World Championships 2022--A Critique

 Four days past, and still vibrating with memories of those 10 days!
What did it all mean, Alfie?
Well, I'm here---for better or worse---to tell you!

Some facts---
Including the inaugural 35K Walk, there were two Men's World Records (35K Walk & Pole Vault), with three from the Women (35K Walk, 100H, 400H).
The Men broke 6 Meet Records (35K Walk became a MR--Marathon, 400H, Pole Vault, Shot Put, Discus Throw), while the Women nabbed 7 (35K Walk, Marathon, 100, 200, 100H, 400H, 3000SC).
The Men broke just one American Record--the 200!
The Women also got one--the 400H!

The weather was mostly very good, and the crowds became fairly large and always loud and passionate!!
The Mascot was enjoyable, especially when she/he took a swim in the steeplechase pool!
There was that TV cameraman who stood ON the track as the Men's SC field came around--and didn't move!
(Was he ever arrested, and/or banned from Hayward Field forever--or will he become yet another You Tube mega-star for simply being an idiot??)

Speaking of television, I watched NBC and USA, and the Marathons on You Tube.
The 26.2's were shown intact, with ZERO ads!
And since they were run separately, the Women's race got shown in its entirety!!
But NBC/USA made dog shit of their telecasts!
Features & interviews & other events & ads shown during the 5K's, 10K's, and SC's!!
WHY??
Do they think viewers like just sprints?
Will we get bored and switch channels during longer races?
T&F fans watch this crap because they're fans!!
It's pathetic that, after decades of the same old, we serious fans expect them to change!

I always use baseball as a comparison, which is inane, I know!
But even in mid-season, stations show every pitch & swing of the bat, and stay on beyond their 3 hour schedule if it goes to extra innings!!
Yes, there are tons of ads, but NEVER do you lose a second of the action!!
Why can't NBC etc do the same for one lousy T&F meet??

And one more idea--as baseball games always have pre-and post game shows (30 to 60 minutes each!), why can't the best T&F meets do the same?
Use the PRE-meet show for the features and speculations, leaving the meet to cover the ACTION!!
And use the post-meet show for all the interviews!
I'd better end this rant before I SCREAM!!!!!

Did anyone use the results page to keep track (Sic!) of what's going on?
Even while watching the meet, I flipped to the World Athletics results page for more complete results!
What did I get?
NO series in the field events!
NO lap splits during races--or they were late in being posted!
Or the results were late--coming in minutes after the event was done!
In the Walks, you'd have to reload the page to get newer finishers, or athletes splits at all the 5K points!!
That this garbage came from WA, and in its biggest meet of the year is preposterous!!
Do better!!

Did the United States send its best team??
And what does that have to do with the way we select our team?

Over the past few months, I've become online chat friends with Racewalker Robyn Stevens!
She was in excellent shape, and would have represented the US better than anyone!!
But because of trickery & deception & outright manipulation, she didn't race the USATF 35K Champs, where the team would be chosen!
Some of those involved were her key opponents--and her ex-partner, Nick Christie!

But personal considerations aside, the US left its best Walker behind--even though she did get named to the 20K squad!!
She filed a lawsuit through her lawyer.
Ken Stone wrote at least two articles in a San Diego newspaper detailing the machinations and deceptions that kept her from walking the 35K in Eugene!
(The last article included a link to the official press release by her lawyer, shown intact!!)
So what happened there??
With all of this on her mind, she still finished 24th in the 20K, with the other American (Miranda Melville) ending in LAST place!!
And the 35K??
Well, if Robyn had merely tied her AR time, she would have finished in 11th place, 9:22 ahead of Maria Michta-Coffey, 12:26 ahead of Stephanie Casey, and 16:02 ahead of Melville!!
(BTW, I was predicting Robyn would break her AR again--in a time of 2:45 or faster!!)

There were other cases where we didn't send our best team!
The Women's Long Jump was missing Tara Davis, our best current LJ'er!!
Why?
She fouled out of the qualifying round in the USATF meet!
Instead, a woman with a best of 21-11.50 made the team!
Days after USATF, Tara won a LJ with a wind-aided 23-9--almost two feet better than the one we sent to the World's!!
And guess what?
That woman bombed--she didn't make the cut!!

We need to abolish the way we choose our team!
People have bad days (Davis), or are injured or sick on the day!
Yet, as Tara proved, she'd just had "one of those days" at the USATF!
But she was our very best in the LJ!

We need to do away with the Wild Card system also!
Just because an athlete won the last WC's (in this case, it was the 2019 version!!) doesn't mean they're in the same shape!!
Diamond League Champions are also given W.C.'s!!
So what if they won the frigging DL??!!
I'm all for abolishing THAT set-up also, as I've often mentioned!!

Also, Wild Cards should have to put in an "honest effort" AND complete their event, not just show up!!
This is both to prove their fitness AND to give the paying & viewing fans what they deserve from Professional elite athletes!!
It's not enough to sign autographs and pose for selfies!!

More weird shit!
Even if it turned out to be for a good cause, that guy who ran onto the track after the Women's 5K and bodily lifted two Ethiopians up (with his hands inappropriately on their rears) should have been arrested for assault and trespassing!!\
How the hell did he get past security in the first place??
What if he had violent intentions??

And the 110H's!!
First, Hansle Parchment gets hurt while WARMING UP!!
Then both Shane Brathwaite and Devon Allen are DQ'ed for false starts--having too fast reaction times!
Allen was 0.001 too fast!!
After arguing with the officials (seen by millions on TV!), his DQ was held up!!
We saw a final with FIVE athletes--three lanes empty!!

So what was best about the meet?
Mondo ending the meet with a World Record--even after the last race had finished!!
Tobi Amusan shocking all with her win, and her incredible times!!
The "unknown" and unexpected winners--Bin Feng, Wang Jianan!
And the ones known, but still shocking--Jake Wightman, Amusan, Eleanor Patterson, the USA Women's 4 X 100 and Canada's Men's 4 X 100 teams!!

So many National Records, especially in the inaugural 35K Walks--which was to be expected, of course!!
But so many others, in almost every event!
And Place Records & Age Records!!

Great duels--Mu vs Hodgkinson, The Jamaican sprinters vs the Americans in the Women's sprints, Wightman and Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Gebreslase vs Korir in the Women's Marathon!

The stunning Records---Mondo's 20-4.50, Syd's 50.68, Tobi's 12.12 (and wind-aided 12.06), Yulimar's 50-9.25, Ceh's 233 & change, both Crouser & Kovacs over 75 feet, MR's rarely seen in the longest races (both Marathons!!), the DEPTH of both 35K Walks, 10.67, 21.45, 8:53.02, 46:29!!

The best & worst coming from one athlete--Karissa Schweizer PR'ing by 29 seconds in her 30:18.05, then DNF'ing in the 5000!!
Nia Ali being DQ'ed!
Those "strategic" distance races--the Men's 3000SC being the worst, but their 10000 not far behind in utter boredom!!
Even the Women's 5000 (3:14 first K!!)!!

Overall?
A fantastic 10 days, with ups & downs to challenge the world's craziest roller coaster!
But knowing it could have been even better!!
And hoping/wishing/praying that Budapest's World's next year will "take a sad song and make it better", to quote the Beatles!!

Thank you for following the meet via this blog!
Now on to the rest of the 2022 season!!

See you soon!!

World Championships 2022--Days 9 & 10

 It's over!
But the ending was akin to the sprint finish at the end of a race, or a 6th round Gold winner in a field event!
(And yes, there were some of each!!)
Here are the last two days!

DAY NINE
The opening event was the Women's 100H heats!
Tobi Amusan showed up, indicated by her 12.40 National Record of Nigeria, beating her own!!
She's 20th A-T World, tied with 2 others!
Alia Armstrong timed 12.48, with Jasmine Camacho-Quinn ending at 12.52!
Nia Ali and Alaysha Newman were DQ'ed, ending US hopes for a sweep!

Quanesha Burks surprisingly led the Women's Long Jump Q round at 22-6.25!
Malaika Mihambo was one inch back!
Lorraine Ugen, Jasmine Moore, and Tyra Gittens were among those not moving through!

The US team of Talitha Diggs, Allyson Felix, Kaylin Whitney, and Jayde Stepter-Baynes were the quartet winning the 4 X 400 heats in 3:23.38!
Felix's split was 50.71 in what was probably her last race of her Professional career!
Great Britain ran 3:23.92, with Jamaica running 3:24.23!
The Bahamas DNS'ed, while the Netherlands was DQ'ed!!
(The baton was dropped in the hand-off to Femke Bol, and it was Bol, not the 3rd runner, who picked it up, so the "hand-off" wasn't completed!!)

The US Men led the 4 X 400 heats, their team consisting of Elijah Godwin, Vernon Norwood, Bryce Deadmon, and Trevor Bassitt running 2:58.96!
Japan was far behind in 3:01.53, followed closely by Jamaica's 3:01.59!
The Czech Republic's 3:02.42 in 5th tied their National Record!

Once again in a field event, it took just one attempt to know who the winner would be!
When Pedro Pichardo sailed 58-10.75 in the TJ final, it was game over for all intents!
Hughes Zango's Silver measured 57-7, with the Bronze going to Yaming Zhu's 56-9.50!
Two Italians were next--Andrea Dallavalle, followed by Emanuel Ikemeje!
Donald Scott finished with 56-2.75!
Will Claye ended 11th, while Lazaro Martinez went XXX!

The Men's 800 final began sluggishly, first lap in the 52's!
But Emmanuel Korir is also great at 400, so he negative split (52.29 & 51.42) to win in 1:43.71.
Djamal Sedjati's 1:44.14 took 2nd, with Marco Arop running 1:44.28 in 3rd!
The youngster-Emmanuel Wanyonyi- was 4th in 1:44.54!

The Women's 5000 began with a 3:14 (!!) first 1K!!
So when Gudaf Tsegay used a 59.95 last lap to win in 14:46.29, it wasn't shocking!
Beatrice Chebet (14:46.75), Dawit Seyaum (14:47.36), Margaret Kipkemboi (14:47.71), Letesenbet Gidey (14:47.98), and Sifan Hassan (14:48.12) all were within 1.83 of the winner!!
Elise Cranny ran 14:59.99 in 9th!
Emily Infeld was 14th, and Karissa Schweizer DNF'ed with about 800 to go, a bit hurting!
She was seen crying afterward, being consoled by her teammates!

Anderson Peters won the Javelin Throw with 297-0!!
Neeraj Chopra was 2nd with 289-1.
Jakub Vadlejch took the Bronze with 289-0.
Julian Weber was 4th at 285-0.
Curtis Thompson ended in 11th, about 30 feet off his recent PR!

