyce McGrone (11.18)!
Need to report THIS result by itself!
Shaunae Miller ran a solid April 400 of 49.69---just missing her PR from 2015 by 0.07!--which beat Quinera Hayes's HUGE breakthrough time of 49.91.
Her previous best was almost a full second slower!!
It makes her 17th A-T US!!
The Field events provided an Easter Basket full of goodies for me to report!!
(Sorry--couldn't resist!! LOL)
In many ways, it was the Women's Pole Vault which was a Tale(s) of the Bunny!!
(PLEASE--no wise-ass remarks!! Leave those to yours truly!! LOL)
ANYWAYYYYY---
Diamara Plenell Cruz continues her Record-breaking 2016, her latest Puerto Rico National Record being 14-9.
In a different meet--a small affair in one of those Mid-USA states--Sandi Morris nabbed her OUTdoor PR, topping the bar set at 15-9!!
While she remains 3rd A-T US, this moves her from 17th A-T World to 11th, where she's tied with 2 others!
She took 3 shots at 16-2!!
Megan Clark tied the Mt SAC Meet Record with her 14-11.
She remains 7th A-T Collegiate, but moves up the A-T US list, from 22nd to 19th, where she's tied with 2 others!
I'll put this next PV result all by its lonesome!
Lexi Weeks's 14-10 created a lot of mayhem in my Record Book!!
She's the new Collegiate Frosh Class record holder!!
She WAS 8th A-T Collegiate, tied with 4 others.
She's NOW 8th, but not tied with anyone!
She also becomes 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other!
And she beat some studs!!
Vet Mary Saxer's 14-6 took 2nd, while 15+ footer Katie Nageotte's 14-4 took 3rd!
Kristen Brown is another who reached 14-10.
In fact, while achieved in a different meet, it makes her tied with Weeks (See above!) for 23rd A-T US!!
Tori Pena's 14-10 took second behind Brown!
Finally (in the PV!!), 2 HS'ers got good marks!
(Three, if you include the non-PR 13-10 by recent 14-2 girl Rachel Baxter!!)
Carson Dingler and Andrea Willis topped 13-8 in separate meets, each making them 19th A-T HS, tied with 3 others, including each other!
As I said, there were other good Field event marks!
Amber Campbell tied her 2014 PR of 241-6 in the Hammer Throw at Mt SAC, then went to another meet, where she threw 241-1.
Marcel Lomnicky of Slovakia got a Hammer toss out to 252-5!
Courtney Jacobson took over the Women's HS leadership for 2016 in the HT with her 185-11.
It makes her 16th A-T HS!
Sophie Rivera's Javelin Throw measuring 176-3 is a slight PR, but leaves her 6th A-T HS.
Speaking of the Women's HS Javelin--watch for the NEXT meet of HSR holder Madison Wiltrout.
In her 1st meet back after surgery in 2015 (after breaking the HSR with her 185-8!!), Wiltrout threw 148-5.
Okay, so that's FAR removed from her HSR!
BUT--she said she was just testing her arm--and expects to let loose in her next meet!
That 148-5 was her only throw of the meet!
Greg Rutherford got a LJ mark of 27-2.75!
Vashti Cunningham opened her HS Pro career with a Mt SAC win, and a HS PRO record of 6-4.
It's the HS PRO record, and the HS PRO 12th Grade record!!
She'd wanted 6-7, but apparently the conditions weren't up to snuff!
But not bad for a newly-minted HS Profesh!!
Zibby Boyer took second with 6-2.75!
Akela Jones topped the bar set at 6-4.75 for a new Barbados National Record!
She moves up the A-T Collegiate list from 23rd, tied with 7 others (!), to 7th, tied with 5 others!!
Her 6307 in the Heptathlon wasn't a PR, but was listed on Tilastopaia as the Barbados National Record!
A quick explanation!
She scored 6371 points last year, which I duly noted as the NR, despite its "windy" classification!
So make your choice!
Is that 6371W the NR of Barbados, or this 6307 non-windy mark??
I say the former!!
WITH the "W" attached!!
Other good Heptathlon marks came from Annie Kunz (5904), Lindsey Schwartz (5991), Lindsey Lettow (5988), Kiani Profit (5977), Chari Hawkins (5968), and World Class 100H specialist Nia Ali (5870)!
Jessica Flax finished 2nd to Jones's 6307 with her 6068!
Christian Taylor opened with a TJ of 56-1.75.
Rushwal Samsai got a LJ World leader of 27-4.50.
He's a South African!
It came a bit after Greg Rutherford's mark (See above!), which temporarily was the World leader!
Victor Hogan, another from South Africa, took over the World DT lead (from Sam Mattis!!) with his throw of 221-10!!
Rodney Brown added weight (sic!!) to the DT circle with his 216-6!
Nick Scarvelis got a good SP mark of 67-0, the Collegiate leader!
The HS Men's SP is having a weighty (OK, so I'm FULL of these precious bon mots today! Kill me!! LOL) year in 2016!
Bronson Osborn added his 71-7.25 to the 70+ gang of Tripp Piperi and Jordan Geist!
He moves from 23rd A-T HS to 15th!!
He added a HS Discus leader of 204-4, barely topping Piperi's earlier season mark!
A few Female SP'ers had some fun too!
Jeneva Stevens threw the ball out 60-4, with Dani Bunch 2nd with 59-4.75.
But they were both beaten (in a separate meet!!) by Raven Saunders's mark of 60-11.25--not a PR!
Another non-PR came from Ryan Crouser, his toss measuring 70-0.25!
Before I leave the Field events, I must make a couple of corrections!
I reported marks from Heather Steacy (236-6 HT) and Taryn Suttie (58-8 SP) in my previous post, saying I wasn't familiar with them!
That might be because they're both from Canada, and while I LOVE that beautiful (Nay, GORGEOUS!!!) country, I'm just not as well informed about "foreigners" as I am with US folks!
Sorry, Gals!!
And yes, there's MORE!!
Too much for one post?
Tell me if you'd prefer me splitting these LONGGGG posts in half next time, posting twice!!
I'll do the Middle and Long Distances next, excluding the Boston Marathon results, already done (See above!).
Duane Solomon took the Mt SAC 800 with his 1:45.47.
Eliud Rutto was 2nd in 1:45.59.
Laura Roesler sprinted from 3rd or 4th to a win with her 2:01.54 at Mt SAC.
Kaela Edwards ran a good Collegiate time of 2:01.97 in 2nd, beating Raevyn Rogers's 2:02.81!!
Molly Ludlow was 7th in that race!!
Michael Slagowski's 1:48.70 missed my HS DDD by just 0.18 seconds!
Asbel Kiprop got the World leader with his 1:44.34!
In the 1500-Mile category, we saw a fast Mile from Austin Tamagno, time of 4:03.21.
Connor Dunne was 2nd, over 6 seconds back!
Tamagno wanted to go sub-4!!
He missed my HS DDD by 0.49 seconds!
David Torrence won the Mt SAC 1500 with his 3:40.67.
Nicole Sifuentes won the 1500 in 4:12.01.
Soph Rylee Bowen took the HS Mile in 4:47.26, beating the 4:48.34 of Amanda Gehrich!
As always, I saved the best (in the 1500-Mile category!!) for last!
Katie Rainsberger ran a fast 1500 of 4:17.52.
It makes her 12th A-T HS.
But that's not the best part!!
She WON the race at the Oregon Relays in Eugene, beating Pro vet Geena Gall (Listed that way in the results! Not Geena Lara anymore??) and Maggie Vessey (!!).
Sarah Baxter finished a far back 17th, running 4:34.24!
The Mt SAC Women's 5000 produced another surprise winner!
(Remember Marielle Hall coming from nowhere to run 15:19 there??)
Well, this time it was 29 year old Lauren Paquette, whose 15:20.44 is an OG Qualifier!
She turns 30 on June 27th, and had no times listed for 5000 as of 2014! (FAST Annual, thank you!)
Alphine Bolton was 2nd in 15:30.02, while Erin Finn (who is apparently redshirting this OUTdoor season at Michigan to train for and try for the OG--she ran unattached!) and Erin Teschuk were 5th and 6th with times of 15:38.20 and 15:41.35, respectively!
Syd Gidabuday of Adams State won the 5000 in 13:36.83, with Patrick Corona (?) and Mason Ferlic finishing a second or less behind!
At the Brian Clay Invite, Futsam Zinesellassie ran 13:37.89 for the win.
Alexi Pappas easily won the Eugene 5000 in 15:33.78!
In the BAA Road 5000--connected to the Boston Marathon weekend party!--Molly Huddle and Dejen Gebremeskel took the titles, times of 15:10 and 13:35, respectively!
Ben True was 2nd in the Men's race, with Stephen Sambu 3rd, while Huddle was by herself at the finish!
A good Women's 3000SC saw Eleanor Purrier's 9:47.17 beating Danielle Winslow's 9:48.81.
For Purrier, this makes her 21st A-T Collegiate!
Some added Road Race news.
In the Milan Half-Marathon, James Wangai won in a fast 59:12.
The Milan FULL Marathon saw Kenneth Mungara AGAIN break his own Age 40 & over record with his 2:08:38.
In the Hamburg Marathon, Tesfaye Abere won in 2:06:58, while Meselech Melkamu took the Women's race in 2:21:54.
In my previous post, I reported TWO times as possibilities for Meseret Defar's winning time at the Carlsbad 5000--either 15:02 or 14:59.
It was the slower time!
And finally---REALLY!!!---an announced World Record attempt came from 3000SC'er Jairus Birech, who said he 'll go for it in the Rome DL!
And that is a WRAP!!
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Rust is Busted!
The "real" start to any OUTdoor season--especially here in the US--is generally accepted as the weekend of the Texas & Florida Relays.
Others would say it doesn't begin until after the Boston Marathon, meaning with Mt SAC, followed closely by the Drake and Penn Relays!
THIS weekend falls BETWEEN those periods!
Seen by several athletes as a good time to "rust-bust"--without the often nasty weather of late March-early April, or the pressure to perform well that such iconic meets as Drake and Penn bring about!
Well, when you're done reading my report, you'll agree that some serious rust HAS been busted!!
As ever, I'll start with a "major" record (World, US, Collegiate, HS).
The Great Oak (CA) HS team is coached by Doug Noles, who stays busy in his off-hours on Twitter!
