LetsRun.com's Recap of Final Day of 2008 Olympic Track & Field Trials:
Lagat Completes Double as Those Who Were Having The Best 2008 Season's Get Top 3 in Men's and Women's 1,500
Women's 1,500: Rowbury Dominates As
the runner's lined up for the start of the women's 1,500, it was clear
that those without the A standard were in big-time trouble. The win was
stiff -13 mph with gusts up to 22 mph (according to weather.com) - and
blowing directly into their faces at the start.
3-time defending US champion Treniere Clement had
the lead at 400 but the time only read 68.17 - no way would she want to
take it out in 65 as she was one of just four in the race with the A.
It was clear, something had to be done quickly if there was any chance
people could hit the A standard. At 500 meters, Lindsey Gallo decided she'd better get the pace going and Gallo took the field through 800 in 2:15.73. At 800, the top five were Gallo, Christin Wurth, Shannon Rowbury and Amy Mortimer. High schooler Jordan Hasay was the only runner not in contact with the pack as she trailed the field by a few meters.
Women's 1500 Pack
Since
the runners passed the 700 mark at 1:59-2:00, it seemed clear that the
A standard was not a possibility for those chasing the standard. No way
the runners without the standard would close in 2:06. But over the
final 800, Shannon Rowbury would prove what we thought coming into this
race - she's at a totally different level than everyone else in the US
at the 1,500. On the far turn, 950 meters into the competition, she
moved to the lead and never looked back. She powered home in 61 over
the final 400 and 2:06 over the final 800 to capture the title in
absolutely dominating fashion.
As Rowbury
went to the lead, it totally shook up the field and the cream of the
crop became apparent as the two runners in the field behind Rowbury,
Christin Wurth and Erin Donohue (who had the A and have been running
well in 2008) broke clear of the pack and gave chase. At this point,
those two may not have known it but they were just running for pride as
their Olympic spots were secure as Treniere Clement faded, eventually
finishing last. In the end, Erin Donohue ended up 2nd in 4:08.20 to
Wurth's 4:08.48 as the 3 runners who have been having the best seasons
justifiably made the team.
Over the final 400, the one real question besides who would finish 2nd, Donohue or Wurth, was whether Morgan Uceny
could somehow catch up and finish in the top 3 - even though it was
clear she wasn't going to get the A standard. The answer was no as
Wurth and Donohue had a gear left in the last 100 meters. Uceny ended
up a clear 4th in 4:10.85, ending a fine 2008 Trials for the former
Cornell star. Uceny was 5th in the women's 800 final earlier in the
Trials. Today's run may signal that her future lies in the 1,500 as it
was only the 10th 1,500 meters of her life (including the 3 rounds
here).
Domination
Former Kansas State star, Amy
Mortimer, who has been chasing the A standard all spring (this was her
8th 1,500 of the year) and has run 4:07 three times, ended up a
deserving 5th. After the race, we caught up with Mortimer who said she
had no intention of trying to get the A standard in this race. "We
decided before that I wasn't going to try to push the pace to go for
the A as that's a good way to get hung out to dry," said Mortimer.
"I'm
going to Europe in a couple of days. I want to get the A standard for
next year definitely. I'm hoping to run under 4:05 this summer. I'm in
the best shape I've ever been in. I just have to get in a good race,"
added Mortimer. "It's sort of a relief (to have the Trials over). This
whole season has been all about trying to run 4:06 and every time I've
run 4:07 it's been depressing and I've had to recover from that."
The one runner who seemingly tried to push the pace towards the A standard of 4:07.00 ,Lindsey Gallo,
ended up 6th. 6th through 10th were separated by only 1.4 seconds.
Gallo was a bit mystified after the race as to why no one else tried to
help push the pace. "The most frustrating thing to me was that there
were 8 girls that need the A standard - well seven and a half if you
count Jordan (Hasay) - as she's so little - and everyone was content to
sit on me," cracked the former NJ high school star.
"From
my perspective, it doesn't do anybody any good to get top three and not
have the standard so I put myself sort of out on the line. There's no
reason 8 of us working together couldn't have done it. I mean what do
you have to lose - $500 bucks or whatever it is if you move up one
place at USAs. For me, it was go to the Olympics or get fourth to 8th
place or whatever. To me getting third and not having standard sucks as
much as getting 6th and having the standard."