The Women's 4 X 100 final had a shock finish!
The US team of Melissa Jefferson, Abby Steiner, Jenna Prandini, and Twanisha Terry ran 41.14, JUST ahead of Jamaica's 41.18!
And they had Kemba Nelson, ET-H, SAFP, and Shericka Jackson!!
But it was Terry who held off Jackson, even though SJ was gaining on her!!
Germany ran 42.03 in 3rd, with Nigeria's 42.22 and Spain's 42.58 getting NR's!
Nigeria is 13th A-T Nation, while Spain is 19th A-T Nation!
Italy's 42.92 is the best 8th Place mark!!

The US team of Christian Coleman, Noah Lyles, Elijah Hall, and Marvin Bracy DID finish, and they were NOT DQ'ed, but they nonetheless lost!!
Canada's Andre De Grasse on anchor was just too good!!
He & they ran 37.48 to the US's 37.55 for one of the shock upsets of the meet!
Great Britain was 3rd in 37.83, while Jamaica ended in 38.06!
A tick behind came Ghana's 38.07, making them 18th A-T Nation!
South Africa's 38.10 gets them the best 6th Place mark, and makes them 19th A-T Nation!!
France got a DQ!

DAY TEN
The Men's 35K set off day 10 in fine fashion!
Massano Stano had the best finish, and his 2:23:14 gets the Meet Record (1st time held!), and Italy's NR!
Masatora Kawano walked 2:23:15 for Japan's National Record!
(There were tons of NR's!!)
Perseus Karlstrom's 2:23:44 got Sweden's NR!
Brian Pintado's 2:23:47 got Ecuador's NR!
Xianghong He walked 2:24:45 to get China's NR!
Evan Dunfee ended in 6th, his 2:25:02 nabbing Canada's you know what!
There followed National Records for Brazil, Colombia, Spain, Mexico, Finland, France, Peru, Australia, South Africa, Czech Republic, Lithuania, and Greece!!
WOW!!
Nick (the traitor) Christie ended 36th out of 40 finishers!
There were 5 DQ's and 5 DNF's!

When I relate the following, think of Aries Merritt shocking the world with his 12.80 WR in the 110H!
Because Tobi Amusan did essentially the same, except the shock was heavier, as her previous best was the 12.40 run in the heats!!
She ran fairly even with the field for the first 50 meters, but then the separation began, and when she and we saw the time, she and we were astounded!!
12.12!!!
She gets the WR, the Meet Record, her own NR, and the Age 25 record!!
And this was her SEMI!!
All of the semi times were phenomenal!
While not all in one semi, Kendra Harrison ran 12.27, with Brittany Anderson's 12.31 getting Jamaica's National Record, and making her 9th A-T World!!
Jasmine Camacho-Quinn ended in 12.32, with Danielle Williams timing 12.41.
Alia Armstrong's 12.43 makes her 11th A-T US, tied with 3 others!
Devynne Charleton timed 12.46, breaking her own NR of the Bahamas!
And Cindy Sember's 12.50 gave her Great Britain's NR!
Nadine Visser didn't advance!

The Men's Pole Vault started here, but wound up being the event to end the meet!
Why??
Because Mondo Duplantis AGAIN broke his own World Record!!
After leaving Chris Nilsen and Ernest Obiene behind--both clearing 19-5.75, with Obiene again breaking his own NR of the Philippines--Mondo then cleared 6.06, breaking the Meet Record.
But as he almost always does, he asked next for a WR height!!
NOTE: This is the OUTdoor WR, and has NO connection to his INdoor WR--there is NO "absolute" WR!!
Thus, by breaking his old OUTdoor Record with his 20-4.50, it became the biggest margin ever, as far as I know, as he broke it by 2 inches!!
He gets his own WR, MR, Swedish NR, and Age 22 Record!
In celebration, he did a no hands cartwheel style flip before his adoring fans!!
Thiago Braz, Oleg Senikel (sp??), Renaud Lavillenie, and Bo Baerhe all cleared 19-3!

Two Women broke through the 7 meter barrier, with Malaika Mihambo's 23-4.50 Long Jump beating Ese Brume's 23-0.50!!
Previously, it had been a major battle with a few women in the 6.80's!
Letitia Oro Melo took 3rd with 22-7.25, followed by Quanesha Burks's 22-7!
At 22-6.50 came Brooke Buschkiehl and Khaddi Sagnia!
Ivana Vuleta reached 22-5.25, while Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk's 22-4.50 being the best 8th Place mark!!
After the meet, Vuleta--formerly Spanovic--announced her retirement after a long and wonderful career!!

In the Men's 5000 final, Jakob Ingebrigtsen made up for his 1500 loss, using a last lap of 53.93 to win in 13:09.24!
Jacob Krop was 2nd in 13:09.98, with Oscar Chelimo getting 3rd in 13:10.20!
Luis Grijalva (13:10.44) and Mo Ahmed (13:10.46) followed!
Grant Fisher was in 3rd when he stumbled or tripped, and fell back to 6th in 13:11.65!
Josh Cheptegei ended just 9th, with Abdi Nur finishing 11th!!

THE race of the meet was said to be the duel between Athing Mu and Keely Hodgkinson...and it fully lived up to expections!!
Mu led Hodgkinson 57.16 to 57.32 at the 400 mark!
And she continued to lead, in fact expanding it as she wove her way around Hayward Field's oval!
But Keely remained fairly close, in Mu's shadow, just off her left shoulder, on the rail!
In the final 50 meters, she edged even closer, with Mu sensing her!!
So Mu did what she does in these situations--goes even faster!
Her 59.14 2nd lap wasn't as fast as Hodgkinson's 59.06, but her 1:56.30 beat Keely's 1:56.38 nonetheless!
Mary Moraa's PR of 1:56.71 took the Bronze!
But the other Americans didn't do so well!
Raevyn Rogers ran 1:58.26, but ended 6th, and Ajee Wilson finished dead last in over 2 minutes!!

When the clock in the 100H final read 12.06, we thought--WHAT??  ANOTHER WR???
But alas, Tobi Amusan's time was wind-aided!
The 2.5 wind is said to be worth a loss of 0.14 seconds by The Big Gold Book!!
So you could say her "real" time was 12.20--but I don't fully buy what that T&FN book says!!
Whatever, she simply amazed!!
And whatever the wind, the following times were incredible!
Brittany Anderson and JCQ running 12.23's in 2nd & 3rd, and Alia Armstrong timed in 12.31.
Cindy Sember ran 12.38, with Danielle Williams doing 12.44, and even 7th placer Devynne Charleton timing 12.53!
All windy!
Kendra Harrison was DQ'ed after crashing a hurdle and falling into the next lane!!

Unlike the Heptathlon, where the top finishers ended in the same places they were in after the 1st day, the Men's 1st day leaders weren't all the same!
Especially the winner!
Just 6th after his 1st day of 4372, Kevin Mayer scored 4444 on day two to total 8816 for the Gold!
It's rare to have a better 2nd day!!
Pierce LePage's 8701 (4485 & 4216) took the Silver, with Zach Ziemek's 8676 (4469 & 4207) getting 3rd!
Ayden Owens-Delerme sped the 2nd fastest Dec 400 (his 45.07 2nd only to Ashton Eaton's 45.00) to end his 1st day in the lead with 4606 points!
But his 2nd day was just 3926!!
He ended with 8532 points!
Kyle Garland's days were 4413 and 3760!
Lindon Victor (8474) and Niklas Kaul (8454) finished ahead of Maicel Uibo!
Damian Warner ended his Dec after 4 events, with Ash Moloney doing only 7 events!

The Men's 4 X 400 was the penultimate event of day 10!
The US team of Elijah Godwin, Michael Norman, Bryce Deadmon, and Champion Allison ran 2:56.17 to wallop Jamaica's 2:58.58!
Belgium--with 2 Borlee's!!--ended 3rd in 2:58.72!
Japan broke through the 3 minute barrier in a big way, their 2:59.51 making them 17th A-T Nation!
Trinidad & Tobago ended in 3:00.03, with Botswana close in 3:00.14!
The Czech Republic's 8th place time of 3:01.63 is their National Record!!

Except for Mondo's extended PV session, the Women's 4 X 400 ended this World Championship!!
With a team consisting of 3 Collegiates and Sydney McLaughlin (who at 22 is basically a Collegiate, albeit a Professional one!), the US team clocked a fast 3:17.79!
After Talitha Diggs led off, Abby Steiner and Britton Wilson continued with sub-50 legs!
Then McLaughlin took the stick and left the field FAR behind, running 47.91, many said!!
That's one of the fastest ever splits by a woman, and bodes well for her potential in the flat 400!
Jamaica ended 2.95 seconds back, in 3:20.74!
Great Britain ran 3:22.64, while Canada was far back in 3:25.18!

What a last day, what a meet!!
My analysis, critique, editorial, and other stuff comes in a follow-up post...hopefully soon!!

World Championships 2022--Days 7 & 8

These 2 days produced some amazing marks (as you'll soon read about), as well as upsets and shocks.
I hope you're enjoying these reports, and I apologize for the day or so delay in getting them to you!
But as a huge fan of our sport for the past 60 years (I began my interest in January 1962 when I joined my High School track team!), I've been following the meet night & day, and have been as thrilled and invested as I'm sure all of you have!
To do these posts takes some work, and this blog is mine alone, so I do ALL that needs done--no help!
That said, here's what happened on days 7 & 8!!

DAY SEVEN
The Men's Javelin Throw Q round found Anderson Peters continuing his solid year, as his 294-11 led the field!
Neeraj Chopra also hit 290-0--exactly!
Julian Weber reached 286-4!
Keshorn Walcott, Julius Yego, as well as the trio of Americans, didn't move on!
Andreas Hofmann had 3 fouls!!

The Women's 800 heats saw some sub-2's, but not many!
Diribe Weltaji ran 1:58.83, with Jemma Reekie following in 1:59.09, and Adelle Tracy running 1:59.20.
Catriona Bisset fell hard after a spiking, and was left with bruises from a hard fall!
But she was moved on to the semi's!
Rosemary Almanza didn't pass through!

Jacob Krop (13:13.30) and Jakob Ingebrigtsen (13:13.92) were fastest in the Men's 5000 heats!
Six ran 13:15.17 or faster!
Not moving on were Telehun Bekele, Adel Mechaal, and Will Kincaid, who fell, but got up and finished!

PPPP (my acronym for Pedro Pablo Pichardo!) led the Triple Jump Q round with 56-3.75!
Hughes Zango was very close, as he reached 56-3.25!
Max Hess, Chris Benard, and Christian Taylor didn't survive and advance!

Simane Moula led the Men's 800 heats parade with 1:44.89, the lone time under 1:45.
But Marco Arop timed 1:45.12.
Jesus Lopez, Mark English, and Benjamin Robert couldn't make the final!