Last week, I tweeted him that I thought his GIRLS team could break the 4XMile Relay record of 19:56.75, set by Suffern (NY) in 2006!
(He favorited my tweet!)
So what happened at the Arcadia Invitational?
His BOYS team broke the 4X1600 Relay record, while his GIRLS team ran well, but lost, not even coming close to the HSR!
Their time of 16:55.85 broke the time listed in HS Track 2016 of 17:04.7, that McCullough of The Woodlands (TX) ran in 1986!
Now, that 17:04.7 is for the 4X1600 Relay, NOT the 4XMile, which record remains the 17:06.6 run by South Eugene (OR) in 1976!!
I've seen that 19:56.75 time listed under BOTH the 4XMile AND 4X1600!
But how can that be, when one race is about 37 meters LESS than the other?
I plan on doing research to see if I can find the BEST time for a HS Girls 4X1600 Relay--which is NOT an adjusted or converted time FROM a 4XMile Relay!!
Meanwhile, that HSR by the Great Oak guys is impressive.
The 1600 splits were (rounded off) 4:19, 4:14, 4:12, and 4:10!
Arcadia--despite constant rainfall both days!--was rampant with great marks.
Rachel Baxter became the 10th HS'er to reach at least 14 feet OUTdoors!
Clearing 12-6, 12-10, 13-2, and 13-6 on 1st tries, she needed all 3 to get 13-10, matching her PR!
She got 14-2 on her 2nd try, then missed 3 times at 14-6!
This moves her from 12th to 4th on the A-T HS list!
It also breaks the Junior Class record, which had belonged to Morgann LeLeux and Lexi Weeks, their 14-0's dating from 2010 and 2014, respectively.
Abby Weiler was 2nd with 13-6, a mark that misses my DDD by 1 inch!
Noah Lyles had a great double, which seemed even better considering it was his OUTdoor opener, and the VERY wet track!
He won the 100 and 200 in 10.17 and 20.48, both wind-legal, and both--literally--runaways!
His brother Josephus had a real RACE in the 400!
He and Michael Norman (45.19 PR from 2015!) ran stride for stride until a few meters into the final straight, when Norman moved ahead, finally prevailing, 45.51 to 45.94.
Not sure how common this is, but having TWO HS guys break 46 in the SAME race is pretty sensational, if you ask me!!
Again, considering the bad weather and that it's still early April!
The usual deep fields in the distance races prevailed again!
I wish they'd run the Two Mile instead of the 3200, but you can't ignore what normally occurs in these races!
The Men's 3200 saw 8 guys break 9:00 (far LESS than normal!!), but Casey Clinger's winning time of 8:50.70 was good.
Three others broke 8:52, while TX Relays doubler Eduardo Herrera (See previous post!) finished 7th in 8:55.
For the Women, Sophomores dominated!
Won by Soph Steeplechaser Rylee Bowen in 10:13.20, Sophs also finished in 2nd and 4th place!!
Tenth Grader Annie Hill was 2nd, and her class peer Rebecca Story was 4th, with vet Hannah Debalsi in 3rd, and Fiona O'Keefe in 6th, all running under 10:18.
My McKinleyville (CA) heroine (See earlier post!), Morgin Coonfield, ran a solid 10:20.38!
In the Women's Mile (NOT 1600!), the time was slow for winner Allie Schadler (4:51), but she split it 2:32 & 2:19, with a 65 last lap!!
Might as well continue with HS material--not all of it from Arcadia!
Lauren Rain Williams, who ran in the rain (Sic!!), won the 200 in 23.37, not a PR!
Kaelin Roberts took the 400 in 53.47.
Not at Arcadia, Sammy Watson sped a quarter in 53.83.
Austin Tamagno ran a quick 2 lapper of 1:50.93.
I mentioned Michael Norman earlier!
He also ran on his Vista Murietta 4X100 Relay squad, who won in 40.63!
Some "old" marks include a 13-7.50 PV by Margaret Ollinger, which makes her 21st A-T HS.
Two HT'ers made my Top 24 list!
Madeline Rabing's 182-6 makes her 21st A-T HS, and Kamryn Brinson's 182-0 makes her 23rd!
Frosh Tia Jones ran a 13.27 in the 100H, making her 20th A-T HS, tied with 1 other!
She's 0.09 from the Frosh Class record, held by Dior Hall from 2011.
Speaking of the 100H, Kendra (Keni) Harrison might have forgotten her first OUTdoor race was supposed to bust RUST, not Records!!
She blazed a 12.36 (1.4 wind), becoming 9th A-T World, tied with 2 others!
She moves from 16th to 5th on the A-T US list!
And she misses the Age 23 record (Jasmine Stowers's 12.35 from last year!) by 0.01.
She added a slightly windy (2.3) 200 of 23.01 to her weekend!
Other quality "sprint" category marks were plentiful!
Good 400's were run by Kenya Woodell (52.12), Daye Shon Roberson (52.24), and Elexis Guster, an Iowa Junior who ran 51.85.
The Men were even better!
Bralin Taplin ran a PR of 44.41 in the Sun Angel Classic!
Doesn't make any lists or break any records, but a great time for this early!
He beat Texas A&M's Fred Kerley, whose 45.10 is the Collegiate leader!
Jeremy Wariner won a race at Baylor in 45.70!
A 4X400 team called the Tiger Olympians ran 3:02.49, with team members including Vernon Norwood and Deon Lendore!
LSU was 2nd in 3:04.59!
400H times included the 55.45 of Sage Watson, the 55.91 of Jaide Stepter, Shamier Little's 56.67, as well as Jeshua Anderson's 48.92!
Devon Allen had a busy meet in Eugene.
He ran on the 4X100 Relay, ran his 110H specialty in 13.40, and added the 400H with a 52.25!
In 200's, Andre De Grasse's 20.23 was fastest, run in beating the 20.39 of Texas A&M's Devin Jenkins--0.3 wind.
Trayvon Bromell ran against a wind of 0.3, but managed a 20.30 time!
Taylor Bennett's 22.71 fought a stronger wind--of 1.0!
DeAnna Hill also ran 22.71.
She's a USC Trojan!
A familiar name popped up in the results sheets!
Walter Dix doubled in a wind-legal 200 of 20.25 and a 10.03 100, but the latter lacks any wind info, so for the moment, we'll consider it windy!
Koffi Wilfried, an Ivory Coaster, took his Country's National Record with his 10.01 at Sun Angel!
Ameer Webb was 2nd in 10.03.
Elaine Thompson tied the World Leader with her 11.07.
Slow times, but interesting names!
Octavius Freeman's 11.54 beat Brittney Reese's (!!) 11.68, against a wind of 0.1.
Also slow, with "names", was a 4X100 Relay team called Nike A.
Their 44.53 squad had English Gardner on lead-off, followed by Carmelita Jeter, Mandy White, and anchored by Kim Duncan!
Fast 4X100 Relays abounded!
Two teams from Altis raced at Sun Angel, it's B team breaking the Meet Record with its 38.40, while Altis A team ran 38.95, just ahead of A&M's 39.02!
Both Wilfried and De Grasse run for Altis, but I don't know who ran on which team, as no names were listed!
Oregon's Women broke their school record with their 42.88!
They move from 11th A-T School to 7th!
Their team included Jasmine Todd, Hannah Cunliffe, and Arianna Washington!
Second was USC in 43.59.
This was at the Pepsi Invitational at Hayward Field!
Houston, with Cameron Burrell on anchor, ran 39.14.
Kentucky's women sped a non-PR of 43.28.
Everyone mentions Donavan Brazier as THE spectacular Collegiate 800 "find" of 2016 (despite him running the fastest HS time in 2015!!).
So think of the shock value of hearing that the fastest Collegiate time run since 2012(!!) was NOT by Brazier, but by BYU's Shaquille Walker!!
Walker broke the Sun Angel Meet Record with his fantastic 1:44.99!!
This makes him 13th A-T Collegiate!
(Can't wait for the NCAA Men's 800!!)
Several Women ran good 800's too.
Claudia Saunders's 2:03.73 beat the 2:04.15 of Olivia Baker!
At the Pepsi meet, Raevyn Rogers won easily with a loping 2:03.77.
BYU's Shea Collinsworth ran 2:03.21.
Charlene Lipsey ran 2:02.19.
And the Olympic year saw vet Molly Ludlow return to action with a solid 2:02.04!!
In longer stuff, Izaic Yorks won the Pepsi 1500 in 3:41.56.
The Stanford-Cal dual meet saw Sean McGorty's 3:42.11 beat the 3:42.86 of Grant Fisher in 3rd, Thomas Coyle's 3:42.68 between them!
Elise Cranny didn't win, but finished 2nd in a 1500, time of 4:21.17.
(When will we see that promising HS'er Cranny's return to the elite circle??)
And speaking of once-promising former HS studs, Sarah Baxter continues down her mysterious path of "fail", finishing LAST in the Pepsi 5000 in--17:02.92!!
Katie Knight and Tessa Barrett went 1-2 in 16:04 and 16:06.
Yet ANOTHER former HS whiz kid--3000SC HSR holder Brianna Nerud, now with the Ducks--ended 4th in a field of 5, running 31 seconds (!!) slower than her HSR of 2012!!
(BTW, did I mention in an earlier post that Mary Cain's "rust-buster" will be the Drake Relays 1500??)
Rosie Clarke ran a good 1500 in 4:14.94.
Ed Cheserek was OUTKICKED in the Pepsi 5K!!
When Washington's Cody Gilbert started HIS kick, "King" Ches failed to respond--at all!!
Appearing (to my eyes, at least) a bit overweight and puffy (Was he fighting a cold?), Ches just stood there, watching Gilbert build a 6 second margin of victory in the last lap--something you DON'T bet your last dollar on!!
Times were 13:44 and 13:50, for what THAT is worth!!
Multis held in Athens (Georgia!) added some names to the Collegiate roster for the NCAA's!
Karl Robert Saluri's 8108 Decathlon score beat the 8047 by Zach Ziemak, and the 7928 of Devon Williams!
Saluri's total makes him 23rd A-T Collegiate!
The Women's Heptathlon was won by Quintunya Chapman's 6039.
She beat the 5947 by Kendell Williams, and the 5914 of Georgia Ellenwood!
