Bernard Lagat and Renee Metivier Baillie Win 3k Titles at Day 1 of 2010 USATF Indoor Championships
By David Monti
(c) 2010 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved
ALBUQUERQUE (28-Feb) -- Using completely different strategies to deal
with the high altitude and their toughest competitors, Bernard Lagat
and Renee Metivier Baillie won the 3000m titles at the USA Indoor
Track and Field Championships here last night in front of a sellout crowd of nearly
3000.
Lagat decided to make it a slow race --painfully slow-- to force his
rivals to challenge his kick. The two-time Olympic medallist jumped on
the front of the race immediately, then slowed it way down, hitting the
first kilometer in about three minutes.
"That's marathon pace," commented USA Olympic Marathon Trials winner Ryan Hall who was amongst the spectators.
Although the pace remained middling, Adam State College's Aaron Braun
opened things up a bit in the second half, giving Lagat, and his
primary chasers Galen Rupp and Chris Solinsky, a chance to position
themselves for the final sprint. Lagat didn't wait too long, pushing
hard before the bell, and leaving Rupp and Solinsky to chase. He put
the race out of reach within seconds.
"I didn't know how I was going to feel with altitude," said Lagat.
"But you know what? I didn't feel any effect after five laps, and I'm
like, OK, then. I'm just going to have fun. I'm just going to protect
my position."
Lagat got to the finish line on the brick-red synthetic track in
8:12.60, while Rupp beat Solinsky through the final turn to take
second. Rupp was satisfied he had made the team, and said he had saved
something for the IAAF World Indoor Championships next month.
"I made the team; that's the top goal," said Rupp. "It's not about
doing anything special here. I'll save that for a couple of weeks from
now over in Doha."
Solinsky was clearly disappointed, especially given that he had spent most of the last six weeks training here.
"To be honest, I feel fine coming out of the race," said the former
University of Wisconsin star. "I just didn't have that next gear in my
legs. I didn't know why."
Metivier Baillie, who lives and trains in Boulder, Colo., which is at
an almost identical altitude to Albuquerque, decided to get away from
the field early, far away. As the rest of the women stayed together,
Metivier Baillie was leading by ten seconds with seven laps to go in
the 15 lap contest, a lead she ultimately built to 14 seconds with four
laps to go.
"I could tell that just everyone was putting on the brakes and I was like, screw it," said Metivier Baillie. "I'm going to go."
Shannon Rowbury, the 2009 world 1500m bronze medallist, mounted a chase
with Sara Hall, and the pair began to bring the gap down. They were
within eight seconds with two laps to go, and at the bell they were
just four seconds down.
"I was just trying to run to qualify and so I just kept focusing on my
race," said Hall. "And once I could see us gaining, I went for it in
the last 200."
Coming out of the last turn, Rowbury and Hall were right on Metivier
Baillie's heels, but she held them off in the final scramble for the
line to win by just 2/100ths of a second over Hall in 9:14.90.
Rowbury, who has the fastest sprint, had to settle for third.
"I wasn't exactly sure how I would react to the altitude, and maybe was
a little over cautious as a result," said Rowbury who lives and trains
in San Francisco with the Bay Area Track Club. "If I had the kick that
I normally do, I knew it would be possible, but I just didn't quite get
it."
For Metivier Baillie, an accomplished cross country runner, the victory
was particularly sweet. She had never won a national title before.
"I don't always get to use it, but I have a turbo which lasts about 70
meters," she said. "You have to be confident in yourself to the end,
whether you win or lose."
Although she won the race, Metivier Baillie told reporters that she
does not plan to race at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha in
two weeks. She had previously qualified for the IAAF World Cross
Country Championships in Poland at the end of March, and coach Jay
Johnson had been working on her strength and endurance for that event
(she also does not have the 9:03.00 qualifying standard). That would
open the next spot to Rowbury who has the standard, or fourth place
Desiree Davila, a marathoner, who ran 9:00.73 at the Reebok Boston
Indoor Games earlier this month. Hall, who also qualified for the
World Cross team, said she would give up that team spot to focus on
World Indoor.
* * * * * *
There were only a few surprises in 800m qualifying. Brian Gagnon beat
Jacob Hernandez in the final sprint in his heat, knocking the former
NCAA champion out of the meet. Gagnon, who ran for the University of
Connecticut, said that his coach had told him to be confident.
"I was feeling great," said Gagnon. "My coach has been telling me I'm
one of the fastest guys out there and that I just have to have
confidence in myself. I didn't fly 2000 miles to leave the first day.
I already did that outdoors, USA outdoors. I went out in the first
round. I'll never let that happen again."
Nick Symmonds (1:47.59) and his Oregon Track Club Elite teammate Tyler
Mulder (1:47.80) led all qualifiers out of the first heat. Symmonds
was feeling confident.
"We kind of wanted to all work together a little bit," said Symmonds
who was sporting a moustache. "I was supposed to take over the lead
with 150 to go, but it was too fast, so I just wanted to work with them
(Mulder and Mark Wieczorek). For sure he was going to get in with that
time. I didn't think anyone was going to run under 1:48 on this track,
I think we may have just done that. I'll take it."
More USATF Coverage: Day 1 Distance Race Recaps
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