Day 8 ended with the two 200 finals, the Women going first!
Shericka Jackson's 2022 has been progressively better and better, and Eugene became its culmination!
Coming off the curve already in front, she merely expanded her lead.
Her unreal 21.45 is 2nd only to Flojo's questionable 1988 WR!
It's the Meet Record, and breaks her own Jamaica National Record!
She is of course 2nd A-T World!
Her 10.73 added to this totals 32.18, making her 3rd A-T World!
Add in her 49.47, and her total time is 1:21.65, which ranks her 6th A-T World!
Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce was 2nd, and her 21.81 breaks her own Age 35 Record!
Dina Asher-Smith was 3rd in 22.02.
Abby Steiner took 5th in 22.26, while Elaine Thompson-Herah was 7th in 22.39!
The so called 4th place finisher is one of those testosterone high ineligibles I've mentioned before!

The Men's 200 followed, and Noah Lyles essentially played the role of Shericka Jackson!!
He exploded off the tutn already well in front, then kept his pedal to the medal, so to speak, crossing the line in 19.31.
This took 0.01 off Michael Johnson's 1996 then World Record!
It's the American Record, and ranks him 3rd A-T World!
In my Combined Events category, his 9.86 and this time adds to 29.17, ranking him 1st A-T US, and 3rd A-T World!!
Kenny Bednarek's 19.77 took the Silver, while Erriyon Knighton timed 19.80 for the Bronze, and a USA sweep!
For Knighton, it ties the best 3rd Place mark!
Joseph Fahnbulleh's 19.84 is the best 4th Place mark, while Alex Ogando's 19.93 is the best 5th Place mark!!
Jereem Richards's 20.08 is the best 6th Place mark!!
Speed AND depth!!

DAY EIGHT
The Women's 35K Walk, as did all the longest races, began at 6:15 a.m.!!
Forty one Women toed the line, including 3 Americans, none of whom was the newly crowned American Record holder, Robyn Stevens!
(More on that, and more post-meet analysis and critique, will come soon after the meet is over!!)
This being the initial WC 35K, Kimberly Garcia Leon's 2:39:16 becomes the Meet Record.
It's also Peru's National Record!
(NOTE: I've just begun--inspired by Miss Stevens--to create lists for the Walks!  They are small, but will soon be expanded to my usual Top 24 for the Americans and the World, Men & Women!  I'll have lists for the 20, the 50, and the 35!  Thus, any Records announced here are tentative, pending my further research!!)
Katarzyna Zdzieblo's 2:40:03 is the National Record of Poland!
Shijie Qieyang walked 2:40:37, giving her China's NR!
The Greece NR goes to the 2:41:58 by Antigoni Ntrisompioti!
Racquel Gonzelez's 2:42:27 becomes Spain's NR!
Laura Garcia-Caro was 6th in 2:42:45!
Maocuo Li timed 2:44:28.
Viviane Lyra's time of 2:45:02 in 8th is Brazil's National Record!
Serene Sonoda of Japan walked 2:45:09, and attained her National Record!
Lamei Yin timed 2:46:02!
Here's where Robyn comes into the picture--even though she wasn't physically there!!
Her AR of 2:49:29 would have placed her 11th here!!
(I was predicting a 2:45 for her in this race, if she hadn't been tricked and selfishly manipulated from the team!!)
The "actual" 11th placer was Olga Niedzialek, who timed 2:49:43!
In 12th came Magaly Bonilla of Ecuador, whose 2:50:39 is the National Record!!
The 3 American tricksters??
They finished from 9:22 to 16:02 SLOWER than Robyn's AR!!
Yes, USATF, send the very best!!
What a frigging JOKE!!

The Men's Pole Vault Q sessions went mostly by the book, with most of the players Q'ing at 18-10.25!
Emmanuiel Karalis and Piotr Lisek couldn't make it, while Valentin Lavillenie No Heighted!

The Women's 4 X 100 heats were led by the United States team of Melissa Jefferson, Aleia Hobbs, Jennifer Prandini, and Twanisha Terry!
Their time was 41.56!
Jamaica timed 42.37, but without their big guns of SAFP, SJ, and ET-H!!
Germany's 42.44 finished ahead of Spain's 42.61.
The latter was their NR, and makes them 20th A-T Nation!
Italy ran 42.71 for another National Record, making them 23rd A-T Nation!!
China, Canada, Poland, and Japan didn't make the final!

In the Men's 4 X 100 heats, the US ran 37.87, with a team of Christian Coleman, Noah Lyles, Elijah Hall, and Marvin Bracy!
France ran 38.09, just ahead of Canada's 38.10!
South Africa's 38.31 just edged Jamaica's 38.33!
Not making the final were Spain, Italy, Germany, and China!
As well, Japan and Nigeria were Disqualified, and Denmark was a DNF!

Kelsey-Lee Barber whipped her Javelin spear out to 219-6 early, offering what became an unbeatable challenge!
For most of the rounds, Haruka Kitaguchi's 207-7 led the fight for Silver, followed by the 207-6 by Shiying Liu, and Mackenzie Little's 207-5!
Then, in round 6, America's super veteran Kara Winger came up for what might be the final throw of her Professional career!
With the crowd's rhythmic clapping surrounding her, she let it fly!
210-2!!!
She got the Silver!!

Athing Mu (Who else??) led the Women's 800 semi's with 1:58.12!
Diribe Welteji's 1:58.16 was a PR.
Keely Hodgkinson ended in 1:58.51, with Natoya Goule's 1:58.73 ending just ahead of Raevyn Rogers's 1:58.77!
Renelle Lamote, Jemma Reekie, and the wounded Catriona Bisset didn't make it through!

The 400 finals were relatively un-noteworthy!
Maybe because they went off pretty much as expected, with times good, but not Record Book quality!
The Women's race found tall and day-glo hair colored Shaunae Miller-Uibo cruising to an easy win in 49.11.
I really do mean "cruising", as she has this really smooth fluid running form!
Marileidy Paulino took 2nd in 49.47!
Sada Williams sort of surprised in 3rd, her time of 49.75 breaking her own National Record of Barbados!!
Leike Klaver's 50.33 edged Stephanie Ann McPherson's 50.36 for 4th!

Michael Norman--white headband in place as always--timed 44.29 for a dominating win!
Kirani James was just as dominant in 2nd, time of 44.48!
Third went to Matthew Hudson-Smith's 44.66!
Champion Allison ran 44.77 in 4th, with Wayde Van Niekerk timing 44.97 in 5th!
A relatively quiet year for the one lappers!

Except when you're talking about Sydney McLaughlin, and you add 10 hurdles to the mix!!
Then you're talking World, American, Meet, and Age 22 Records--all except the Meet Record breaking her own!
Let me rephrase that--I meant to say SMASHING, SHATTERING, UTTERLY OBLITERATING etc etc all of the above Records!
We saw it happening early--earlier than ever before when comparing racing strategies of Syd the Kid!
But she was already ahead at 50 meters, and at 200 was in a distinctly clear lead!
This was turning into a historic race...if she kept steaming ahead!!
As did Karsten Warholm in Tokyo, Syd was on her way to making 400H---no, Track and Field--history, something no one will ever forget!!
At the line, with her main opponents far behind, the clock read a simply stupifying 50.68!
Oh, Message Boards and Twitter folk were saying she'll run in the 50's, maybe even what she DID run!!
But these predictions were pooh-poohed as futuristic hyperbole!!
Yet there it was, the finish clock showing 50.68!!
McLaughlin took awhile to get up off the track, where she sat in stunned silence!!
Her opponents?
Femke Bol ran a solid 52.27, yet finished 1.59 seconds behind!!
Delilah Muhammad's 53.13 broke her own Age 32 Record!
Shamier Little waas 4th in 53.76, while Collegiate leader Britton Wilson ran a good 54.02 in 5th!!
In both of my Combined Events categories involving McLaughlin, she moved way ahead of all others on both the World & American lists!
Her 50.07 flat 400 combined with this 50.68 adds to 1:40.75!
First on the US and World lists!!
Her 12.65 for the 100H added to her 50.68 becomes 1:03.33, again way ahead of the World & US lists!
Yet this might be her last 400H race this year, as she's talking of doing the 400 flat--and again the armchair observers are predicting anything from a World Record (now 47.60!) to somewhere in the 48's!! 
No one's even mentioning the 49's!
We're all assuming she'll bypass that number entirely!!
Do NOT laugh or shake your head!!
Not after this race!!

See you soon with my last results report from Eugene, that to be followed by my promised critique & analysis and editorial nonsense!!

World Championships 2022--Days 5 & 6

 Hello again!
Enjoying the meet--and my coverage of it?
Hope so, because I have 2 more days of results to give you!
Format is the same as on the other posts!

DAY FIVE
The Women's 400H heats didn't reveal too much!
Femke Bol (53.90), Sydney McLaughlin (53.95), and Delilah Muhammed (54.45) all cruised through, as did all the other main players!

With the Russian war on Ukraine still ongoing, there's been tons of love and support going out to Ukraine athletes here--by the fans, and by other athletes.
But that didn't stop the rest of the world's athletes wanting to defeat Ukraine's best!
So when Australia's Eleanor Patterson tied her nation's NR with her 6-7.50 clearance, and defeated Ukraine's Yaroslava Mahuchukh in the process, the first person she hugged was Mahuchukh!
It was a touching moment!
Mahuchukh also cleared 6-7.50.
Elena Vallortigara and Iryna Gerashchenko both topped 6-6.75, with the Italian getting the Bronze!

She didn't need to, but Shericka Jackson still sprinted 21.67 in her 200 semi!
She had a wind of 2.0!
Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce's 21.82 gave her the Age 35 Record!
Tamara Clark sped 21.95, with Dina Asher-Smith at 21.96, and Elaine Thompson-Herah running 21.97!
Mujinga Kambundji's 22.05 broke her own National Record of Switzerland!
Favour Ofili and Jenna Prandini didn't make the final!

When Kristjan Ceh's Discus hit the ground at 233-4, the contest was over!
He had a better throw awhile ago, but this one was enough for the Meet Record!
Mykolas Alekna took 2nd with 227-3!
Andreas Gudzius was 3rd with 221-7, while Daniel Stahl was 4th with 220-2.
Simon Pettersson was next with 219-10
And Matt Denny's 218-1 stands as the best 6th Place mark!

The Men's 200 semi's were quick, and deep!
Noah Lyles sped 19.62, with teen wonder Erriyon Knighton cruising a 19.77, and Kenny Bednarek backing them up with his 19.84!
Jereem Richards clocked in at 19.86,while Alex Ogando's 19.91 breaks his own National Record of the Dominican Republic, and is their first sub-20!
Joseph Fahnbulleh ran 19.92, but Fred Kerley stumbled to a 20.68 and no final!!

Upset of the meet?
Not quite, but one of them!!
Heir apparent Jakob Ingebrigtsen played it cool for much of the Men's 1500 final!
The pace was fast, but not stupidly so, with Abel Kipsang at or near the front!
Inge stayed clear of the traffic towards the back.
But when the bell rang, it was war!
Inge and the UK's Jake Wightman went side by side around the last curve, with Jakob pushing to pass!
Coming into the straight, he couldn't do  it, and Wightman just beat him, 3:29.23 to Inge's 3:29.47!
Wightman's last 400 was 54.84, with Inge timing 55.24!
Mohamad Kotir timed 3:29.90 in 3rd, with Mario Garcia next in 3:30.20!
Josh Kerr took 5th in 3:30.60, with Tim Cheruiyot 6th in 3:30.69!