Elsewhere, Pau Tonnesen scored 7993 in the 10-event discipline!
Field event people busted some rust too!
DeAnna Price improved to 237-9 in the HT, but remained 3rd A-T Collegiate!
Jillian Weir reached 221-9.
Alex Young lobbed the ball and chain out 236-9
Heather Steacy--also someone unknown to me!--had a HT mark of 236-6!!
Shelby Ashe reached 212-4 with the Hammer.
Mason Finley threw the Discus 210-5.
Liz Podominick reached 198-6 with the Discus!
Lavern Spencer HJ'ed 6-3.50, beating the 6-2.25 of Jenelle Scheper!
Erica Bougard HJ'ed 6-1.25.
Christabel Nettey LJ'ed a windy (2.2) 22-7.
Shot Put marks saw some solid early April marks, and a return to form by Raven Saunders!
She threw the ball out 61-1.50, beating the 59-10.25 of Jeneva Stevens!
Tia Brooks, whose INdoor Collegiate Record Saunders broke, got off a good one--measuring 62-1.
Reese Hoffa's 64-9.75 filled the empty Age 38 record slot!
I have no doubt he'll add a few feet to that mark!!
Jordan Clarke threw the ball 66-0.25.
Tanya Suttie (??) reached 58-8!
She was listed as unattached!
The PV--besides what I reported earlier--had some good---and not so good!!--results!
Annie Rhodes stayed steady in the mid-14's, topping off at 14-5.25.
Alysha Newman joined the 15 Foot Club--ending at 15-1.
This broke her own National Record of Canada.
It also moves her from 7th A-T Collegiate, tied with 5 others, to 4th, tied with 1 other!
The "not so good" news?
Megan Clark--another 15+ foot Collegian--No Heighted--missing 3 times at her opening height of 4.20 (13-9.25)!!
Finally (!!), I have some Marathon news!
The Rotterdam Race was won by Marius Kipselem's 2:06:11, and Letebrham Gebrcellasea's 2:26:15.
They're from Kenya and Ethiopia, respectively!
(Who woulda thought??!! LOL)
And in The Armory's initial INDOOR 26.2 Mile race--!!!!!--BOTH genders set new World Records!!
Malcolm Richards won the Men's race in 2:21:56!!
And just one week after first even finding out about the race, Allie Kieffer not only decided to enter, but won the damn thing, and broke the WR with her 2:44:44!!
(See a previous post about this INSANE affair!!)
You know how a lot of athletes complain about having to run a 5000 INdoors---its 25 laps seeming like 250??
Well, imagine running 211 laps of The Armory's 200 meter track!!
How much do they pay the Lap Counters??
LOL
See you soon!
Others would say it doesn't begin until after the Boston Marathon, meaning with Mt SAC, followed closely by the Drake and Penn Relays!
THIS weekend falls BETWEEN those periods!
Seen by several athletes as a good time to "rust-bust"--without the often nasty weather of late March-early April, or the pressure to perform well that such iconic meets as Drake and Penn bring about!
Well, when you're done reading my report, you'll agree that some serious rust HAS been busted!!
As ever, I'll start with a "major" record (World, US, Collegiate, HS).
The Great Oak (CA) HS team is coached by Doug Noles, who stays busy in his off-hours on Twitter!
Last week, I tweeted him that I thought his GIRLS team could break the 4XMile Relay record of 19:56.75, set by Suffern (NY) in 2006!
(He favorited my tweet!)
So what happened at the Arcadia Invitational?
His BOYS team broke the 4X1600 Relay record, while his GIRLS team ran well, but lost, not even coming close to the HSR!
Their time of 16:55.85 broke the time listed in HS Track 2016 of 17:04.7, that McCullough of The Woodlands (TX) ran in 1986!
Now, that 17:04.7 is for the 4X1600 Relay, NOT the 4XMile, which record remains the 17:06.6 run by South Eugene (OR) in 1976!!
I've seen that 19:56.75 time listed under BOTH the 4XMile AND 4X1600!
But how can that be, when one race is about 37 meters LESS than the other?
I plan on doing research to see if I can find the BEST time for a HS Girls 4X1600 Relay--which is NOT an adjusted or converted time FROM a 4XMile Relay!!
Meanwhile, that HSR by the Great Oak guys is impressive.
The 1600 splits were (rounded off) 4:19, 4:14, 4:12, and 4:10!
Arcadia--despite constant rainfall both days!--was rampant with great marks.
Rachel Baxter became the 10th HS'er to reach at least 14 feet OUTdoors!
Clearing 12-6, 12-10, 13-2, and 13-6 on 1st tries, she needed all 3 to get 13-10, matching her PR!
She got 14-2 on her 2nd try, then missed 3 times at 14-6!
This moves her from 12th to 4th on the A-T HS list!
It also breaks the Junior Class record, which had belonged to Morgann LeLeux and Lexi Weeks, their 14-0's dating from 2010 and 2014, respectively.
Abby Weiler was 2nd with 13-6, a mark that misses my DDD by 1 inch!
Noah Lyles had a great double, which seemed even better considering it was his OUTdoor opener, and the VERY wet track!
He won the 100 and 200 in 10.17 and 20.48, both wind-legal, and both--literally--runaways!
His brother Josephus had a real RACE in the 400!
He and Michael Norman (45.19 PR from 2015!) ran stride for stride until a few meters into the final straight, when Norman moved ahead, finally prevailing, 45.51 to 45.94.
Not sure how common this is, but having TWO HS guys break 46 in the SAME race is pretty sensational, if you ask me!!
Again, considering the bad weather and that it's still early April!
The usual deep fields in the distance races prevailed again!
I wish they'd run the Two Mile instead of the 3200, but you can't ignore what normally occurs in these races!
The Men's 3200 saw 8 guys break 9:00 (far LESS than normal!!), but Casey Clinger's winning time of 8:50.70 was good.
Three others broke 8:52, while TX Relays doubler Eduardo Herrera (See previous post!) finished 7th in 8:55.
For the Women, Sophomores dominated!
Won by Soph Steeplechaser Rylee Bowen in 10:13.20, Sophs also finished in 2nd and 4th place!!
Tenth Grader Annie Hill was 2nd, and her class peer Rebecca Story was 4th, with vet Hannah Debalsi in 3rd, and Fiona O'Keefe in 6th, all running under 10:18.
My McKinleyville (CA) heroine (See earlier post!), Morgin Coonfield, ran a solid 10:20.38!
In the Women's Mile (NOT 1600!), the time was slow for winner Allie Schadler (4:51), but she split it 2:32 & 2:19, with a 65 last lap!!
Might as well continue with HS material--not all of it from Arcadia!
Lauren Rain Williams, who ran in the rain (Sic!!), won the 200 in 23.37, not a PR!
Kaelin Roberts took the 400 in 53.47.
Not at Arcadia, Sammy Watson sped a quarter in 53.83.
Austin Tamagno ran a quick 2 lapper of 1:50.93.
I mentioned Michael Norman earlier!
He also ran on his Vista Murietta 4X100 Relay squad, who won in 40.63!
Some "old" marks include a 13-7.50 PV by Margaret Ollinger, which makes her 21st A-T HS.
Two HT'ers made my Top 24 list!
Madeline Rabing's 182-6 makes her 21st A-T HS, and Kamryn Brinson's 182-0 makes her 23rd!
Frosh Tia Jones ran a 13.27 in the 100H, making her 20th A-T HS, tied with 1 other!
She's 0.09 from the Frosh Class record, held by Dior Hall from 2011.
Speaking of the 100H, Kendra (Keni) Harrison might have forgotten her first OUTdoor race was supposed to bust RUST, not Records!!
She blazed a 12.36 (1.4 wind), becoming 9th A-T World, tied with 2 others!
She moves from 16th to 5th on the A-T US list!
And she misses the Age 23 record (Jasmine Stowers's 12.35 from last year!) by 0.01.
She added a slightly windy (2.3) 200 of 23.01 to her weekend!
Other quality "sprint" category marks were plentiful!
Good 400's were run by Kenya Woodell (52.12), Daye Shon Roberson (52.24), and Elexis Guster, an Iowa Junior who ran 51.85.
The Men were even better!
Bralin Taplin ran a PR of 44.41 in the Sun Angel Classic!
Doesn't make any lists or break any records, but a great time for this early!
He beat Texas A&M's Fred Kerley, whose 45.10 is the Collegiate leader!
Jeremy Wariner won a race at Baylor in 45.70!
A 4X400 team called the Tiger Olympians ran 3:02.49, with team members including Vernon Norwood and Deon Lendore!
LSU was 2nd in 3:04.59!
400H times included the 55.45 of Sage Watson, the 55.91 of Jaide Stepter, Shamier Little's 56.67, as well as Jeshua Anderson's 48.92!
Devon Allen had a busy meet in Eugene.
He ran on the 4X100 Relay, ran his 110H specialty in 13.40, and added the 400H with a 52.25!
In 200's, Andre De Grasse's 20.23 was fastest, run in beating the 20.39 of Texas A&M's Devin Jenkins--0.3 wind.
Trayvon Bromell ran against a wind of 0.3, but managed a 20.30 time!
Taylor Bennett's 22.71 fought a stronger wind--of 1.0!
DeAnna Hill also ran 22.71.
She's a USC Trojan!
A familiar name popped up in the results sheets!
Walter Dix doubled in a wind-legal 200 of 20.25 and a 10.03 100, but the latter lacks any wind info, so for the moment, we'll consider it windy!
Koffi Wilfried, an Ivory Coaster, took his Country's National Record with his 10.01 at Sun Angel!
Ameer Webb was 2nd in 10.03.
Elaine Thompson tied the World Leader with her 11.07.
Slow times, but interesting names!
Octavius Freeman's 11.54 beat Brittney Reese's (!!) 11.68, against a wind of 0.1.
Also slow, with "names", was a 4X100 Relay team called Nike A.
Their 44.53 squad had English Gardner on lead-off, followed by Carmelita Jeter, Mandy White, and anchored by Kim Duncan!
Fast 4X100 Relays abounded!
Two teams from Altis raced at Sun Angel, it's B team breaking the Meet Record with its 38.40, while Altis A team ran 38.95, just ahead of A&M's 39.02!
Both Wilfried and De Grasse run for Altis, but I don't know who ran on which team, as no names were listed!