The
final track event of the 2008 Olympic Track & Field Trials was
certainly one of the most anticipated. We had been waiting for this
race all week and really since last year. Ever since Lopez Lomong and
Leonel Manzano's thrilling duel at NCAAs last year and Manzano's 2nd
place finish at USAs, it was clear that something had to give. One of
the big four - Lomong, Manzano, Webb and Lagat - would be left of the
Beijing team.
Much like the women's
1,500, it seemed given the windy conditions that the A standard of
3:36.60 was out of the question before the race had started. When 300
meters was passed in close to 47 seconds, it was clear that only those
with the Olympic A standard - the Big 4 plus Rob Myers and Jon Rankin - were racing for an Olympic spot.
As 300 was reached in 47, 2000 US Olympic Trials champion Gabe Jennings
took over the lead and took the field through 400 in 61.42. He was
followed by Lagat, and Manzano while Webb was 2nd to last. At 700
(1:45.94 ht), Jennings still led and was followed by Lagat, Manzano,
and Said Ahmed while Alan Webb had moved up to 5th or
6th as he moved up from last to be in position with 800 to go. The
pace remained modest at 800 (2:00.70). A lap later (1200 in 2:59.68)
and little had changed as the field was completely bunched and everyone
was still in contention. Let the racing begin!!!
450 to go
(The
only thing that happened from 800 to 1200 really was a completely bush
league move to front by Said Ahmed who with 450 meters to go literally
used both hands to push a stunned Bernard Lagat to the side. How Ahmed
wasn't DQ'd is a stunner for us.)
The last
300 was fantastic as everyone jostled for position going down the
backstretch. The beauty of it was all of the big-time players were in
the mix.
With about 220 to go, Bernard Lagat
moved into the lead - a lead he would never relinquish. Webb was in 5th
or 6th still but wide and in a decent spot. Lopez Lomong was behind
Webb but came around on the way outside just before 200 as the big
players made their dash for home. In the midle of the turn, the top
three consisted of Lagat, Manzano and Lomong and the trio would
ultimately pull clear and convincingly punch their tickets to Beijing.
Lagat won comfortably by more than a half-second (.53) in 3:40.37 while
Manzano held off Lomong (3:40.90 to 3:41.00).
Alan
Webb went into the final turn probably in 5th or 6th and he was unable
to gain ground on the leaders in the final 100. It wasn't like Webb
faded as he pulled clear of the pack, it's just that the top three
pulled clear at a faster rate. There really was never any point in the
final 200 when one would think Webb was going to end up in the top
three. In the end, Webb was passed near the line by Oregon Track
Club's William Leer who managed to squeeze between Webb and Jon Rankin for fourth as Leer ran 3:41.54 to Webb's 3:41.62 to Rankin's 3:41.75.
After
the race, Webb brushed off the media in the mixed zone. Undoubtedly,
the American record holder in the mile had to be devastated by his
failure to make his 2nd Olympic team. We're sure people will debate
Webb's tactics for the next four years on the message boards but in our
minds for people to act like today's race was a collusal failure by
Webb on either a tactical of psychological front would be wrong.
The
fact of the matter is Webb entered this race as the 5th best US 1,500
runner of 2008 and he finished 5th. Lagat, Lomong, and Rankin had all
run faster than Webb this at the 1,500 or mile equivalent and Manzano
had clearly been having the better season. In the end, like the women,
the three men who had been having the best season's so far in 2008 made
the team.
100 to go
After the race, we caught up with
non-qualifiers Ranking, Lukezic and Will Leer. Their videos appear
below. Rankin, who seemed to us earlier to sort of just to be happy in
the final after running poorly in the 800 first round, had a totally
different attitude after today's 6th place finish. Rankin felt like he
should have come in the top 3.
"I wasn't
tying up when I finished," said Rankin who despite what he said was
passed by Leer near the line. "I was just was in a tough position -
boxed in most of the time. I couldn't really get out until it was too
late and when I did (the top 3) had already gotten away. So I blew it.
I should have been on the team today. I really felt like I was one of
the top 3 guys today.