One guy who was considered a favorite--maybe even a lock--was Karsten Warholm in the 400H!
But his season has been brief and un-noteworthy, so it wasn't too shocking when he faded bad after about 300 meters, and wound up 7th in 48.42!
Alison Dos Santos, however, had been having a VERY strong season, so his PR-pounding 46.29 wasn't that shocking either!
He got the Meet Record, and broke his own National Record of Brazil and his own Age 22 Record!
He ranks 3rd A-T World!
Rai Benjamin ran a solid 46.89, but was well back!
Trevor Bassitt continued his fine season with another PR--his 47.39 making him 18th A-T World, and 10th A-T US!
In 4th came Wilfried Happio's 47.41, making him 19th A-T World!

DAY SIX
In a wide open event, the Women's Javelin Throw Q round was led by Hiruka Kitaguchi, who reached 211-0!
Sara Kolak (Remember her??) had 3 fouls and was out!
Also not qualifying were Arianna Ince, Maria Andrejczyk, and American Record holder Maggie Malone!!

The Women's 5000 heats were relatively quick, as 11 ran under 14:54, and 16 were at 15:02 or faster!
Letesenbet Gidey led the way with 14:52.27, then was followed by Caroline Kipkirui (14:52.54),Gudaf Tsegay (14:52.64), Sifan Hassan (14:52.89), Dawit Seyaum (14:53.06), Karolina Grovdal (14:53.07), and Elise Cranny (14:53.20)!
Not moving to the final were Konstanze Klosterhalfen and Laura Galvan!

Marco Arop led the Men's 800 heats with 1:44.56!
Jesus Lopez (1:44.67) and Mark English (1:44.76) were also sub-1:45!
Bryce Hoppel, Donovan Brazier, and Brandon Miller all didn't make it through!
Max Burgin was a last minute DNS, while Jonah Koech was DQ'ed for an unknown reason!

The Women's 400H semi's produced some significant revisions to my Record Book!
Sydney McLaughlin ran 52.17, and appeared to be well within herself!
That was just 0.01 seconds from the Meet Record!
Femke Bol stutter stepped one of the late hurdles, but still timed 52.84.
Delilah Muhammed's 53.28 is the Age 32 Record!
Shamier Little ran 53.61, with Rushell Clayton right there with 53.63!
Gianna Woodruff's 53.69 breaks her own NR of Panama!
Britton Wilson timed a good 53.72.
Back in 10th came Ayomide Folorunso, her 54.34 being Italy's National Record.
In 13th came Vivi Lehikoinen, her 54.60 being the National Record of Finland!
Janieve Russell didn't move on!

Bin Feng had been formcharted 5th by T&FN just prior to the meet!
But I'd never even heard of her!
That said, her first round Discus Throw in the final of 226-9 shockingly stood up to all challengers for the Gold!!
As for the two favorites, Sandra Perkovic had a better average day than Valarie Allman!
Perky hit 224-7, while the Dance Queen wound up with 224-1.
Jorinde Van Klinken was 4th, but far back, with 213-2.

SMU (aka Shaunae Miller-Uibo) led the Women's 400 semi's with a cruising 49.55 and some long pretty blue hair!!
Marileidy Paulino also got under 50, with 49.98.
Candice McLeod ran 50.05.
Sixth best was the 50.18 by Leike Klaver, which broke her own NR of the Netherlands!
Talitha Diggs, Natalia Kaczmarek, Lynna Irby, and Charokee Young all failed to make the final!

The Men's 400 semi's also went according to Hoyle, pretty much!
Michael Norman led them all with a 44.30.
Matthew Hudson-Smith seems stuck in the mid to high 44.30's, as he ran 44.38!
Champion Allison ran 44.71, followed by Kirani James's 44.74, and Wayde Van Niekerk's 44.75.
Not advancing were Isaac Makwala and Michael Cherry, who was way off his game with a sluggish 45.28!

The Women's 3000SC final was HOT from the start, and brought with it some controversy--although said controversy came from me reading the lengthy Let's Run forum's discussion!
I know what you're going to say, but they often offer some serious ideas on subjects other message boards are wary of talking about!
It all centers on Workuha Getachew, the woman who ran 8:54.61, the time given to her 2nd place finish!
There is a strong sentiment that she is yet another woman with illegal high testosterone levels, and thus not eligible for all-woman races!
However, there's not any "final" agreement on this, so for the moment, my blog will include her final time, but NOT enter it into my Record Book!!
That said, Norah Tanui (also referred to as Norah Jeruto) won it in 8:53.02!
She gets the Meet Record, and breaks her own NR of Kazakhstan, as well as her own Age 26 Record!
It ranks her 3rd A-T World!
Then came Getachew's 8:54.61.
Mekidu Abebe ran 8:56.08 for the best 3rd Place mark!
It ranks her 4th A-T World!
Winfried Yavi's 9:01.81 is the best 4th Place mark!
Then there was a long way back to the 9:10.04 by Luiza Gega.
Courtney Frerichs topped the Americans with 9:10.59 in 6th.
Aimee Pratt broke her own NR of Australia with 9:15.64.
Emma Coburn was 8th in 9:16.49!
And Courtney Wayment faded to 12th, time of 9:22.37!

Next Eugene results post coming soon!!

World Championships 2022--Days 3 & 4

 NOTE: Those of you familiar with this blog and its author's opinions know what I'm about to say.
There are certain athletes in the WOMEN's events who I firmly believe shouldn't be there, and whose marks shouldn't count, and who should not collect medals, or even mention by TV announcers!
They are the "women" who have high testosterone levels, and include Caster Semenya, Christine Mbomo, Beatrice Masilingi, Francine Nyonsaba, (1st name??) Seyni, and Margaret Wambui!  I will add other names as they become known!
My reasons have been given many times, and are agreed with by many on social media and elsewhere!

Enough!
There's a great T&F meet going on!
All the format "rules" already posted are good here also!

DAY  THREE 
After the Men's Marathon (in my previous post!), this day began with the Men's 400 heats!
Bayapo Ndori was fastest, and the only sub-45 (44.87).
Wayde van Niekerk was the next fastest with a 45.18!

North Americans swept the Women's Hammer Throw, an anomaly made easier by the absence of Anita Wlodarczyk!
Brooke Andersen was favored, and came through, her 259-1 way ahead of Canadian Camryn Rogers's 247-9.
Completing the sweep was the US's Janae Kassanavoid, who reached 245-7!

The Women's 400 heats were led by Stephanie Ann McPherson, whose 50.15 beat Natalia Kaczmarek's 50.21, and the 50.24 by Leike Klaver!
Klaver's time got the National Record of the Netherlands!!
Kendell Ellis didn't advance!

As happens too often, the Men's 10000 was what is politely called a "tactical" or "strategic" race!
I call it simply boring!!
Josh Cheptegei won the slugfest (meaning banana slug!!) with 27:27.43, after a yawning 14:01 first 5000!
Stanley Mburu took 2nd in 27:27.90, while Jacob Kiplimo followed in 27:27.97!
Grant Fisher took 4th in 27:28.14, with Selemon Barega timing 27:28.39 in 5th.  
Their last lap was in the 53's!

The 110H semi's saw Grant Holloway time 13.01, with Hansle Parchment next in 13.02!
Trey Cunningham ran 13.07, with former Duck Devon Allen timing 13.09.
Parchment and Allen had a 2.5 aiding wind!
Pascal Martinot Legarde didn't move on!

Mykolas Alekna led the Men's Discus Throw qualifying with a good 226-1.
Kristjan Ceh reached 223-10, while Simon Pettersson was close with 223-5.

Katie Nageotte overcame many problems in the past year or more, while Sandi Morris stayed consistent---by taking yet another Silver!!
The US duo battled all the way, even while it remained a competition between friends!
They both cleared 15-11, with Nageotte getting Gold via fewer misses.
Three attempts at 16-0.75 all failed!
Nina Kennedy cleared 15-9 for the Bronze!
Nina Sutej and Kat Stefanidi were stopped after topping 15-5's!

The Women's 100 semi's were speedy throughout!
Elaine Thompson-Herah's 10.82 was faster than Shericka Jackson (10.84), Marie Jose Ta Lou (10.87), Dina Asher-Smith (10.89), Melissa Jefferson (10.92), Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce (10.93), Aleia Hobbs (10.95), and Mujinga Kambundji (10.96)!!

In the Men's 400H semi's, Alison Dos Santos was fastest at 47.85, with Karsten Warholm running 48.00!

The Men's Shot Put final was filled with Record Book changes!
After a good see-saw battle, Ryan Crouser emerged the winner, his 75-3.25 setting the Meet Record!
Joe Kovacs was very close, his 75-1.25 giving him the Age 33 Record!
Josh Awotunde PR'ed at 73-1.75 to give him the Bronze.
This made him 11th A-T US, and 17th A-T World!
Tom Walsh was 4th with 72-5.25!
Darlan Romani's 71-11 gave him the best 5th Place mark!
And Filip Miheljevic's 71-7.25 is the best 6th Place mark!

Abel Kipsang's 3:33.68 was fastest in the Men's 1500 semi's.
Mohamed Katir was next with 3:34.45, while Jake Wightman was close with 3:34.48!

There was controversy galore in the 110H final!!
First, Olympic Champ Hansle Parchment crashed a hurdle during his warm-up and became a last second DNS!!
Then both Shane Brathwaite and local hero Devon Allen false started, reacting the tiniest amount too quick!
Allen in particular was incredulous, and argued with the officials for awhile, delaying the race!!
Once they got off--with just five left on the starting line (!!)--Grant Holloway showed his psychological balance in winning, time of 13.03!
Trey Cunningham was 2nd in 13.08, while a surprise 3rd was Asier Martinez's 13.17!
Then again, maybe NOT so surprising, given the circumstances!!

The women's 100 final closed off Day 3 with pizazz!
FAST pizazz, as SAFP "shellacked" (Get it??) the classy octet in a Meet Record 10.67!
It also tied her own Age 35 Record!
Shericka Jackson took 2nd in 10.73!
This ranks her 7th A-T World, tied with 1 other!
ET-H completed the Jamaican sweep with 10.81.
Despite a PR, Dina Asher-Smith's 10.83 is the new National Record of Great Britain, and ties for the best 4th Place mark!
Mujinga Kambundji took 5th in 10.91, with Aleia Hobbs's 10.92 tying her for the best 6th Place mark!
Marie Jose Ta Lou was a quick 7th, time of 10.93!