Oregon's Women broke their school record with their 42.88!
They move from 11th A-T School to 7th!
Their team included Jasmine Todd, Hannah Cunliffe, and Arianna Washington!
Second was USC in 43.59.
This was at the Pepsi Invitational at Hayward Field!
Houston, with Cameron Burrell on anchor, ran 39.14.
Kentucky's women sped a non-PR of 43.28.
Everyone mentions Donavan Brazier as THE spectacular Collegiate 800 "find" of 2016 (despite him running the fastest HS time in 2015!!).
So think of the shock value of hearing that the fastest Collegiate time run since 2012(!!) was NOT by Brazier, but by BYU's Shaquille Walker!!
Walker broke the Sun Angel Meet Record with his fantastic 1:44.99!!
This makes him 13th A-T Collegiate!
(Can't wait for the NCAA Men's 800!!)
Several Women ran good 800's too.
Claudia Saunders's 2:03.73 beat the 2:04.15 of Olivia Baker!
At the Pepsi meet, Raevyn Rogers won easily with a loping 2:03.77.
BYU's Shea Collinsworth ran 2:03.21.
Charlene Lipsey ran 2:02.19.
And the Olympic year saw vet Molly Ludlow return to action with a solid 2:02.04!!
In longer stuff, Izaic Yorks won the Pepsi 1500 in 3:41.56.
The Stanford-Cal dual meet saw Sean McGorty's 3:42.11 beat the 3:42.86 of Grant Fisher in 3rd, Thomas Coyle's 3:42.68 between them!
Elise Cranny didn't win, but finished 2nd in a 1500, time of 4:21.17.
(When will we see that promising HS'er Cranny's return to the elite circle??)
And speaking of once-promising former HS studs, Sarah Baxter continues down her mysterious path of "fail", finishing LAST in the Pepsi 5000 in--17:02.92!!
Katie Knight and Tessa Barrett went 1-2 in 16:04 and 16:06.
Yet ANOTHER former HS whiz kid--3000SC HSR holder Brianna Nerud, now with the Ducks--ended 4th in a field of 5, running 31 seconds (!!) slower than her HSR of 2012!!
(BTW, did I mention in an earlier post that Mary Cain's "rust-buster" will be the Drake Relays 1500??)
Rosie Clarke ran a good 1500 in 4:14.94.
Ed Cheserek was OUTKICKED in the Pepsi 5K!!
When Washington's Cody Gilbert started HIS kick, "King" Ches failed to respond--at all!!
Appearing (to my eyes, at least) a bit overweight and puffy (Was he fighting a cold?), Ches just stood there, watching Gilbert build a 6 second margin of victory in the last lap--something you DON'T bet your last dollar on!!
Times were 13:44 and 13:50, for what THAT is worth!!
Multis held in Athens (Georgia!) added some names to the Collegiate roster for the NCAA's!
Karl Robert Saluri's 8108 Decathlon score beat the 8047 by Zach Ziemak, and the 7928 of Devon Williams!
Saluri's total makes him 23rd A-T Collegiate!
The Women's Heptathlon was won by Quintunya Chapman's 6039.
She beat the 5947 by Kendell Williams, and the 5914 of Georgia Ellenwood!
Elsewhere, Pau Tonnesen scored 7993 in the 10-event discipline!
Field event people busted some rust too!
DeAnna Price improved to 237-9 in the HT, but remained 3rd A-T Collegiate!
Jillian Weir reached 221-9.
Alex Young lobbed the ball and chain out 236-9
Heather Steacy--also someone unknown to me!--had a HT mark of 236-6!!
Shelby Ashe reached 212-4 with the Hammer.
Mason Finley threw the Discus 210-5.
Liz Podominick reached 198-6 with the Discus!
Lavern Spencer HJ'ed 6-3.50, beating the 6-2.25 of Jenelle Scheper!
Erica Bougard HJ'ed 6-1.25.
Christabel Nettey LJ'ed a windy (2.2) 22-7.
Shot Put marks saw some solid early April marks, and a return to form by Raven Saunders!
She threw the ball out 61-1.50, beating the 59-10.25 of Jeneva Stevens!
Tia Brooks, whose INdoor Collegiate Record Saunders broke, got off a good one--measuring 62-1.
Reese Hoffa's 64-9.75 filled the empty Age 38 record slot!
I have no doubt he'll add a few feet to that mark!!
Jordan Clarke threw the ball 66-0.25.
Tanya Suttie (??) reached 58-8!
She was listed as unattached!
The PV--besides what I reported earlier--had some good---and not so good!!--results!
Annie Rhodes stayed steady in the mid-14's, topping off at 14-5.25.
Alysha Newman joined the 15 Foot Club--ending at 15-1.
This broke her own National Record of Canada.
It also moves her from 7th A-T Collegiate, tied with 5 others, to 4th, tied with 1 other!
The "not so good" news?
Megan Clark--another 15+ foot Collegian--No Heighted--missing 3 times at her opening height of 4.20 (13-9.25)!!
Finally (!!), I have some Marathon news!
The Rotterdam Race was won by Marius Kipselem's 2:06:11, and Letebrham Gebrcellasea's 2:26:15.
They're from Kenya and Ethiopia, respectively!
(Who woulda thought??!! LOL)
And in The Armory's initial INDOOR 26.2 Mile race--!!!!!--BOTH genders set new World Records!!
Malcolm Richards won the Men's race in 2:21:56!!
And just one week after first even finding out about the race, Allie Kieffer not only decided to enter, but won the damn thing, and broke the WR with her 2:44:44!!
(See a previous post about this INSANE affair!!)
You know how a lot of athletes complain about having to run a 5000 INdoors---its 25 laps seeming like 250??
Well, imagine running 211 laps of The Armory's 200 meter track!!
How much do they pay the Lap Counters??
LOL
See you soon!
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Absolute Lists Absolutely Not!
Those of you who read my blog almost certainly also search out the lists on the Track and Field News website.
I do.
(And go UGH!)
I've written of this before, so pardon me if I repeat myself!
I'll try to be "original".
Let's begin in January--any January!
Go to T&FN's site in the first month of the year, click on "Lists", and you'll see "blank year INDOOR Lists"!
Same for February, and through to the end--around mid-March--of the INdoor "season".
That means after the NCAA, USATF, NBIN, and maybe the Euro INdoor and the World Championships, if they're scheduled!
A few days later, check back, and you'll find a new title to their Lists.
Some years ago, they referred to them as "comprehensive" lists.
Then that was changed to "absolute" lists.
I won't bore you with my Webster's Dictionary definitions of those words, except to say that it basically means "overall"--or "non-exclusive".
(BTW, after beginning their "absolute" lists, they DO retain their INdoor lists, for reference! Good for them!)
The way I see it, however, is that this "Bible of the Sport" fails to recognize a TOTAL SEPARATION of the seasons--INdoors from OUTdoors!
They mix them together.
(Let me tell you--they go together about as well as night and day, or gay and straight, or up and down! LOL)
Here's two examples of the problem, as I see it.
In the newest lists--which thus far include just US and HS--the Collegiate and World "absolutes" should begin shortly--the Men's HS leaders in the PV and SP are Mondo Duplantis and Jordan Geist.
As well they should be!
After all--as reported in my latest blog post!!--Duplantis got an OUTdoor PR of 17-8.50 recently, while Geist also got an OUTdoor PR of 71-9.25.
If this were an OUTdoor season list, THOSE would be the ACTUAL 2016 leaders!
But the marks next to Duplantis's and Geist's names are NOT 17-8.50 or 71-9.25!
They are their INdoor PR's of 18-0.50 and 72-9.25.
IF---and I believe they'll improve on those latter marks OUTdoors--soon!--IF they do NOT improve their INdoor marks OUTdoors this year, then, guaranteed, T&FN's "absolute" lists will STILL show their 2016 bests to be their INdoor PR's.
In May, and June, and July, and in December!
You will NEVER know---unless you read my blog, or follow the sport VERY CLOSELY!!--you'll never know what those two great athlete's OUTdoor marks from 2016 were!!
(Not unless you buy the 2017 edition of Jack Shepard's HS Track where, he--like me!--SEPARATES the seasons--ABSOLUTELY!!)
There's just ONE reason why--IMO--T&FN created "comprehensive" or "absolute" lists!
Are you ready?
Are you sitting down, and are you on speed dial to 9-1-1?
Okay, here goes.
T&FN does NOT see the seasons as separate!
And yet, I can safely say they are hypocrites in having these lists!
For in their magazine, and in other places, they DO refer to a record made INdoors as an "INdoor" record!
So why don't they extend that belief to their lists?
Did you know they did, once upon a time?
Ever seen--no matter your age--any copies of their magazine from the 1960's?
In that decade--and maybe for some years after (Can't remember, and I sold my 20th century copies several years ago--regrettably!! Needed fast cash!!), they began their OUTdoor coverage (No computer websites then--all in PRINT, on PAPER!) with OUTdoor lists!!
Okay, so the first list was SHORT--sometimes with as few as 2 or 3 marks in an event!
They had minimum standards for list inclusion--and I can accept that.
If you recall, I had STRONG "minimums" to the marks I would include in the Meet and National Records sections of my T&F Record Book!
I loosened them up quite a bit about a year ago!!
But the magazine DID have SEPARATE lists--as I recall!
I've seen excuses given by them as being that the rules have changed, as to record recognition.
Some INdoor marks--in SOME events!!--are now accepted as ALL-TIME (another version of absolute!!) bests.
Renaud Lavillenie's 20-2.50 INdoor PV is one example!
It's better than Sergey Bubka's OUTdoor best of 20-1.75 from 1994.
Except for one small thing.
Renaud's 20-2.50 was reached under a roof and between four walls!
Sergey's 20-1.75 was conceived in the "great wide open"--thank you, Tom Petty!!
Two completely different circumstances.
Two sets of conditions with NOTHING in common!!
Two SEPARATE SEASONS!!
Thus, two SEPARATE sets of records!!
We have an INdoor NCAA Championships!
We have an OUTdoor NCAA Championships!
Ditto for the USATF's, the WC's, and the HS Champs--called, respectively, the NBIN and the NBN!
(Add the Euros!! My apologies to the Brits, Germans, Norwegians, Swiss, French etc etc etc!! LOL)
So what do we do?
Do we IGNORE the lists of the sport's BIBLE??