"The toughest part
about not making the team today is that it's there. I missed an
opportunity and I might not get this chance again. It's quite
disappointing." said the former Pac 10 champ.
Lukezic
seemed pleased to have the Trials and the problem of not having the A
standard behind him. He's looking forward to going to Europe and
getting a new PR as he thinks he's in great shape despite today's 10th
place showing.
Will Leer gave a great
interview. We've spliced two interviews together. At the beginning of
the clip (which actually was the 2nd interview we did with him), he
talks about his great mustache and how it works well for him both on
and off the track.
Finals 1 Bernard Lagat Nike 3:40.37 2 Leonel Manzano Nike 3:40.90 3 Lopez Lomong Nike 3:41.00 4 William Leer Oregon TC Elite 3:41.54 5 Alan Webb Nike 3:41.62 6 Jon Rankin Nike 3:41.75
7 Said Ahmed Nike 3:42.20 8 Andrew McClary Arkansas 3:42.40 9 Rob Myers Reebok 3:42.62 10 Christopher Lukezic Reebok 3:43.26 11 Steve Sherer unattached 3:43.41 12 Gabriel Jennings Saucony 3:47.9
Bernard Lagat, Leo Manzano and Lopez Lomong 20 Minutes
Bernard Lagat on The American Dream and Webb
Lopez Lomong
Leo Manzano on His Dad Coming to America Getting Amnesty and Alan Webb
Gabe Jennings Says He Won't Quit After This Race And Will Have to Medal in London
Will Leer
Chris Lukezic
Jon Rankin
Men's 110 Hurdles: David Oliver is the Man The
stunning thing about the 110 final was how the pressure seemingly got
to many of the competitors. In the prelims, 4 guys ran 13.09 or better
with a 5th at 13.15. In the final, despite a big tail-wind, third place
ended up being 13.25 as Anwar Moore bit the dust and fell after the
last hurdle - costing himself a spot on the Olympic team.
Finals 1 David Oliver Nike 12.95 3.5 2 Terrence Trammell Mizuno 13.00 3.5 3 David Payne Nike 13.25 3.5 4 Aries Merritt Reebok 13.27 3.5 5 Antwon Hicks adidas 13.33 3.5 6 Andrew Brunson Florida State
13.43 3.5 7 Ty Akins Auburn 13.82 3.5 8 Anwar Moore Nike 16.64 3.5
Semi-Results
Semi-Finals 1 David Oliver Nike 12.89Q 3.2 2 Terrence Trammell Mizuno 13.08Q 2.0 3 David Payne Nike 13.06Q 3.2 4 Antwon Hicks adidas 13.09Q 2.0 5 Anwar Moore Nike 13.15Q 2.0 6 Aries Merritt Reebok
13.24Q 3.2 7 Ty Akins Auburn 13.26Q 3.2 8 Andrew Brunson Florida State 13.33Q 2.0
Women's 100 Hurdles: Lolo Jones Flies Despite
an illegal wind, Lolo Jones ran one of the fastest 100 hurldes in
histoy under any conditions as she won the final in 12.29. The American
record is 12.33. Damu Cherry, who once served a two-year doping suspension, was 2nd while defending Olympic champ Joanna Hayes was left off the team.
Finals 1 Lolo Jones Asics 12.29 3.8 2 Damu Cherry Nike 12.58 3.8 3 Dawn Harper unattached 12.62 3.8 12.612 4 Nichole Denby adidas 12.62 3.8 12.619 5 Candice Davis unattached 12.66 3.8 6 Virginia Powell
Nike 12.74 3.8 7 Joanna Hayes Nike 12.96 3.8 -- Kellie Wells Nike DNS 3.8
Dix Closing Fast
Men's 200: Walter Dix The Most Underpaid Man in the Sport The man who probably made the most bank at the Trials is likely Walter Dix.
Heading into the Trials, we were hearing reports as to how the shoe
companies were low-balling Dix as they weren't sure that he was the
same man as the one who ran a 19.69 last year at Florida State.
Supposedly, they wanted to see what direction he was headed.