DAY FOUR
The women's marathon got a record-breaking start at 6:15 a.m.!
But it was too quick for the Americans, who all backed off a bit after less then 5K!
Running a very even pace (halves of 69:01 & 69.10), Gotytom Gebreslase emerged the winner with a last K dash, her 2:18:11 smashing the old Meet Record by 2:46!!
She ranks 15th A-T World, tied with 1 other!
Judith Korir ran alongside Gotytom, only falling back in the final meters, her 2:18:20 making her 18th A-T World!
Lonah Salpeter took 3rd with 2:20:18, not far ahead of Nazret Weldu's 2:20:29!
After the Americans fell off the hot early pace, they ran together for much of the rest of the race!
Sara Hall ended in 2:22:10, giving her the Age 39 Record!
(Note that the Age 40 Record is sub-2:20!!)
Hall passed Angela Tanui near the finish, with Tanui clocking 2:22:15.
Emma Bates took a minute off her PR, her 2:23:18 giving her 7th!!
She ranks 10th A-T US!
And Keira D'Amato--only added to the team 2 weeks before because of Molly Seidel's saying she couldn't run it!--ran a solid 2:23:34 to take 8th!
Ruth Chepngetich DNF'ed!!

Noah Lyles's 19.98 led the Men's 200 heats!
Erriyon Knighton timed a wind-aided (2.1) 20.01.
Timing a wind legal 20.01, Alex Ogando broke his own National Record of the Dominican Republic!
Andre De Grasse was a DNS!

Valarie Allman led the Women's Discus Throw Q round with 224-3!
Jorinde Van Klinken hit 215-5!
Rachel Dincoff didn't advance!

Mutaz Barshim didn't need his home nation support here, as he again became the World Champion, clearing 7-9.75 in the Men's HJ final!
Sanghyeok Woo "wooed" (HA!) the crowd with his Silver measuring 7-8.50!
Andriy Protsenko and Gianmarco Tamberi both cleared 7-7.75, with Protsenko getting the Bronze!
Shelby McEwen's 7-6.50 took 5th!

As stated at the front of this post, certain women are not (or should not be!!) eligible to compete in all women's races!
Thus, the "leading" time in the "Women's" 200 heats doesn't count, by MY rules!
So the best time--22.24--was run by Favour Ofili!
Abby Steiner and SAFP both timed 22.26!

After an opening 14.60 in the Women's Triple Jump, Yulimar Rojas exploded out to 50-9.25, missing the 1987 MR by just one inch!!
But she gets the Age 26 Record, her fifth OUTdoors!!
She has Age Records at 20,21, 23, 25, and now 26!!
Shaneika Ricketts's mark was a solid 48-10.25, but still almost two feet behind Rojas!!
Tori Franklin was the best American, her 48-3.50 taking 3rd!
Leyunis Hernandez was close, her 48-2.75 missing the podium in 4th!
Keturah Orji's 47-6.50 got her just 6th!

The Heptathlon began yesterday, but concluded on the 4th day!
And it was exciting!
After Day 1, Nafi Thiam was the leader with 4071 points!
Anouk Vetter had 4010, while Anna Hall had a big 3991!!
Close behind were Adrianna Selek's 3982, and Noor Vidts's 3921!
Interestingly, their order remained the same at the finish!!
Thiam's 6947 gave her the Age 27 Record!
Vetter's 6867 makes her 13th A-T World!
And she destroyed her own National Record of the Netherlands!!
Hall was very solid throughout, but ran "only" 2:06 & change in the 800--3 seconds slower than her 2:03.11 run earlier this year!!
That said, her 6755 makes her 3rd A-T US!!
And she misses the World list by a mere 10 points!!
Sulek ended with 6672, while Vidts scored 6559 in 5th!
Annik Kalin scored 6464 in 6th, with 7th going to the 6440 of Emma Oosterwegel!!
Katerina Johnson-Thompson wasn't close to her high standards, scoring 6222 in 8th!
Kendell Williams was hurting, and DNF'ed!

Reminders of Matthew Centrowitz's embarrassing Rio 1500 win, the Men's 3000SC final takes the "worst" event prize here!!
They walked the first 2K, then decided to have a 1000 footrace over hurdles!
Soufiane El Bakkali won the best ONE K Steeple in 8:25.13!
Lamecha Girma was 2nd in 8:26.01.
Consesius Kipruto was 3rd in 8:27.92!
I guess Evan Jager isn't a very good sprinter, as he ended in 6th!

Then the Women's 1500 final started, and the front trio gave those male Steeplers (& other tacticians)
a lesson in how to race a final!!
FAST!!
After a 58.8 (!!!) first 400, things slowed a bit to a 2:03 800!
By this time, it was down to Gudaf Tsegay, Faith Kipyegon, and Laura Muir, with the rest in a whole separate race!
Tsegay was leading, but when Kipyegon started her rush home, it was soon over!
She passed Tsegay on the backstraight, and kept going!
Her 3:52.96 beat Tsegay;s 3:54.52, and Muir's 3:55.28!
Freweyni Hailu "won" the back-up race with 4:01.28!
She beat Sinclaire Johnson's 4:01.63, and Jessica Hull's 4:01.82!

See you soonish with the next 2 days!!

World Championships: Days 1 & 2, plus Men's Marathon

 Hello, my friends!
The World Championships of 2022 are ongoing in Eugene's new version of Hayward Field on the University of Oregon campus!
The 1st two days were blessed with great weather, somewhat limited but enthusiastic crowds, and some great performances!
This first results report includes all of Day's 1 & 2, plus the Men's Marathon, which opened up Day 3 at 6:15 a.m.!
All finals, semi's, heats, and field event qualifying rounds are included!
It's presented in chronological order of events, so the best marks are not necessarily given headline status!
However, where poor or average performances happened, less space is given to those events!
I hope you enjoy this post--please retweet it if you would!

DAY ONE
The Men's Hammer Throw Qualifying opened things up on Friday morning!
Pawel Fajdek showed he's in good form, as his 262-9 led the field!
Daniel Haugh gave the Americans a good start with his 260-4 Q!

The Men's Q round of the High Jump went as expected, with all the main guys passing through.
The lead marks were 7-5.75!

In the Women's HT Qualifying, only Malvina Kapron of the headliners didn't advance!
Two Americans led the round, with Janae Kassanavoid hitting 244-3, and Brooke Andersen throwing
244-0!

The Women's 20K Walk went to Kimberly Garcia Leon, her 1:26:58 being the National Record of Peru!!
Katerzyna Zdzieblo was 2nd in 1:27:31, as she also got an NR, that of Poland!
Shieja Qieyang took 3rd in 1:27:56!
Robyn Stevens was the best American, her 1:36:16 taking 24th, while the other American--one of those who made sure Stevens wouldn't be in the 35K--deservedly got next to last--her time an embarrassing 1:39:58!
I'm so disgusted & angry at their selfish manipulations, I won't even give her name!
But make sure you read Stevens's lawyer's press release, issued before this race!

The Men's 20K Walk went to Toshihazu Yamanishi, time of 1:19:07!
Koki Ikeda was 2nd in 1:19:14, while Perseus Karlstrom ended in 1:19:18, getting the Bronze!
Nick Christie also got what he deserved (for not supporting his ex-Stevens), as he ended in  31st!
Dan Nehnevaj did even worse, getting dead last, time of 1:43:07!

The Women's Shot Put Q round went almost as expected, led by Liljia Gong's 64-0.25!
The only key name left out was Adelaide Aquilla!

Soufiane El Bekkali led the Men's 3000SC heats with 8:16.65!

In the warm-ups for the Women's Pole Vault Qualifying, Great Britain's Holly Bradshaw's pole broke, sending her crashing to the ground, where she sustained meet-ending injuries!!
Alysha Newman and Lisa Gunnarsson were other key names not making it to the final!
Top marks were 14-9's!

All the players made it through to the Men's Long Jump final!

Gudaf Tsegay ran 4:02.68 to lead the Women's 1500 heats!

Fred Kerley did what he does best--run fast, no matter whether heat, semi, or final!
His 9.79 topped Trayvon Bromell's 9.89 in the Men's 100 heats!
Lamont Jacobs ran 10.04, and advanced to the semi's, but he apparently felt something, so became a DNS!

Ryan Crouser lobbed his SP 73-1.25 to lead the Men's Q-round!
Ho hum.
Konrad Bukowiecki didn't advance!

DAY TWO
Another ho-hummer (LOL) led off Day Two's action, as Yulimar Rojas Triple Jumped 48-3.50 to lead her event's Q round!
Maryna Beth-Romanchuk was next with 47-8.50.
Ana Jose Tima hit the sand at 47-7.75, nabbing the National Record of the Dominican Republic!!
Jasmine Moore just missed the final, as her 46-8.25 gave her 13th!

The women's 3000SC heats had some good times!
Norah Tanui led with her final-quality 9:01.54!
She was soloing, as 2nd went to Workesha Getachew's 9:11.25.
Marva Bouzayani's 9:12.14 took 3rd.
Alice Finot broke her own National Record of France with her 9:14.34!
The Americans all advanced on time--Courtney Wayment doing 9:14.95, Emma Coburn running 9:15.19, and Courtney Frerichs getting 9:17.91.
Aimee Pratt's 9:18.91 gave her Great Britain's National Record!

The Women's High Jump Q  round needed 6-4's to pass!
A bit shockingly, Vashti Cunningham and Yuliya Levchenko didn't advance!!
Lots of Track and Field News Message Board noise about Cunningham's "failure"!

America's Daniel Roberts was DQ'ed in his 110H heat!!
Don't know the reason!
Grant Holloway led all comers with 13.14, while Tokyo Gold winner Hansle Parchment ran 13.17.

The Men's HT final went to Pawel Fajdek's 268-11!!
He defeated Wojcieck Nowicki's 265-10, while in 3rd came the 265-4 by Elvind Henriksen!
Quentin Bigot reached 263-3 in 4th!
Bence Halasz was close in 5th, his best being 262-11.
Rudy Winkler led the Americans, but his 259-2 gave him only 6th!

The Women's 10000 final was simply spectacular--even with a slowish beginning!!
After the half was reached in 15:19, the large pack was still together!
The pace didn't really surge until maybe a mile to go, when the field was whittled to 4 or 5 with a few 71's.
It was left to an all-out sprint over the last lap, with the runners being spread across 2 lanes!
At the line, WR holder Letesenbet Gidey took the Gold with her 30:09.94 (last 5000 in about 14:50).
Helen Obiri (despite--or maybe because of--being hard-elbowed by Gidey!) emerged in 2nd with her PR of 30:10.02!
This makes her 19th A-T World!
On my Combined Events list for the 3K, 5K, and 10K, her 8:20.68, 14:18.37 added to this 10K makes her total time 52:49.07, making her 8th A-T World!
Margaret Kipkemboi's 30:10.07 was 3rd, making her 20th A-T World!
Sifan Hassan sprinted hard, but wound up 4th in 30:10.56!
Rahel Daniels's 30:12.15 makes her 23rd A-T World, and breaks her own National Record of Eritrea!
Ejgayehu Taye finished in 30:12.45, making her 24th A-T World.
She also gets the best 6th Place mark!