Do we make THIS BLOG the new "Bible" for records and marks recognition??
(I can handle that! LOL)
Your choice!
I do.
(And go UGH!)
I've written of this before, so pardon me if I repeat myself!
I'll try to be "original".
Let's begin in January--any January!
Go to T&FN's site in the first month of the year, click on "Lists", and you'll see "blank year INDOOR Lists"!
Same for February, and through to the end--around mid-March--of the INdoor "season".
That means after the NCAA, USATF, NBIN, and maybe the Euro INdoor and the World Championships, if they're scheduled!
A few days later, check back, and you'll find a new title to their Lists.
Some years ago, they referred to them as "comprehensive" lists.
Then that was changed to "absolute" lists.
I won't bore you with my Webster's Dictionary definitions of those words, except to say that it basically means "overall"--or "non-exclusive".
(BTW, after beginning their "absolute" lists, they DO retain their INdoor lists, for reference! Good for them!)
The way I see it, however, is that this "Bible of the Sport" fails to recognize a TOTAL SEPARATION of the seasons--INdoors from OUTdoors!
They mix them together.
(Let me tell you--they go together about as well as night and day, or gay and straight, or up and down! LOL)
Here's two examples of the problem, as I see it.
In the newest lists--which thus far include just US and HS--the Collegiate and World "absolutes" should begin shortly--the Men's HS leaders in the PV and SP are Mondo Duplantis and Jordan Geist.
As well they should be!
After all--as reported in my latest blog post!!--Duplantis got an OUTdoor PR of 17-8.50 recently, while Geist also got an OUTdoor PR of 71-9.25.
If this were an OUTdoor season list, THOSE would be the ACTUAL 2016 leaders!
But the marks next to Duplantis's and Geist's names are NOT 17-8.50 or 71-9.25!
They are their INdoor PR's of 18-0.50 and 72-9.25.
IF---and I believe they'll improve on those latter marks OUTdoors--soon!--IF they do NOT improve their INdoor marks OUTdoors this year, then, guaranteed, T&FN's "absolute" lists will STILL show their 2016 bests to be their INdoor PR's.
In May, and June, and July, and in December!
You will NEVER know---unless you read my blog, or follow the sport VERY CLOSELY!!--you'll never know what those two great athlete's OUTdoor marks from 2016 were!!
(Not unless you buy the 2017 edition of Jack Shepard's HS Track where, he--like me!--SEPARATES the seasons--ABSOLUTELY!!)
There's just ONE reason why--IMO--T&FN created "comprehensive" or "absolute" lists!
Are you ready?
Are you sitting down, and are you on speed dial to 9-1-1?
Okay, here goes.
T&FN does NOT see the seasons as separate!
And yet, I can safely say they are hypocrites in having these lists!
For in their magazine, and in other places, they DO refer to a record made INdoors as an "INdoor" record!
So why don't they extend that belief to their lists?
Did you know they did, once upon a time?
Ever seen--no matter your age--any copies of their magazine from the 1960's?
In that decade--and maybe for some years after (Can't remember, and I sold my 20th century copies several years ago--regrettably!! Needed fast cash!!), they began their OUTdoor coverage (No computer websites then--all in PRINT, on PAPER!) with OUTdoor lists!!
Okay, so the first list was SHORT--sometimes with as few as 2 or 3 marks in an event!
They had minimum standards for list inclusion--and I can accept that.
If you recall, I had STRONG "minimums" to the marks I would include in the Meet and National Records sections of my T&F Record Book!
I loosened them up quite a bit about a year ago!!
But the magazine DID have SEPARATE lists--as I recall!
I've seen excuses given by them as being that the rules have changed, as to record recognition.
Some INdoor marks--in SOME events!!--are now accepted as ALL-TIME (another version of absolute!!) bests.
Renaud Lavillenie's 20-2.50 INdoor PV is one example!
It's better than Sergey Bubka's OUTdoor best of 20-1.75 from 1994.
Except for one small thing.
Renaud's 20-2.50 was reached under a roof and between four walls!
Sergey's 20-1.75 was conceived in the "great wide open"--thank you, Tom Petty!!
Two completely different circumstances.
Two sets of conditions with NOTHING in common!!
Two SEPARATE SEASONS!!
Thus, two SEPARATE sets of records!!
We have an INdoor NCAA Championships!
We have an OUTdoor NCAA Championships!
Ditto for the USATF's, the WC's, and the HS Champs--called, respectively, the NBIN and the NBN!
(Add the Euros!! My apologies to the Brits, Germans, Norwegians, Swiss, French etc etc etc!! LOL)
So what do we do?
Do we IGNORE the lists of the sport's BIBLE??
Do we make THIS BLOG the new "Bible" for records and marks recognition??
(I can handle that! LOL)
Your choice!
Sunday, April 3, 2016
For Blog Post 250.....
Yes, this is my 250th post since the first on December 9, 2013!
That's an average of one post every 3.3 days, give or take, or two per week!
Seems my posts have gotten longer, and this won't be any different!
I've been honest in my opinions, and as accurate in what I present as is humanly possible!
I still love doing it---probably more than ever---and will continue until I breathe my last!
With that last thought in mind, it's maybe ironic that one of the books I'm now reading is a new collection of "uncollected" Allen Ginsberg poems!
Its title is---"Wait Till I'm Dead"!!
He's been my favorite poet for decades, and this book keeps his reputation with me intact!
Now, on to this weekend's report!
Because I have so much, I'll be compressing a lot of it into "by event" listings!
The Texas Relays Women's Pole Vault represented maybe the best & worst T&F has to offer!
The entry list showed the names of the 3 American 16 footers--Jenn Suhr, Sandi Morris, and Demi Payne.
The circumstances that SHATTERED that dream are completely understandable and acceptable!
Nonetheless, the illusion of a GREAT contest came apart, one by one!
First, Morris tweeted she'd talked with her coach and regretfully was withdrawing, due to a change in plans!
Then, Suhr announced her ankle tightness was still bothering her, and she'd decide at the last minute whether to compete.
She didn't.
Then, Payne dislocated her thumb when a pole broke as she was getting started!
(She says it was ugly, but she'll be fine!)
But enough GOOD news in the PV somewhat offset that rocky start!
Shawn Barber won the Men's event, his 19-4.75 getting the Texas Relays Meet Record.
Devin King might be finally realizing the potential he showed in HS!
Stuck in the 17-8 to 18-1 range, he broke out with a solid PR of 18-8.25!
This makes him 18th A-T Collegiate, tied with 6 others!
Audie Wyatt was 2nd (This was in the Collegiate event, not the one with Barber!), also PR'ing with 18-6.50!.
Torben Laidig got over 18-4.50.
Joey Uhle also reached 18-4.50!
The Women's Collegiate Vault was--overall--better than the Open event!
But they also had some problems.
It was finally won by Jessie Johnson, with a 14-5.25.
She took 3 tries at 14-9!
In the Florida Relays, Diamara Plenell Cruz won with 14-5.25.
In another meet, Megan Clark added a half-inch to her OUTdoor PR, reaching 14-9.50.
She was 6th A-T Collegiate, but with 6 ties!
She's still 6th, but minus any ties!
In the TX Relays Vault, April Steiner-Bennett reached just 14-2.50.
However, I neglected to mention that her earlier 14-9 was the Age 35 record!
In HS action, Mondo Duplantis has done it again!
He got an OUTdoor PR, his 17-8.50 making him 14th A-T HS, tied with 3 others!
It's also the Soph Class record!
He missed 3 times at 18-1.
Rachel Baxter got over 13-6--not a PR--and Carson Dingler got up to 13-2.
Sticking to HS'ers for a minute, the Women's 100H results did some revision to my DDD list!
My decision to make Tonea Marshall the INdoor AOY is seeming a good one, after her Texas performance!
Starting with a heat time of 13.26, which made her 13th A-T HS, she quickly (sic!) altered that!
Her final was a blazing 13.04 (1.2 wind), moving her to 4th A-T HS!
In 2nd was Brandee Johnson, whose 13.18 makes her 7th A-T HS, tied with 1 other.
Johnson doubled in the 300H, her 40.87 leading the nation so far!
It also makes her 15th A-T HS!
Norman Grimes ran the 300H in 36.33.
In the Florida race, Chanel Brissett--from Pennsylvania--ran 13.19, making her 9th A-T HS!!
And it's just April 3rd!!
Eddie Lovett had a good early season 13.39 110H time in Florida, while David Oliver opened in Texas with 13.44.
Jackie Coward ran the 100H in 12.85.
Australian Michelle Jenneke won her Olympic Trials race in 12.93, an OG Qualifier!
The Throws had some mixed results.
Raven Saunders won her event, but with a poor 56 feet and change!
But Tripp Piperi's 71-0 and Jordan Geist's 71-9.25 were OUTdoor PR's!
Geist is now 12th A-T HS!
Knocked OFF my list was an oldie--Ron Semkiw's 70-1.75 from 1972!!
Piperi is now 18th A-T HS!
He also had a good DT, reaching 204-3.
Seems like yesterday that Curtis Thompson's shocking JT of 265-10 gave him the Collegiate Soph Class record!
Well, Ionnis Kyriazis took that away, the TX A&M Soph reaching 268-7!!
He's now 8th A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!
AG Kruger opened with a HT of 241.3.
Shelbi Vaughan reached 192-9 in the DT.
A good Women's DT in Florida saw Paige Blackburn winning with her 199-10.
In 2nd was Florida State's Killian Knibb, her 195-4 not a PR!
Katelyn Daniels was 3rd with 190-4.
Tavis Bailey threw the Discus 212-1.
DeAnna Price had another solid Hammer effort, a non-PR 234-6.
And Mackenzie Little, a Stanford Frosh, threw the Javelin 183-4.
This brought her to within 4 inches of the Collegiate A-T Top 24!
And to within 3 feet of the Collegiate Frosh Class record!
Stanford's Invitational brought the usual number of good distance races, its specialty!
I succumbed, and bought a month of Flotrack, so I could watch the 12 hours of almost non-stop 5K's and 10K's and 3000SC's and 1500's, not to mention some DMR's!
Couldn't resist!
(I get a whole month, and they'll be livestreaming all of Mt SAC's distances too!! LOL)
Anyway, lots to report---and not all of it from Stanford!