Even
after making the 100 meter team earlier in the week, Dix didn't sign as
most people thought he would. In hind-sight, that was a very smart
move - particularly now that Tyson Gay is out. Dix's
price tag continued to rise as somehow he won the 200 today. With 5
meters to go, it looked like defending Olympic champ Shawn Crawford had
an insurmountable lead but somehow the hard-charging Dix caught him at
the tape. Wallace Spearmon was the biggest benefactor of his former
Arkansas teammate's misfortune as he ended up 3rd (a spot Gay would
have had for sure).
Nonetheless Crawford
had a great meet and picked the perfect time to run well as he hadn't
broken 20 seconds since winning the Olympic gold in Athens with a time
of 19.79.
Finals 1 Walter Dix Florida State 19.86S 1.7 19.852 2 Shawn Crawford Nike 19.86S 1.7 19.857 3 Wallace Spearmon Nike 19.90 1.7 4 Rodney Martin Nike 19.99 1.7 5 Charles Clark Florida State 20.53 1.7 6 Rubin Williams
Tennessee 20.61 1.7 7 Bernard Williams adidas 20.63 1.7 -- Xavier Carter Nike DNS 1.7
Women's 200: Allyson Felix Wins, Hooker Dives The
women's 200 ended up being a great race. First of all, adidas poster
child Allyson Felix picked up an impressive victory in 21.82. But the
battle for third is what had our attention as Marshevet Hooker ended
up diving across the finish line. We'd never seen that in a sprint
before. It probably wasn't intentional but her quest to lean for the
tape, she ended up tripping and diving across the line at the perfect
time.
Men's Triple Jump: 6th Round Heroics Changes Team The triple jump was very exciting as both the winner (Aarik Wilson) and runner-up (Kenta Bell)
went from being off the Beijing team to on it on their final jumps.
Wilson and Bell that our favorite motto about the field events is true,
"You can't coach clutch."
That phrase is courtesy of 2008 NCAA triple jump champion, Muhammid Halim, who said it last year in 2007. Halim ended up 9th today.
Wilson
and Bell's heroics came at the expense of Walter Davis, a medallist at
the last two world championships, as he ended up in 4th - 1 centimeter
off of 3rd. David got a good jump off in the 6th round but just came up
short.
Women's Pole Vault: AR For Jenn S. Jenn Stuczynski provided
plenty of drama as she almost no-heighted (clearing on her 3rd attempt)
but then more than made up for it by setting a new American record.
Finals 1 Jennifer Stuczynski adidas 4.92mA 16-01.75 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55 4.60 4.65 4.76 4.92 5.02 PPP PPP PPP PPP PPP PPP XXO O O XXO XXP 2 April Steiner Bennett adidas 4.60m 15-01.00 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55 4.60 4.65 PPP XO O PPP O PPP XO XXX 3 Erica Bartolina
unattached 4.55m 14-11.00 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55 4.60 PPP XO PPP XXO PPP XXO XXX 4 Jillian Schwartz Nike 4.50m 14-09.00 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55 PPP O O PPP O XXX 5 Tracy O'Hara unattached 4.50m 14-09.00 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55
PPP O O PPP XO XXX 6 Becky Holliday unattached 4.50m 14-09.00 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 4.55 PPP O O PPP XXO XXX 7 Mary Vincent Asics 4.40m 14-05.25 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 O O O PPP XXX 7 Chelsea Johnson Nike 4.40m 14-05.25 4.20
4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 PPP PPP O PPP XXX 7 Stacy Dragila Nike 4.40m 14-05.25 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 PPP O O PPP XXX 10 Lacy Janson Nike 4.40m 14-05.25 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 4.50 PPP O XO PPP XXX 10 Melinda Owen Idaho 4.40m 14-05.25 4.20 4.30 4.40 4.45 O O XO XXX -- Erin Asay unattached NH 4.20 4.30 PPP XXX
Men's Javelin The winner of the men's javelin won't be going to Beijing as he doesn't have the A. Such a shame the winner, Bobby Smith, can't go. For the matter, neither can former NCAA champ at Penn Brian Chaput who was 3rd.
The only guys with the A are 2nd placer Mike Hazle as well as 5th placer Leigh Smith. It looks like they will go to Athens along with Breaux Greer who didn't
even make the final. No one is 100% sure if Greer will go but he is the only other one with the A.