Caroline Kipkurui was 7th in 30:17.64, and got the best 7th Place mark!
She also broke her own NR of Kazakhstan!!
Bozema Mulatie's 30:17.77 gave her the best 8th Place mark!
Next came Karissa Schweizer's 30:18.05 (15:19.78 & 14:58.27), giving her the best 9th Place mark!!
This ranks her 3rd A-T US, and beats her previous best by over 29 seconds!!
She takes over 1st on a pair of my US Combined Events lists--her 14:26:34 added to the 10 gives her 44:44.39--and add in her 3000 of 8:40.25, and her total time for that C-E is 53:25.05!!
Getting the best 10th Place mark was Elish McColgan's 30:34.60!
She had led the race for quite a bit!!
Jessica Judd's 30:35.93 is a big PR!
Stella Chesang's 14th place time of 31:01.04 gives her the National Record of Uganda!!
In 15th came the PR by Natosha Rogers, her 31:10.57 making her 12th A-T US!

Some big names were cut FROM my World A-T list---
Ingrid Kristiansen's 30:13.74 from  1986 was the WR then!!
Zhang Huandi's 30:13.37 was one of "those" Chinese times from 1993!!
Molly Huddle's American Record of 30:13.17 from 2016 is GONE, as is Lornah Kiplagat's 30:12.53 from 2003!!
WOW!!

Khalifah Rosser's jog of 48.62 led the Men's heats in the 400H!

The Women's 100 heats were surprisingly led by Dina Asher-Smith's 10.84!
Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce ran 10.87, while Marie Josee Ta Lou was next in 10.92.

Oblique Seville also surprised a bit, as his 9.90 led the Men's 100 semi's!
Marvin Bracy ran 9.93!
As noted earlier, Lamont Jacobs was a last minute DNS here!
Also not advancing were Bingtian Su, Andre De Grasse, and Yohan Blake!

Milt Tentoglou's 27-3.75 appeared to have the Men's Long Jump Gold locked in!!
Then Jianan Wang sped down the runway, leapt into the sand, and waited!!
His 27-5.25 had taken the lead, and when Tentoglou couldn't do better, Wang celebrated!!
Heptathlete turned LJ'er Simon Ehammer was 3rd, his best being 26-9.25!

It took just one Shot Put attempt for the Women's event to be essentially done!!
Chase Ealey's 1st throw of 67-2.75 made the rest of the quality field quiver & shake!
And it stood its ground to the gradual advance of the Army of One--Liljia Gong--who eventually reached 66-10.75!
Jessica Schilder and Sarah Mitton both had Puts measuring 64-10.50!
But Schilder had a better back-up mark, so she took the Bronze!!
She also broke her own National Record of the Netherlands!!
Auriol Dongmo's 64-4.50 took 5th!!

Stewart McSweyn led the Men's 1500 heats with 3:34.91.
Former Duck Cooper Teare disappointed the crowd and himself, as he crashed and burned, not advancing!

Gudaf Tsegay also led the Women's 1500 semi!
Her 4:01.28 was a bit ahead of Laura Muir's 4:01.78, and Jessica Hull's 4:01.81.
Elle Purrier St Pierre had "one of those days", and didn't advance!
Winnie Nanyondo fell and DNF'ed, but was eventually moved to the final on appeal!

After the usual NBC build-up, the Men's 100 final became a rather pedestrian "been there, done that", IMHO!
Fred Kerley won it in 9.86!
Marvin Bracy got the Silver with his 9.88, the same time given to Bronze winner Trayvon Bromell.
Oblique Seville ran 9.97 in 4th!
Akani Simbine timed 10.01 in 5th, while Christian Coleman's 10.01 gave him just 6th!!

DAY THREE (early morning)
The Men's Marathon began the first of its three 14 kilometer loops fairly slowly.
The loop had a few rolling hills--mostly that of the I-5 overpass--but was fairly scenic, with fans spread out along the route!
They were accompanied--on the other side of the roped-off road--by a large group of bike clubbers who were in town!!
The Half was reached in 64:09, so the Meet Record of 2:06:54 looked secure!
But the massive crowd up front needed a break-up!
As the K's went forward, they finally got it down to a workable quartet by 30K or so!
At this point, local hero Galen Rupp was still in the mix, wearing his distinctive white uni and hat!
But he dropped off, and even stopped at one point for a bit!

Finally down to a pair, Tamirat Tola decided to win, and took off!
His 5000 from 37 to 42 was a blazing 14:08!!
His last half was 61:27!!
His winning time destroyed the 2009 Meet Record by 78 seconds (or about 3 seconds per mile!).
The new MR is 2:05:36!!
Mosinet Geremew got Silver with 2:06:44!
Also under the old MR was Bashir Abdi's 2:06:48!
Smashing his own National Record of Canada was Cam Levin's 2:07:09!
He took over 2 minutes off the mark!!
Popular Geoff Kamworor took 5th in 2:07:14.
Seifu Tura was close, his 2:07:17 placing 6th!
In 10th came Isaac Mpofu, his 2:07:56 giving him Zimbabwe's National Record!
Rupp recovered somewhat, his 2:09:36 taking 19th place!
A whopping 32 runners ran 2:12:00 or faster!! 
Lelisa Desisa DNF'ed!!

See you soon with more from Eugene!!

Last Marks Before the World Championships

 Hello, friends!
Sorry for the delay, but my desktop went south on me, and just got a new laptop (my first!!) yesterday!
That's my excuse for this late post, and for not reporting yet on the World Championships, now in its 3rd day!!
So let's see what happened in the days leading up to the WC's!

(This will be by event group!)

100, 200, 400, 100/110H, 400H, 800
Zasha Zhoya went WowieZowie with a 110H in 13.17!!
This was in France!
Nathaneel Mitchell-Blake made a comeback of sorts with a half lap in 20.05!
Yohan Blake's 9.85 beat the 9.88 of Oblique Seville!
Also in Jamaica, Shericka Jackson had an explosive double, running 10.77 and 21.55!!
After a 10.70 in  the heats, Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce didn't run the final!
That gave it to Jackson's 10.77, and she needed that to beat the 10.88 by Kemba Nelson!
Then came Elaine Thompson-Herah's 10.89 and the 10.94 by Brianna Williams!

Her 21.55 is the Age 27 Record, and makes her 3rd A-T World!
ET-H ended 2nd in 22.05, with SAFP timing 22.14!
For Jackson, her times of 10.76 & 21.55 adds to 32.31, making her 4th A-T World on that Combined Events list!
Add to that her 400 of 49.47, and you get 1:21.78, ranking her 7th A-T World!
Charokee Young ran a 400 in 50.19 in a heat, but Candace McLeod won the final in 50.29!
Brittany Anderson's 12.53 took the 100H final, but her 12.45 heat was faster!
Janieve Russell won the 400H in 53.63, but it was Shionna Salmon who surprised!
She PR'ed in 54.10 in a heat, then improved to 53.82 in the final for 2nd behind Russell!!

In Kenya, Mary Moraa doubled in the 400 and 800!
Her 50.84 is said to be a Kenya National Record, and her 1:57.45 beat Faith Kipyegon's 1:58.18!!
Moraa also won an 800 in 1:57.68, this time over the 1:58.18 by Keely Hodgkinson!
Cat Bisset's 1:58.54 was 3rd!
Sara Gallego's 54.34 in the 400H breaks her own NR of Spain!
Mujinga Kambundji got the Switzerland NR with her 100 in 10.89!
Jereem Richards sprinted a fine 200 in 19.83!
Liberia got their 4 X 100 Relay NR with 38.76!
Murielle Ahoure is still speedy, as her 100 in 10.95 showed!

Alison Dos Santos sped to a 400H in 46.80.
That nets him the Age 22 Record, as well as the Stockholm DL Meet Record!
Marco Arop ran some good 800's--1:44.39 in Canada & 1:43.61, also in Canada!
Peter Bol's group of times included a 600 in 1:16.47, and a Heusden-Zolder 800 in 1:44.26!
Max Burgin had an 800 in 1:44.54!
Wycliffe Kinyamal's 800 was 1:43.54--in Kenya!
Second went to the 1:44.01 by Emmanuel Yanyonyi!
Elias Ngeny was 3rd in 1:44.05, with 4th going to Festus Lagat's 1:44.31!

Jasmine Camacho Quinn won a tight 100H in 12.46, beating Tobi Amusan's 12.50, and the 12.53 by Nia Ali!
Femke Bol flipped a 52.27 over her standard 400H, breaking her own Stockholm DL Meet Record!
Rushell Clayton was 2nd in 53.90!
Switzerland timed 42.13 to win the 4 X 100 Relay in Stockholm!
The latest ATL meet had some good marks--
Wayde Van Niekerk timed 44.58 in the 400 for a Meet Record!
Tia Jones won the 100H in 12.57.
Andrenette Knight got another ATL Meet Record with her 400H time of 53.85.

Hirut Meshesha timed 1:58.54 in the 800.
Sixteen year old Puripol Benson ran the 200 in 20.19, and got Thailand's NR to boot!
Another shocker happened when Cuba's Reynier Mena---whom I'd never heard of  before!!--timed a spectacular 19.63 in the 200, destroying the National Record, and ranking him 10th A-T World, tied with 1 other!
He also ran the century in 9.99!
M M Zeze was 2nd in 19.97!
Line Kloster's 400H time of 53.91 is the new NR of Norway!
Devynne Charleton timed 12.60 in the 100H, getting Bahama's NR!
And Djemel Sejuti ran the 800 in 1:43.69!

SP, DT, JT, HT, Multi's
Sarah Mitton broke her own Canada Shot Put National Record with her 66-8.50!!
Camryn Rogers reached 247-1 in the Hammer Throw!
Kristin Pudenz had a Discus Throw of 220-1!
Mykolas Alekna has remained on fire!
His DT of 226-4 in Lithuania broke his own Age 19 Record!
Then, at the Stockholm DL, he hit 229-0, breaking his own Age 19 Record again!!
But he lost to Kristjan Ceh, who topped 229-9 to get the MR!
Daniel Stahl hit just 221-8 for 3rd!
But he later had one measuring 234-5!!
And Ceh later threw 229-4!
Wojciech Nowicki had a HT of 265-5!

The Stockholm Javelin Throw was a good one--Anderson Peters's 296-3 got the MR!
Neeraj Chopra's 295-1 breaks his own NR of India, and he ranks 22nd A-T World!
In 3rd was Julian Weber's 292-3, with 4th going to J Vadlejch's 290-7!!
Chase Ealey got Stockholm's Meet Record with her SP of 67-2.25!
Sarah Mitton was 2nd with 65-3.50!
Mitton also had a Put of 65-7 at another meet!
Auriel Dongmo threw 63-4 in 3rd!
The ATL Shot Put winner was the 71-2 by Tom Walsh!
Roger Steen PR'ed with 70-5.25 in 2nd!