In Florida's 4X800 Relays, Penn State's 7:19.98 beat Georgia's 7:20.03, with Brannon Kidder and Robby Creese running for the winners!
The Women's race saw the NJ-NY TC winning with 8:34.00, with Ashley Higginson part of the squad!
In the Texas meet, Donavan Brazier anchored the Texas A&M team to a time of 7:18.95!
Sticking to 800's, Florida had a deep Men's race.
Puerto Rico's Wesley Vazquez missed his 2014 PR (and National Record!) by just 0.11, running 1:44.75!
(Remember that Daniel Rudisha opened awhile back with 1:44.78!)
Andres Arroyo PR'ed in 2nd with 1:45.78.
He was followed by the 1:46.05 of Isaiah Harris, and the 1:46.42 of Kidder!
Vazquez got the Florida Relays Meet Record!
Chanelle Price won the Women's race in 2:01.72, beating Cory McGee's 2:02.73!
Collegian Ci'eira Brown ran 2:02.82 in 3rd!
Since it includes an 800 leg, I'll report Mississippi State's outstanding SMR time of 3:13.12!
I don't have an A-T list for this event, but the Collegiate Record is 3:12.13 by Arkansas in 2000!!
It's the Florida Relays Meet Record.
Brandon McBride reportedly anchored in 1:45!!
Second was Florida's 3:14.54, with Andres Arroyo anchoring in 1:47!
Ryan Clark ran one of the 200's!
Ashley Higginson, besides that 800 relay leg, won the 1500 in a good 4:12.81.
Another Steepler--Erin Teschuk--won a Stanford 1500 in 4:15.30, beating Kate Van Buskirk's 4:15.65!
Both women are Canadians!
Two other Stanford 1500's were taken by Claudia Saunders's 4:17.33, and Malika Waschmann's 4:16.53.
Both of them run for the Cardinal!
Henry Wynne took a good 1500 in 3:38.35, beating Craig Engels's 3:38.82.
In the Texas Relays, Jonah Koech won the Men's Mile with 4:00.82.
The Women's 1500 saw Dana Mecke's 4:15.93 beating the PR of Laura Roesler, her time being 4:18.17!
She laughed about having to run the longer race, saying she'll stick to the 800!
Cecilia Barowski of Princeton beat Canadian vet Jessica Smith in an 800, 2:02.62 to 2:02.97!
Mason Ferlic won a 3000SC in 8:33.95.
However, Hillary Bor's winning time at Stanford was 8:30.70, the World leader!
Zak Seddon took 2nd in 8:33.09!
Rylee Bowen, still just a 10th Grader, ran 6:53.34 in the 2000SC.
Rachel Johnson won the longer 3000SC in 9:55.16.
Paige Koube, from Harvard, chopped about 25 seconds from her PR, running a good 9:50.21.
She misses my Collegiate Top 24 by just 1.20 seconds!!
Mel Lawrence ran her first sub-10 time in 3 years, taking 2nd in 9:50.91!
She was fighting injuries!
Some good HS races come from Stanford!
Eduardo Herrera, who recently ran a 4:04+ Mile (See previous post!), doubled in a solid 3000 time of 8:15.01 and a Mile of 4:11.41.
His 3K time misses my HS Top 24 list by 1.74 seconds!
Second in the longer race was Brody Smith's 8:19.04!
Smith also doubled, running the Mile in 4:12.81.
Connor Dunne ran the year's fastest 800, time of 1:50.83.
In other meets, Infinite Tucker ran 300H in 37.16, while Elija Godwin ran the flat 400 in 46.82.
Emma Gracy Hurley ran a Two Mile (NOT 3200!!!) in 10:22.58, missing my DDD by 10 seconds!
I lived for 15 years (1973 to 1987, with some added time in the 90's) in Humboldt County CA, specifiically Arcata and Eureka!
(I ran my fastest Marathon at the 1978 Avenue of the Giants race, in 2:56:02!)
Anyway, the next town north of Arcata is McKinleyville!
So I was happy to see a McKinleyville girl--Morgan Coonfield-- win the 3000 in 9:44.43, and return to take 2nd in the Mile with a good 4:49.55!!
In a HS Distance Medley Relay, Fiona O'Keefe anchored her Davis team to a good time of 11:52.87!
First I'd heard of an O'Keefe race in 2016!
In the more "elite" Stanford events, Dominique Scott is finishing off her Collegiate career, and won a 5000 in 15:25.10, a PR!
She becomes 18th A-T Collegiate!
Kim Smith, coming back from injuries and giving birth, ran her first race in awhile, finishing in 15:32.77, a solid rust-buster for this 34 year old!
Knocked OFF my Collegiate DDD list (by Scott) was the venerable Shalane Flanagan, her 15:30.60 dating from 2003!!
Emma Bates finished way back in 15th, not even breaking 16 minutes!
In another section, Berkeley (UCB) Soph Bethan Knights broke 16 with her winning time of 15:52.91.
Remember, she holds the HSR in the OUTdoor Two Mile with her 9:53.54 from 2014!
Paul Chelimo took the fastest Men's race with his 13:36.10.
His last lap was 56.3!
The featured 10000's saw some good times.
Len Korir outkicked Shadrack Kipchirchir, 27:58.65 to 27:58.91.
Scott Fauble just missed the 28:00 OG Q time, coming in 3rd with his 28:00.45!!
In 5th, in his first track 10K, was German Fernandez, his time being 28:06.64!
Another Men's 10K saw the NCAA Division III record being broken, Ian LaMere's 28:38.63 doing the trick!
He's from Wisconsin-Platteville!
His splits were 14:32 and 14:06!!
Another solid performance--memories of Marielle Hall and Natosha Rogers abounding--came from Portland U's Lauren LaRocco!
Reportedly coming in with a 2015 PR in the 5000 of 17:38 (!), she split 16:54 (!!), then 16:21 (!!!), for a final winning time of 33:15.75!
She ran her final 1600 in 5:00!!
Watch for her!
Laura Thweatt--the 2:28:20 NYC Marathon rookie of 2015--won a tight duel with Alphine Bolton, winning on the last lap with 31:52.94.
Bolton's time was 31:54.20.
Tara Welling ran a PR in 3rd, 32:02.80!
Beth Potter and Fionnula McCormack followed a second or 3 back of Welling!
Then came two Collegians!
Harvard's Courtney Smith ran 32:08.32 to just edge Tennessee's Chelsea Blaase's 32:08.39!
They're now 8th and 9th A-T Collegiate!
Following them was another VERY special story--that of Stephanie Bruce!
She had her second child in less than 2 years (!!) just 6 months ago, yet ran an Olympic Games Q time of 32:14.42.
(The Q time is 32:15!)
She did this--pretty much solo for the final 4 laps!--by running her last 1600 in 5:04, and her final lap in 71!!
Knocked OFF my Collegiate DDD was Stephanie Herbst's 32:32.75 from 1986.
If you recall, that was the CR then, but what happened in that race provided the meat of Frank Murphy's outstanding book on female distance running--"The Silence of Great Distance"!
During the race, former CR holder (Herbst broke her record!) Kathy Ormsby left the track (while battling with Herbst!), ran to a nearby bridge, and jumped off, becoming paralyzed for life!!
I STRONGLY recommend Murphy's book!! (See my post on "Culture"--one of my more popular posts!!)
Take a break, because there's much more!!
(Is this too long? Should I have broken it up into two posts??)
Normally, the Texas Relays produce TONS of fast sprint times, most of them windy!
This time, the winds were fairly mild, and so were the times--relatively speaking!
Tavis Hester's 9.99 100 had a wind of 3.0.
Michelle Lee Ahye had a windy 11.13 100.
Natasha Hastings won the 200 in 22.84, but had an illegal wind of 2.7.
However, Morolake Akinosun caught a legal breeze of just 1.7, so her 11.07 leads the World!!
It's not a PR!
In a 4X100 Relay, Trinidad and Tobago's 43.06 beat a USA Red team's 43.16!
Jenna Prandini ran 3rd leg for the US, while new HS PRO Khalifa St Fort anchored for the winners!
Andre De Grasse anchored a Canada 4X100 Relay team's 38.11 World leader!
It's the Florida Relays Meet Record!
He also won a wind-aided 100 in 9.99 (wind of 3.3!).
LaShawn Merritt dipped down to the 200, winning in 20.23--legal wind!
Ahmed Ali, an Alabama Senior, ran 20.16 in another race, with his wind being the legal limit of 2.0.
It's the National Record of the Sudan!
And it's the World leader!!
Gabrielle Thomas, a Harvard Frosh, ran a legal 200 of 22.75.
In a very windy Florida race, (3.7!), Tiffany Townsend's 22.38 beat Veronica Campbell Brown's 22.46!
Shayla Sanders won a windy 100 in 11.15.
Sanders ran the 2nd leg (with Kyra Jefferson the anchor!) of Florida's 42.85 4X100 Relay winner!
Good 400's came from Ebony Eutsey (52.08 in Florida), Delilah Muhammed (52.64 at Stanford, beating beautifully-bedecked Fashion Diva Maggie Vessey's 54.80!), Robin Reynolds, and Kyra Jefferson (52.09 to 52.11 in Florida!)
The Men added a 45.43 (Florida Frosh Kunle Fasasi) and 45.56 (Mike Berry, in 2nd!) in Florida.
Good 4X400 Relays were run in Florida--Pure Athletics's 3:27.67 beating Canada's 3:30.92.
In the Collegiate race, Florida's 3:26.28 beat Kentucky's 3:28.45, South Carolina's 3:31.14, Tennessee's 3:31.29, and Harvard's 3:32.03!
(What's with Harvard suddenly having all these studs-- male and female??!!)
Anyway, Florida's time moves them from 8th A-T School to 5th!
Kentucky becomes School number 17 on my DDD!
Florida's Men won with a good time of 3:03.42.
A team called the Gainsville Elite ran 3:00.96!
In Texas, LSU's 3:01.83 beat Texas's 3:02.18!
The Texas Women won in 3:26.54--NOT a School record!!
Morolake Akinosun and Courtney Okolo ran legs, Okolo anchoring in a reported 49.9!!
In 4X200 Relays, Pure Athletics's 1:30.56 beat Star Athletics's 1:31.49.
Tori Bowie and Shaunae Miller ran for the winners!
