BOSTON
- Distance and field event finals provided champions in nine events
Saturday at the 2008 AT&T USA Indoor Track & Field
Championships at the Reggie Lewis Center, and familiar names topped
many of the results tables.
The final event of
the Visa Championship Series, the meet serves as the qualifying event
for Team USA's roster for the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Track & Field
Championships, to be held March 7-9 in Valencia, Spain. The top two
finishers in each event qualify, provided they have met IAAF
performance standards. The AT&T USA Indoor Championships will be
televised Sunday, February 24 from 5-7 p.m., Eastern Time on ESPN2.
Christin
Wurth-Thomas retained her lead top the women's Visa Championship
standings, blazing the final 800m of the Hershey women's 1,500m in 2:08
to finish in 4:14.21, the fastest time by an American this year.
Jenelle Deatherage, also having a career best year in 2008, was second
in 4:17.38.
World Indoor champion Brad Walker
proved he is back from a slight early-season injury, winning the men's
pole vault with a clearance of 5.70m/18-8.25. Rory Quiller was listed
at second with a jump of 5.60m/18-4.5, a height also achieved by 2004
Olympic silver medalist Toby Stevenson, Olympian Derek Miles and Jacob
Pauli.
Another pre-meet favorite, Matt
Tegenkamp, ran a controlled race to victory in the men's 3,000, passing
Chris Solinsky to win his second straight title 8:02.52. Solinsky was
second in 8:03.80.
New distance threat
The
women's 3000 saw a surprise victor, however. The 2007 NCAA indoor mile
champion while running for Duke, Shannon Rowbury displayed remarkable
poise, as well as leg speed, to easily pass early-leading Jen Rhines
with 400m to go in the women's 3,000m run. Rowbury finished in 8:55.19,
with two-time Olympian Rhines second in 8:59.98.
2007
USA indoor and outdoor champion Aarik Wilson won his second consecutive
indoor title in the men's triple jump with a best mark of
16.91m/55-5.75. 2004 Olympian Kenta Bell was second with
16.73m/54-10.75.
Jillian Camarena won her
fourth-straight national indoor title in the women's shot put, her
throw of 18.11m/59-5 just three inches farther than Abigail Ruston in
second (18.03m/59-2).
2002 World Junior champion
Andra Manson won his first national crown in the men's high jump with a
clearance of 2.30m/7-6.5 on his first attempt, after requiring three
attempts at 2.28m/7-5.75. Two-time NCAA outdoor champion Jesse Williams
was second at 2.28m. In the women's high jump, Amy Acuff won her fourth
overall and second consecutive national indoor title with a clearance
of 1.92m/6-3.5. Coming back after pregnancy, 2005 World Outdoor silver
medalist Chaunte Howard was second with 1.89m/6-2.25.
Two-time
USA outdoor heptathlon champion Hyleas Fountain won her first U.S.
indoor long jump title with a best effort of 6.38m/20-11.25. Shameka
Marshall also jumped 6.38m, but Fountain's second-best mark of
6.36m/20-10.5 gave her the win over Marshall's 6.28m/20-7.25.
Fresh
off a runner-up finish February 9 at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - 50
km Race Walk, Matthew Boyles won his first indoor title in the men's
5,000m race walk in 20:30.00. Patrick Stroupe was second in 20:59.83.
Harvey breaks another record during qualifying
In
qualifying action, Nicole Cook posted the fastest time in the women's
800m rounds, winning the second of three heats in 2:04.03. Also
advancing to the final was 42-year-old Alisa Harvey, who broke her own
U.S. masters record in placing third in heat 1. As The Killers' song
"When You Were Young" played ironically over the PA system, Harvey
finished in 2:06.08 to break her previous record of 2:07.08, run
January 26 at Penn State. American indoor record holder and two-time
USA champion Nicole Teter was first in heat 3 to advance as well
(2:06.68). 2007 U.S. indoor champion Nick Symmonds (1:48.67) and U.S.
outdoor champion Khadevis Robinson (1:48.88) were top qualifiers for
the men.
In Saturday's only other qualifying
rounds, 2007 World Outdoor Championships 4x400m relay gold medalist
Mary Wineberg was fastest in the Hershey women's 400 in 52.68, while
David Neville was fastest among the men in 47.19.
Competition
continues Sunday with finals in all other events. For more information,
including complete results and athlete quotes, visit www.usatf.org
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