In Tallinn, Maicel Uibo scored 8289 to take the Decathlon!
He beat Johannes Erm's 8250!
Jessica Schilder broke her own Netherlands National Record with a SP of 64-6.75!
In Portland, Curtis Thompson's Javelin flew 287-9, making him 3rd A-T US!!
That meet also saw a solid Women's JT--
Avionne Allgood-Whetstone won it with 203-10.
This makes her 6th A-T US!
Arianna Ince was close with 203-3!
Kara Winger took 3rd with 197-1.
Chari Hawkins scored 6152 in the Heptathlon!
And Tarik Robinson-O'Hagan had a HT of 250-9, making him 7th A-T HS!!

Sorry for the length, but I want to put ALL of what I have in one post!
HJ, LJ, TJ, PV, Distances
Bo Baehre PV'ed 19-4.25 in Germany!
Andy Diaz TJ'ed 58-3.25!
Elena Vallortigara HJ'ed 6-6!
Yuki Hashioka LJ'ed 27-1.75!
Pal Lillefosse PV'ed 19-2.75, getting Norway's NR!
Jordan Diaz broke his own NR of Spain, his 58-7.50 making him 13th A-T World, tied with 1 other!

Mondo Duplantis used the Stockholm DL to get the OUTdoor World Record, his PV clearing 20-2.50!!
He gets the WR, the MR, his own NR of Sweden, and the Age 22 Record--his 6th consecutive OUTdoor Age Record!!
Chris Nilsen and Thiago Braz both cleared 19-5.50, with Nilsen getting 2nd!
Yaroslava Mahuchukh HJ'ed 6-8!!
Ernest Obienne PV'ed 19-5!

Polina Knoroz PV'erd 15-5, beating the 15-3 by Anzhelika Sidorova!
Angelina Topic HJ'ed 6-5, tying her for the Age 17 Record!
She also breaks her own NR of Serbia!
Tina Sutej PV'ed 15-5.75!
Tara Davis, who fouled 3 times at USATF to miss the team, LJ'ed a whopping 23-9---even if wind-aided!!
Her best legal jump was 23-0.75!!
Getting the best legal jump, however, was Australia's Brooke Buschkuehl!
Her 23-4.75 got her Australia's National Record!

In the distances---
Abel Kipsang's 3:34.55 beat the 3:34.59 of Tim Cheruiyot to win Kenya's Nationals!
Kibiwot Kandie got a 10000 PR with his 27:33.57!
Stockholm saw South Sudan's Dominic Lokinyamo Lobala run the 3000 in 7:29.48, a National Record!!
He beat Jacob Kiplimo's 7:29.55 and Cornelius Kemboi's 7:31.26!
While Daisy Jepkemoi's 9:15.77 took Stockholm's 3000SC, two other athletes got National Records!
Second placer Alice Finot got France's NR with her 9:19.59, and 4th placer Nataliya Strebkova's 9:24.54 got the NR of Ukraine!

In a one-race-meet in Portland, Jessica Hull got Australia's National Record with her Mile of 4:19.89!
Luiza Gega broke her own NR of Albania with her 3000SC time of 9:14.29!
Sifan Hassan rust-busted a 15:13.41 in the Portland 5000!
Drew Hunter got a Mile PR with his 3:54.80!
And Taryn Rawlings' ran a Mile in 4:24.95, making her 18th A-T US.
In 2nd came Allie Wilson's 4:26.04, but it doesn't make my US list!

Next post will have World Championship results!!
See you soon!!

USATF Jr & Sr Championships--WOMEN

This will follow the same pattern as the Men's post--By day, with the Juniors news gathered at the end!

Day One  (Seniors)
Ajee Wilson opened things up with a 2:00.37 in the 800 heats!
Sage Hurta was 2nd with 2:00.86, with Raevyn Rogers next in 2:01.10!
Athing Mu cruised through a 2:01.24!
Speaking of cruising, Sydney McLaughlin did just that in her 54.11 heat of the 400H!
Shamier Little was far back in 55.58!
Then came Britton Wilson and Ashley Spencer, both in 55.79!
Delilah Muhammad was waived thtrough, so was a DNS!

Brooke Andersen won the Hammer Throw with a good 255-9!
Janae Kassanavoid was 2nd with 249-6!
Annette Echikunwoke was 3rd with 242-0!
She's listed in my Athletics Annual 2022 as being Nigerian!
I haven't heard anything about her becoming a US citizen--but I don't know everything!
I assume she was cleared to compete for a place on the US team!
DeAnna Price was 4th with 239-8!
Not making the team were Maggie Ewen, Alyssa Wilson, and Gwen Berry!

Wind affected the results of the Long Jump!
Quanesha Burks won with a leap of 23-2, but it was wind-aided!
Jasmine Moore's 22-3.75 was also windy!
Tiffany Flynn's 21-11.50 was legal!
Anna Hall's 21-0.75 equalled her PR!
Jasmine Todd didn't make it, and Tara Davis shockingly had 3 fouls!!
The 100 heats were led by the 10.88 of Aleia Hobbs!
Twanisha Terry ran 10.92, followed by the 10.94 of Tamara Clark, and the 10.99 by Marybeth Sant-Price!
Mikiah Brisco, English Gardner, and Sha'Carri Richardson did not get through!!

With Elise Cranny and Allie Wilson both DNS's, it was Heather McLean's 4:07.96 leading the 1500 heats!
Elle Purrier St Pierre was 2nd in 4:08.52, with Helen Schlactenhaufen being given the same time!
Jaide Stepter led the 400 heats with 51.05.
Rosaline Effiong was 2nd in 51.17, with Talitha Diggs 3rd in 51.32!
Kaylin Whhitney was next in 51.36, while Allyson Felix ran 52.30, but moved through to the semi's!
Delilah Muhammad was again waived through, while not making it were Courtney Okolo and Quanera Hayes!

Day Two  (Seniors)
Alaysha Johnson gained respect with her 12.41 leading the 100H heats!
Kendra Harrison took 2nd in 12.47, with Alia Armstrong timing 12.51.
The 100 semi's were fast!
Aleia Hobbs's 10.81 makes her 12th A-T US!
Melissa Jefferson finished 2nd in 10.82, making her 13th A-T US, tied with 2 others!
Twanisha Terry's 10.87 makes her 23rd A-T US, tied with 2 others!
Also speedy were Tamara Clark (10.88), and Tamari Davis (10.92)!
Sandi Morris won the Pole Vault, clearing 15-9.75!
Alina McDonald and Katie Nageotte were 2nd & 3rd, both topping 15-3!
For McDonald, it makes her 16th A-T US, tied with 3 others!
(She later said she won't be at World's, as she doesn't compete on Sundays due to her religious beliefs, when the event takes place!)
Gabby Leon and Emily Grove both cleared 15-1.

Courtney Frerichs led the 3000SC heats with 9:31.25, followed by Gabbi Jennings's 9:32.06!
Colleen Quigley ran 9:36.26, while Emma Coburn timed 9:40.53!
Vashti Cunningham High Jumped 6-4 for the win!
Valarie Allman didn't hit any big marks, but her 219-7 was enough for the Discus Throw win!
Laulauga Tausaga-Collins took 2nd with 211-7!
This makes her 15th A-T US!
Sydney McLaughlin again had it easy, her 52.90 in the 400H semi's far ahead of Masai Russell's 55.02 PR!

The 100 semi's had a strong wind (2.9) to propel them!
Thus, take Melissa Jefferson's 10.69 with a few grains of salt!
Ditto Aleia Hobbs's 10.72, Twanisha Terry's 10.74, and young Tamari Davis's 10.78!
Athing Mu's 1:57.55 semi was a Meet Record!!
Sage Hurta PR'ed with 1:58.30, but misses the US list by 0.11 seconds!!
Olivia Baker timed 1:58.46, while Allie Wilson ended in 1:58.50!
Talitha Diggs won the semi's in 50.88 over the 51.06 by Kendell Ellis!
Third went to Kennedy Simon's 51.11.

Day Three (Seniors)
AR holder Maggie Malone shocked all by fouling out of the Javelin Throw!
Kara Winger had a solid mark of 210-10!
Ariana Ince's 198-3 was far back!
Abby Steiner's 22.14 led the 200 heats!
Cambrea Sturgis took 2nd in 22.24!
Keturah Orji broke her own Meet Record in the Triple Jump, measuring 48-6.25!
Tori Franklin was solid in 2nd with 47-10.50!
Jasmine Moore's 46-5.25 was 3rd!

Kendra Harrison's 12.40 led the 100H semi's!
Nia Ali timed 12.49 in 2nd!
Sinclaire Johnson won the 1500 in 4:03.29!
Cory McGee timed 4:04.52 in 2nd, while EPSP was 3rd in 4:05.14!
Karissa Schweizer ran 4:05.40 in 4th!
Talitha Diggs won the 400 in 50.22!
Kendell Ellis ran 50.35, while Lynna Irby took 50.67!

The pair of hurdles finals produced spectacular results!!
Kendra Harrison showed WR holder acumen, her 12.34 just nipping Alaysha Johnson's 12.35!!
Johnson's mark is the best 2nd Place mark ever!
She ranks 12th A-T World, tied with 1 other, and 6th A-T US, tied with 1 other!!
Alia Armstrong ran 12.47 in 3rd, making her 17th A-T US, tied with 1 other!
Tonea Marshall ran 12.55, yet finished only 4th!
Syd the Kid broke her own World and American Records, her 51.41 over the 400H an easy win!!
It's also the Meet Record and the Age 22 Record!
She's on some Combined Events lists as well!
Her 12.65 and 51.41 adds to 1:04.06!
She ranks 1st in the World and US!
Her 50.07 and 51.41 adds to 1:41.48!
This ranks her 2nd A-T World, and 1st in the US!
Britton Wilson set yet another PR in 2nd, her 53.08 making her 10th A-T US!
She misses the World list by 0.06 seconds!!
Shamier Little ran 53.92 to take 3rd, just ahead of Anna Cockrell's 53.98!
Wilson's 50.05 and 53.08 adds to 1:43.13, ranking her 4th A-T US on that C-E list!
Ms Muhammad was waived through!!
UGH!!

Day Four  (Seniors)
Elise Cranny and Company jogged the 5000 in the 15:49's, with Karissa Schweizer (15:49.32) and Emily Infeld (15:49.42) following the 15:49.15 by Cranny!
Ho hum.
Emma Coburn broke her own Meet Record in the 3000SC, timing 9:10.63!
Not too surprising in 2nd was Courtney Wayment's 9:12.10!
She now ranks 4th A-T US!
The other Courtney--Frerichs--was 3rd in 9:16.18!
Taking 4th was Gabbi Jennings's 9:25.05, which makes her 13th A-T US!
Katie Rainsberger PR'ed in 5th, her 9:29.77 making her 24th A-T US!
Colleen Quigley was a DNS, due to an injury sustained in the heats!