The Canadian Men's squad won in a National Record time of 1:19.20!
Only the United States and Jamaica have run faster as National Teams!
Andre De Grasse ran lead-off!!
Teddy Tamgho returned with a rust-busting TJ of 54-6.75.
Chantel Malone's LJ was measured at 21-10.25.
Eleventh Grader Tara Davis (who crashed a hurdle in a 300H race--she's okay!!) TJ'ed an excellent 43-2--and had one or two other jumps around 43!!
She becomes 10th A-T HS!!
Rachel McCoy--who might not be in college now, but was with a JC in 2014--HJ'ed a solid 6-4, her previous PR being 6-2!
She'll turn 21 in August!
(She right now ranks Top 5 in the World, according to Tilastopaia!!)
Jarvis Gotch LJ'ed a good 27-0.50!!
The Multi's produced some good marks--and one sad shocker!
Trey Hardee DNF'ed the Texas Decathlon, after pulling up in the opening 100!
He competed in 1 or 2 of the 10 events, then quit!
Harrison Williams took the event in 7842.
The Women's Heptathlon was a squeaker--with Taliyah Brooks edging Payton Stumbaugh, 5991 to 5985!!
They both missed my Collegiate Top 24 by a respective 12 and 18 points!!
Cedric Dubler took the Australian title with 8114 points, sending him to Rio!!
Finally (!!!!), two Road races to report!
In the Women's Half-Marathon race in Prague, Kenya's Violah Jepchumba blasted through her first 10K in 30:29--just a few seconds off the Road World Record!!--then continued a bit slower to finish in 1:05:51!
Her first 10K was split into 5000's of 15:05 and 15:24!!
In the Carlsbad 5000--run over a new course!!--Meseret Defar beat Kenyan newcomer Caroline Kipkurai, 15:02 to 15:13.
(Times may be wrong! A few people said Defar's winner was 14:59!!)
Third was the Netherlands vet Susan Kuijken, in 15:28.
Taking 5th--but missing the Masters record of 15:48 by 5 seconds!--was Jen Rhines!
The Men's race saw another vet take 3rd, Bernard Lagat's 13:39 nipping his own 40 & over record by 2 seconds!!
The winner was Joshua Cheptegai's 13:24.
Wilson Too took 2nd in 13:29, while Hassan Mead ran 13:39 also, but was edged by Lagat!
Lawi Lalang's 13:58 took 7th!
And that does it for Blog Post Number 250!!
Onward to 500!!!
That's an average of one post every 3.3 days, give or take, or two per week!
Seems my posts have gotten longer, and this won't be any different!
I've been honest in my opinions, and as accurate in what I present as is humanly possible!
I still love doing it---probably more than ever---and will continue until I breathe my last!
With that last thought in mind, it's maybe ironic that one of the books I'm now reading is a new collection of "uncollected" Allen Ginsberg poems!
Its title is---"Wait Till I'm Dead"!!
He's been my favorite poet for decades, and this book keeps his reputation with me intact!
Now, on to this weekend's report!
Because I have so much, I'll be compressing a lot of it into "by event" listings!
The Texas Relays Women's Pole Vault represented maybe the best & worst T&F has to offer!
The entry list showed the names of the 3 American 16 footers--Jenn Suhr, Sandi Morris, and Demi Payne.
The circumstances that SHATTERED that dream are completely understandable and acceptable!
Nonetheless, the illusion of a GREAT contest came apart, one by one!
First, Morris tweeted she'd talked with her coach and regretfully was withdrawing, due to a change in plans!
Then, Suhr announced her ankle tightness was still bothering her, and she'd decide at the last minute whether to compete.
She didn't.
Then, Payne dislocated her thumb when a pole broke as she was getting started!
(She says it was ugly, but she'll be fine!)
But enough GOOD news in the PV somewhat offset that rocky start!
Shawn Barber won the Men's event, his 19-4.75 getting the Texas Relays Meet Record.
Devin King might be finally realizing the potential he showed in HS!
Stuck in the 17-8 to 18-1 range, he broke out with a solid PR of 18-8.25!
This makes him 18th A-T Collegiate, tied with 6 others!
Audie Wyatt was 2nd (This was in the Collegiate event, not the one with Barber!), also PR'ing with 18-6.50!.
Torben Laidig got over 18-4.50.
Joey Uhle also reached 18-4.50!
The Women's Collegiate Vault was--overall--better than the Open event!
But they also had some problems.
It was finally won by Jessie Johnson, with a 14-5.25.
She took 3 tries at 14-9!
In the Florida Relays, Diamara Plenell Cruz won with 14-5.25.
In another meet, Megan Clark added a half-inch to her OUTdoor PR, reaching 14-9.50.
She was 6th A-T Collegiate, but with 6 ties!
She's still 6th, but minus any ties!
In the TX Relays Vault, April Steiner-Bennett reached just 14-2.50.
However, I neglected to mention that her earlier 14-9 was the Age 35 record!
In HS action, Mondo Duplantis has done it again!
He got an OUTdoor PR, his 17-8.50 making him 14th A-T HS, tied with 3 others!
It's also the Soph Class record!
He missed 3 times at 18-1.
Rachel Baxter got over 13-6--not a PR--and Carson Dingler got up to 13-2.
Sticking to HS'ers for a minute, the Women's 100H results did some revision to my DDD list!
My decision to make Tonea Marshall the INdoor AOY is seeming a good one, after her Texas performance!
Starting with a heat time of 13.26, which made her 13th A-T HS, she quickly (sic!) altered that!
Her final was a blazing 13.04 (1.2 wind), moving her to 4th A-T HS!
In 2nd was Brandee Johnson, whose 13.18 makes her 7th A-T HS, tied with 1 other.
Johnson doubled in the 300H, her 40.87 leading the nation so far!
It also makes her 15th A-T HS!
Norman Grimes ran the 300H in 36.33.
In the Florida race, Chanel Brissett--from Pennsylvania--ran 13.19, making her 9th A-T HS!!
And it's just April 3rd!!
Eddie Lovett had a good early season 13.39 110H time in Florida, while David Oliver opened in Texas with 13.44.
Jackie Coward ran the 100H in 12.85.
Australian Michelle Jenneke won her Olympic Trials race in 12.93, an OG Qualifier!
The Throws had some mixed results.
Raven Saunders won her event, but with a poor 56 feet and change!
But Tripp Piperi's 71-0 and Jordan Geist's 71-9.25 were OUTdoor PR's!
Geist is now 12th A-T HS!
Knocked OFF my list was an oldie--Ron Semkiw's 70-1.75 from 1972!!
Piperi is now 18th A-T HS!
He also had a good DT, reaching 204-3.
Seems like yesterday that Curtis Thompson's shocking JT of 265-10 gave him the Collegiate Soph Class record!
Well, Ionnis Kyriazis took that away, the TX A&M Soph reaching 268-7!!
He's now 8th A-T Collegiate, tied with 1 other!
AG Kruger opened with a HT of 241.3.
Shelbi Vaughan reached 192-9 in the DT.
A good Women's DT in Florida saw Paige Blackburn winning with her 199-10.
In 2nd was Florida State's Killian Knibb, her 195-4 not a PR!
Katelyn Daniels was 3rd with 190-4.
Tavis Bailey threw the Discus 212-1.
DeAnna Price had another solid Hammer effort, a non-PR 234-6.
And Mackenzie Little, a Stanford Frosh, threw the Javelin 183-4.
This brought her to within 4 inches of the Collegiate A-T Top 24!
And to within 3 feet of the Collegiate Frosh Class record!
Stanford's Invitational brought the usual number of good distance races, its specialty!
I succumbed, and bought a month of Flotrack, so I could watch the 12 hours of almost non-stop 5K's and 10K's and 3000SC's and 1500's, not to mention some DMR's!
Couldn't resist!
(I get a whole month, and they'll be livestreaming all of Mt SAC's distances too!! LOL)
Anyway, lots to report---and not all of it from Stanford!
In Florida's 4X800 Relays, Penn State's 7:19.98 beat Georgia's 7:20.03, with Brannon Kidder and Robby Creese running for the winners!
The Women's race saw the NJ-NY TC winning with 8:34.00, with Ashley Higginson part of the squad!
In the Texas meet, Donavan Brazier anchored the Texas A&M team to a time of 7:18.95!
Sticking to 800's, Florida had a deep Men's race.
Puerto Rico's Wesley Vazquez missed his 2014 PR (and National Record!) by just 0.11, running 1:44.75!
(Remember that Daniel Rudisha opened awhile back with 1:44.78!)
Andres Arroyo PR'ed in 2nd with 1:45.78.
He was followed by the 1:46.05 of Isaiah Harris, and the 1:46.42 of Kidder!
Vazquez got the Florida Relays Meet Record!
Chanelle Price won the Women's race in 2:01.72, beating Cory McGee's 2:02.73!
Collegian Ci'eira Brown ran 2:02.82 in 3rd!
Since it includes an 800 leg, I'll report Mississippi State's outstanding SMR time of 3:13.12!
I don't have an A-T list for this event, but the Collegiate Record is 3:12.13 by Arkansas in 2000!!
It's the Florida Relays Meet Record.
Brandon McBride reportedly anchored in 1:45!!
Second was Florida's 3:14.54, with Andres Arroyo anchoring in 1:47!
Ryan Clark ran one of the 200's!
Ashley Higginson, besides that 800 relay leg, won the 1500 in a good 4:12.81.
Another Steepler--Erin Teschuk--won a Stanford 1500 in 4:15.30, beating Kate Van Buskirk's 4:15.65!
Both women are Canadians!
Two other Stanford 1500's were taken by Claudia Saunders's 4:17.33, and Malika Waschmann's 4:16.53.
Both of them run for the Cardinal!
Henry Wynne took a good 1500 in 3:38.35, beating Craig Engels's 3:38.82.
In the Texas Relays, Jonah Koech won the Men's Mile with 4:00.82.
The Women's 1500 saw Dana Mecke's 4:15.93 beating the PR of Laura Roesler, her time being 4:18.17!
She laughed about having to run the longer race, saying she'll stick to the 800!
Cecilia Barowski of Princeton beat Canadian vet Jessica Smith in an 800, 2:02.62 to 2:02.97!
Mason Ferlic won a 3000SC in 8:33.95.
However, Hillary Bor's winning time at Stanford was 8:30.70, the World leader!
