Bernard Lagat to Face Craig Mottram in Wanamaker Mile at 100th Millrose Games By David Monti (c) 2006 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved
NEW
YORK (04-Jan-2007) -- Two-time Olympic 1500m medalist, Bernard Lagat of
Tucson, Ariz., is looking to celebrate the 100th edition of the
Millrose Games with his fifth victory in meet's signature event, the
Wanamaker Mile. But to get to the finish line first on the small, 11
lap-to-the-mile track at Madison Square Garden he's going to have to
get past --or stay in front of-- the 6 foot, 2 inch frame of Craig
Mottram, the 2005 IAAF World Championships bronze medalist at 5000m
from Australia.
"He's an athlete who can intimidate people, but
I shouldn't let that get me down," said Lagat in a telephone interview
from Tucson. "I have to be myself. It's my event."
Indeed, the
32 year-old Lagat has made the Wanamaker Mile his own by winning it in
2001, 2003, 2005 and 2006 (he was second in 2002). In 2005 he set the
Wanamaker record of 3:52.87 in a mostly solo run, and was named the top
athlete of the meet. Along the way, he's beaten the likes of Laban
Rotich (three times), Alan Webb, and most recently, Kenenisa Bekele,
whom Lagat bested by some five seconds at last year's event.
"I've
always been welcomed by the people in New York so much," said Lagat.
He added, "If I win, it will be really good for me and set me up for
outdoors."
Like Lagat, Mottram, 26, has an enviable competitive
record in New York City, but not on the track (yet). He's won three
road races organized by the New York Road Runners: the Healthy Kidney
10-K in 2005 and 2006 and the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile in
2005. Mottram is incredibly versatile, holding Australian records for
the mile, 2000m, 3000m, two miles, and 5000m. His best time for the
mile is 3:48.98, set in 2005, vs. 3:47.28 by Lagat, set in 2001.
"I
think it's a meeting of the titans, each champions in their own right,"
said Mary Wittenberg, president and CEO of the New York Road Runners.
"It's a credit to him to face America's best on a track which may not
suit him best. He's putting himself in the lion's den racing Lagat at
Millrose."
A
fifth victory by Lagat would tie him with Marcus O’Sullivan at #3 on
the all-time Wanamaker Mile list, behind only Eamonn Coghlan (7
victories) and Glenn Cunningham (6).
The 100th Millrose Games is
the second stop on the USA Track & Field Visa Championship series,
and will be held on Friday, Feb. 2 beginning at 6:00 p.m. The official
event website is http://www.Millrose-Games.com which has the complete event schedule.