Abby Steiner's 21.80 in her semi matched her Collegiate Record time, though it doesn't count as a Collegiate time!
It does count as the Meet Record, however!
Tamara Clark ran 22.05 in 2nd, while Cambrea Sturgis's 22.11 makes her 24th A-T US, tied with 1 other!
Chase Ealey threw a bomb (Well, not literally!! LOL) in the Shot Put, her 67-3.50 being the Meet Record, and making her 2nd A-T US!!
Adelaide Aquilla threw 63-9.75 in 2nd, with Jessica Woodard's 63-7.75 taking 3rd.
It makes her 14th A-T US!
Raven Saunders took 4th with 62-2.25!

Ms Mu's MU-jo was working at the right moment, as Ajee Wilson attempted a pass with a few meters left in the 800 final!
She upped her turnover, ending in 1:57.16 to Wilson's 1:57.23--the closest finish Mu has had in quite awhile!!
Raevyn Rogers's 1:57.96 took 3rd, with Allie Wilson ending 4th in 1:58.35!
In 6th came the PR of 1:59.08 by young veteran Brooke Feldmeier!!
Abby Steiner set a PR of 21.77 while winning the 200!
It breaks her own Meet Record (set in the semi's!)!
She ranks 6th A-T US, tied with 2 others, and 17th A-T World, tied with 2 others!
Tamara Clark was 2nd in 21.92, making her 12th A-T US!
Jenna Prandini was 3rd in 22.01.

All Days  (Juniors)
Some amazing stuff here!!
Jaicieonna Gero-Holt was on pace for the Frosh Class Record after the 1st day of the Heptathlon, as her 3371 points was strongly on pace!
She did it!!
Her 5401 shattered her own Frosh Class Record set just a week ago by 293 points!
It's 231 points better than Kendell Williams's Soph Class Record!!
It also ranks 12th A-T HS!!
Bryanna Craig took 3rd with 5388!
(The winner was a Collegiate!!)
Craig ranks 13th A-T HS!!

Ellie Shea was entered in FOUR distance events (800, 1500, 3000, and 5000!!), but DNF'ed from the 5000 while leading after the 3000 point!
She then DNS'ed the other events!

Some Ukrainian juniors were invited to compete here, one of them being Walker Valeriia Sholomistska!
She smashed the Meet Record in the 10000 Walk, a track event, timed in 46:46.97!!
She beat the 48:24 MR by Taylor Ewert!!
In 2nd came American Angelica Harris, whose 49:29 beat the best Men's (Ryan Allen) time of 49:53 by 24 seconds!
Both sexes raced together!

The 100 final was wind-aided (2.7), but the times were quick!
Shawnti Jackson won it in 11.07, with Mia Brahe-Pedersen 2nd in 11.09!
Brahe-Pedersen had a legal time of 11.25 in the heats, ranking her 23rd A-T HS, tied with 2 others!!
Amanda and Hana Moll both cleared 14-3.25, with Amanda getting the winner's crown!

Juliette Whittaker not only beat the great Roisin Willis, but she broke the HSR of the venerable Mary Cain by 0.47 seconds!!
Her brilliantly paced time was 1:59.04!!
She gets the HSR and the Senior Class Record!
Willis's time was 2:00.32!
Whittaker's 200 splits were 29.03 and 30.01, for 59.04 through 400!
Then she did what every coach says to do---run a strong 3rd 200!!
Her 29.22 was amazing, as she left Willis far behind, and set her up for the HSR!!
She ended in 30.78!!

Addy Wiley won the 1500 in 4:15.53, making her 12th A-T HS!
It's far slower than she probably ran during her 4:26.16 over 1600 meters--probably around 4:08 or 4:09!!
Finally, Jayla Jamison won the 200 in 22.93, beating the 22.98 by Mia Brahe-Pedersen!
Brahe-Pedersen misses the HS list by 0.01 seconds!!

See you soon!

USATF Jr & Sr Championships--MEN

 This was the meet where the World Championship team was to be selected!
(The Juniors would go to the World Juniors in Colombia in August!)
However, that wasn't happening, for the most part, due to various oddities!
Too much (& too complex) to explain here, so watch for a future post to "explain" it to you!
Meanwhile, here's what happened (worthy of note) on Hayward's track & field in late June!
This post is all about the Men!
(Women's post to follow!)

Day One (Seniors)
Donovan Brazier had the fastest 800 heat, time of 1:46.49!
HS'er Cade Flatt ran 1:46.53, but fell short of the HSR yet again!

Fred Kerley sped 9.83 in a 100 heat!
It's the Meet Record, and ranks him 14th A-T World, tied with 2 others, and 6th A-T US, tied with 1 other!
Veteran Mike Rodgers failed to advance!
Andrew Evans won the Discus Throw with a lowly 207-8!
Dan Michalski ran the 3000SC heat in 8:23.39, with Evan Jager taking 2nd in 8:23.57!
Isaac Updike was a DNS!

Isaac Basten led the 1500 heats with 3:38.92, just ahead of Johnny Gregorek's 3:38.95, and Yared Nuguse's 3:38.99!
Cole Hocker and Hobbs Kessler didn't advance!!
Michael Norman cruised his 400 heat in 44.72!
Michael Cherry was a DNS, apparently "waived" forward!
Jeez!

Day Two (Seniors)
Guess who won the Long Jump?
Bet you can't, since NO ONE ever heard of him!
(Won't matter anyway, as he won't get out of Qualifying at WC's!)
Rayvon Grey LJ'ed 26-10.50!
Steffin McCarter was 2nd with 26-9!

The 100 semi's saw Fred Kerley up his game to 9.76!
It's the Meet Record, and makes him 6th A-T World, tied with 2 others, and 3rd A-T US, tied with 2 others!
Trayvon Bromell ran 9.81, ahead of Marvin Bracy-Williams's 9.86, and Christian Coleman's 9.87!
Kerley's 9.76 & 19.76 adds to 29.52, making him 6th A-T US on that Combined Events list!
Add his 43.64 to that total, and you get 1:13.16, which makes him 3rd A-T US and World!

Rai Benjamin jogged 48.41 to lead the heats in the 400H.
Ryan Crouser and Joe Kovacs had a great battle in the Shot Put, Crouser blasting a 75-10.25 to get the Meet Record and break his own Age 29 Record!
Kovacs was a tough 2nd with 75-0.50!
This breaks his own Age 32 Record!
Josh Awotunde and Tripp Piperi were in another world, with respective marks of 70-7 and 70-3.75!

Kerley returned for the final ready to run, as his 9.77 showed!
Bracy-Williams was 2nd in 9.85, while Trayvon Bromell took 9.88 to finish 3rd!
Christian Coleman got a waiver!!
Brandon Miller led the 800 semi's with 1:46.20!
Cade Flatt was 9th, but still ran 1:47.00!
Michael Norman ran his semi in 44.28, while Randolph Ross took 44.36!

Day Three (Seniors)
Noah Lyles opened up the 200 with his heat of 19.95, while 18 year old Erriyon Knighton ran 20.08!
The Pole Vault was extremely weak, with Chris Nilsen clearing 18-8.25 for the win!
Getting the same height was Luke Winder!
Daniel Haugh won the Hammer Throw with a solid 263-1.
He ranks 5th A-T US!
Rudy Winkler was 2nd with 257-0, with Alex Young 3rd with 251-4!
In 5th came Israel Oloyede's 246-5, which ranks him 23rd A-T US!

Grant Holloway took his 110H heat in 13.11, with Trey Cunningham right behind in 13.13!
Rai Benjamin won his 400H semi in 47.93!
Khallifah Rosser's 48.34 edged Trevor Bassitt's 48.38 for the next 2 spots!
In a near repeat of Matthew Centrowitz's performance in Rio, Cooper Teare used a 51.87 final 400 to win the 1500 in 3:45.86!
Hillary Bor won the 3000SC in 8:15.76!
Evan Jager was a solid 2nd in 8:17.29!
Benard Keter was 3rd in 8:19.16, with Duncan Hamilton 4th in 8:20.23!

The 400 Champion finished 2nd!
Well, not exactly!
The winner was Michael Norman's 43.56!
He gets the Meet Record!
But Champion (Ha!) Allison was a brilliant 2nd in a HUGE PR of 43.70!
He's ranked 10th A-T World, and 8th A-T US!!
Randolph Ross was 3rd in 44.17, while Elijah Godwin (44.34) and Vernon Norwood (44.35) were 4th and 5th!

Day Four (Seniors)
Grant Fisher is an odd fish (Sic!), as he ran a 5000 final with some oomph!!
His time of 13:03.86 is the Meet Record!
Woody Kincaid used a 54 second last 400 to finish 2nd in 13:06.70!
Abdi Nur's 13:08.63 was 3rd, while Conner Mantz ran a quick 13:11.81 in 4th!
Donald Scott won the Triple Jump with 56-0!
Will Claye was 2nd with 55-6.50!
Christian Taylor took 5th with 54-3.25!

Shelby McEwen took the HJ with a PR-equaling 7-7.75!
JuVaughn Harrison took 2nd with a clearance of 7-6.50!
Noah Lyles led the semi's with 19.81, while Erriyon Knighton ran 19.97.
Lyles's brother Josephus was 3rd in 20.04!
Ethan Dabbs surprised a bit by taking the Javelin Throw, distance of 266-8!
Curtis Thompson reached 264-1.
Grant Holloway took the 110H semi's in 13.03!
Trey Cunningham ran 13.09, with Devon Allen next in 13.14, and Daniel Roberts 4th in 13.17!

Bryce Hoppel won the 800 in 1:44.60 over Jonah Koech's 1:44.74!
Brandon Miller sprinted into 3rd, timed in 1:45.19.
Clayton Murphy was 4th in 1:45.23!
The 400H final turned out to be one of the best races of the meet!
Rai Benjamin sped 47.04 for a World Leader!
Trevor Bassitt took 2nd in 47.47, making him 19th A-T World, and 11th A-T US!
Khallifah Rosser was a solid 3rd, time of 47.65!
He's ranked 14th A-T US!
CJ Allen was 4th in 48.17!

The 200 final had some depth!
Noah Lyles's 19.67 nipped Erriyon Knighton's 19.69!
Fred Kerley was 3rd in 19.83!
Kenny Bednarek was 4th in 19.93, while Josephus Lyles finally dipped under 20 with his 19.97 in 5th!!
To end the Men's meet, Grant Holloway was yet another to DNS, disappointing the empty stadium!!
(Well, near empty!!)
In his absence, Daniel Roberts ran 13.03, his best in a few years!
Trey Cunningham's 13.08 edged past the 13.09's by Devon Allen and Jamal Britt!
For Britt, he's 23rd A-T US, tied with 1 other!!

Juniors--All Days
Tarik Robinson-O'Hagan won the HT with 246-4!
Tyrone Gorze won the 5000 in 14:08.08, not a PR!
Steven McElroy's 44.93 won the 400--a Meet Record!
Jordan Anthony's 20.35 in the 200 ranks him 14th A-T HS!

The Women's results will follow soon!