Zak Seddon took 2nd in 8:33.09!
Rylee Bowen, still just a 10th Grader, ran 6:53.34 in the 2000SC.
Rachel Johnson won the longer 3000SC in 9:55.16.
Paige Koube, from Harvard, chopped about 25 seconds from her PR, running a good 9:50.21.
She misses my Collegiate Top 24 by just 1.20 seconds!!
Mel Lawrence ran her first sub-10 time in 3 years, taking 2nd in 9:50.91!
She was fighting injuries!
Some good HS races come from Stanford!
Eduardo Herrera, who recently ran a 4:04+ Mile (See previous post!), doubled in a solid 3000 time of 8:15.01 and a Mile of 4:11.41.
His 3K time misses my HS Top 24 list by 1.74 seconds!
Second in the longer race was Brody Smith's 8:19.04!
Smith also doubled, running the Mile in 4:12.81.
Connor Dunne ran the year's fastest 800, time of 1:50.83.
In other meets, Infinite Tucker ran 300H in 37.16, while Elija Godwin ran the flat 400 in 46.82.
Emma Gracy Hurley ran a Two Mile (NOT 3200!!!) in 10:22.58, missing my DDD by 10 seconds!
I lived for 15 years (1973 to 1987, with some added time in the 90's) in Humboldt County CA, specifiically Arcata and Eureka!
(I ran my fastest Marathon at the 1978 Avenue of the Giants race, in 2:56:02!)
Anyway, the next town north of Arcata is McKinleyville!
So I was happy to see a McKinleyville girl--Morgan Coonfield-- win the 3000 in 9:44.43, and return to take 2nd in the Mile with a good 4:49.55!!
In a HS Distance Medley Relay, Fiona O'Keefe anchored her Davis team to a good time of 11:52.87!
First I'd heard of an O'Keefe race in 2016!
In the more "elite" Stanford events, Dominique Scott is finishing off her Collegiate career, and won a 5000 in 15:25.10, a PR!
She becomes 18th A-T Collegiate!
Kim Smith, coming back from injuries and giving birth, ran her first race in awhile, finishing in 15:32.77, a solid rust-buster for this 34 year old!
Knocked OFF my Collegiate DDD list (by Scott) was the venerable Shalane Flanagan, her 15:30.60 dating from 2003!!
Emma Bates finished way back in 15th, not even breaking 16 minutes!
In another section, Berkeley (UCB) Soph Bethan Knights broke 16 with her winning time of 15:52.91.
Remember, she holds the HSR in the OUTdoor Two Mile with her 9:53.54 from 2014!
Paul Chelimo took the fastest Men's race with his 13:36.10.
His last lap was 56.3!
The featured 10000's saw some good times.
Len Korir outkicked Shadrack Kipchirchir, 27:58.65 to 27:58.91.
Scott Fauble just missed the 28:00 OG Q time, coming in 3rd with his 28:00.45!!
In 5th, in his first track 10K, was German Fernandez, his time being 28:06.64!
Another Men's 10K saw the NCAA Division III record being broken, Ian LaMere's 28:38.63 doing the trick!
He's from Wisconsin-Platteville!
His splits were 14:32 and 14:06!!
Another solid performance--memories of Marielle Hall and Natosha Rogers abounding--came from Portland U's Lauren LaRocco!
Reportedly coming in with a 2015 PR in the 5000 of 17:38 (!), she split 16:54 (!!), then 16:21 (!!!), for a final winning time of 33:15.75!
She ran her final 1600 in 5:00!!
Watch for her!
Laura Thweatt--the 2:28:20 NYC Marathon rookie of 2015--won a tight duel with Alphine Bolton, winning on the last lap with 31:52.94.
Bolton's time was 31:54.20.
Tara Welling ran a PR in 3rd, 32:02.80!
Beth Potter and Fionnula McCormack followed a second or 3 back of Welling!
Then came two Collegians!
Harvard's Courtney Smith ran 32:08.32 to just edge Tennessee's Chelsea Blaase's 32:08.39!
They're now 8th and 9th A-T Collegiate!
Following them was another VERY special story--that of Stephanie Bruce!
She had her second child in less than 2 years (!!) just 6 months ago, yet ran an Olympic Games Q time of 32:14.42.
(The Q time is 32:15!)
She did this--pretty much solo for the final 4 laps!--by running her last 1600 in 5:04, and her final lap in 71!!
Knocked OFF my Collegiate DDD was Stephanie Herbst's 32:32.75 from 1986.
If you recall, that was the CR then, but what happened in that race provided the meat of Frank Murphy's outstanding book on female distance running--"The Silence of Great Distance"!
During the race, former CR holder (Herbst broke her record!) Kathy Ormsby left the track (while battling with Herbst!), ran to a nearby bridge, and jumped off, becoming paralyzed for life!!
I STRONGLY recommend Murphy's book!! (See my post on "Culture"--one of my more popular posts!!)
Take a break, because there's much more!!
(Is this too long? Should I have broken it up into two posts??)
Normally, the Texas Relays produce TONS of fast sprint times, most of them windy!
This time, the winds were fairly mild, and so were the times--relatively speaking!
Tavis Hester's 9.99 100 had a wind of 3.0.
Michelle Lee Ahye had a windy 11.13 100.
Natasha Hastings won the 200 in 22.84, but had an illegal wind of 2.7.
However, Morolake Akinosun caught a legal breeze of just 1.7, so her 11.07 leads the World!!
It's not a PR!
In a 4X100 Relay, Trinidad and Tobago's 43.06 beat a USA Red team's 43.16!
Jenna Prandini ran 3rd leg for the US, while new HS PRO Khalifa St Fort anchored for the winners!
Andre De Grasse anchored a Canada 4X100 Relay team's 38.11 World leader!
It's the Florida Relays Meet Record!
He also won a wind-aided 100 in 9.99 (wind of 3.3!).
LaShawn Merritt dipped down to the 200, winning in 20.23--legal wind!
Ahmed Ali, an Alabama Senior, ran 20.16 in another race, with his wind being the legal limit of 2.0.
It's the National Record of the Sudan!
And it's the World leader!!
Gabrielle Thomas, a Harvard Frosh, ran a legal 200 of 22.75.
In a very windy Florida race, (3.7!), Tiffany Townsend's 22.38 beat Veronica Campbell Brown's 22.46!
Shayla Sanders won a windy 100 in 11.15.
Sanders ran the 2nd leg (with Kyra Jefferson the anchor!) of Florida's 42.85 4X100 Relay winner!
Good 400's came from Ebony Eutsey (52.08 in Florida), Delilah Muhammed (52.64 at Stanford, beating beautifully-bedecked Fashion Diva Maggie Vessey's 54.80!), Robin Reynolds, and Kyra Jefferson (52.09 to 52.11 in Florida!)
The Men added a 45.43 (Florida Frosh Kunle Fasasi) and 45.56 (Mike Berry, in 2nd!) in Florida.
Good 4X400 Relays were run in Florida--Pure Athletics's 3:27.67 beating Canada's 3:30.92.
In the Collegiate race, Florida's 3:26.28 beat Kentucky's 3:28.45, South Carolina's 3:31.14, Tennessee's 3:31.29, and Harvard's 3:32.03!
(What's with Harvard suddenly having all these studs-- male and female??!!)
Anyway, Florida's time moves them from 8th A-T School to 5th!
Kentucky becomes School number 17 on my DDD!
Florida's Men won with a good time of 3:03.42.
A team called the Gainsville Elite ran 3:00.96!
In Texas, LSU's 3:01.83 beat Texas's 3:02.18!
The Texas Women won in 3:26.54--NOT a School record!!
Morolake Akinosun and Courtney Okolo ran legs, Okolo anchoring in a reported 49.9!!
In 4X200 Relays, Pure Athletics's 1:30.56 beat Star Athletics's 1:31.49.
Tori Bowie and Shaunae Miller ran for the winners!
The Canadian Men's squad won in a National Record time of 1:19.20!
Only the United States and Jamaica have run faster as National Teams!
Andre De Grasse ran lead-off!!
Teddy Tamgho returned with a rust-busting TJ of 54-6.75.
Chantel Malone's LJ was measured at 21-10.25.
Eleventh Grader Tara Davis (who crashed a hurdle in a 300H race--she's okay!!) TJ'ed an excellent 43-2--and had one or two other jumps around 43!!
She becomes 10th A-T HS!!
Rachel McCoy--who might not be in college now, but was with a JC in 2014--HJ'ed a solid 6-4, her previous PR being 6-2!
She'll turn 21 in August!
(She right now ranks Top 5 in the World, according to Tilastopaia!!)
Jarvis Gotch LJ'ed a good 27-0.50!!
The Multi's produced some good marks--and one sad shocker!
Trey Hardee DNF'ed the Texas Decathlon, after pulling up in the opening 100!
He competed in 1 or 2 of the 10 events, then quit!
Harrison Williams took the event in 7842.
The Women's Heptathlon was a squeaker--with Taliyah Brooks edging Payton Stumbaugh, 5991 to 5985!!
They both missed my Collegiate Top 24 by a respective 12 and 18 points!!
Cedric Dubler took the Australian title with 8114 points, sending him to Rio!!
Finally (!!!!), two Road races to report!
In the Women's Half-Marathon race in Prague, Kenya's Violah Jepchumba blasted through her first 10K in 30:29--just a few seconds off the Road World Record!!--then continued a bit slower to finish in 1:05:51!
Her first 10K was split into 5000's of 15:05 and 15:24!!
In the Carlsbad 5000--run over a new course!!--Meseret Defar beat Kenyan newcomer Caroline Kipkurai, 15:02 to 15:13.
(Times may be wrong! A few people said Defar's winner was 14:59!!)
Third was the Netherlands vet Susan Kuijken, in 15:28.
Taking 5th--but missing the Masters record of 15:48 by 5 seconds!--was Jen Rhines!
The Men's race saw another vet take 3rd, Bernard Lagat's 13:39 nipping his own 40 & over record by 2 seconds!!
The winner was Joshua Cheptegai's 13:24.
Wilson Too took 2nd in 13:29, while Hassan Mead ran 13:39 also, but was edged by Lagat!
Lawi Lalang's 13:58 took 7th!
And that does it for Blog Post Number 250!!
Onward to 500!!!
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