Running News Daily

Defending champions Morgan Beadlescomb and Annie Rodenfels return to the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k

New York City Marathon weekend kicks off with a much-anticipated USATF 5 km Championships at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k on Saturday, November 2, taking place the day before the 53rd running of the TCS New York City Marathon.

The USATF 5 km Championships at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k are the 11th stop on the 2024 USATF Running Circuit. Live coverage of this year’s championships will be broadcast on USATF.TV, starting at 8:20 a.m. ET, with the men’s race going off at 8:30 a.m. and the women starting five minutes after at 8:35 a.m. 

Defending champions Morgan Beadlescomb and Annie Rodenfels return to the streets of Midtown Manhattan after winning last year’s USATF 5km Championships in their respective races. 

The former Michigan State Spartan Beadlescomb surged away from Ahmed Muhumed, Tai Dinger and Daniel Schaffer in the final stretch to win last year’s men’s title in 13:44, besting the field by a comfortable three seconds to claim his first USATF crown. 

Looking to become the first men’s repeat champion since Ben True in 2011-12 when the USATF 5 km Championships were held in Providence, R.I., Beadlescomb will take on another tough field that will feature Muhumed (second), Schaffer (fourth) and Brian Barazza (fifth) from last year’s race, as well as a handful of others with impressive credentials.

Beadlescomb could also become the first male athlete to win two USATF 5 km Championships titles at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k course, along with 2019 USATF 5 km champion Anthony Rotich making his way back into the field for the first time since winning the 2019 title.

Muhumed is the only competitor in the field that has won a USATF title this year on the USATF Running Circuit, winning the USATF 8 km Championships back in July in Kingsport, Tennessee. The USATF 8 km Championships were also the last time Muhumed raced this year. 

Sam Chelanga, Sam Prakel and Josh Thompson join Beadlescomb, Rotich and Muhumed as three more USATF national champions set to race, bringing the total to six national champions in Saturday’s field. 

Chelanga, a two-time USATF champion, will go after his first USATF national title since 2016 when he won the USATF 10 Mile title. He’s raced twice this season on the USATF Running Circuit, finishing third at the USATF 10 km Championships and fourth at the USATF 20 km Championships. 

Prakel, the 2023 USATF Road Mile champion, and Thompson, the 2020 USATF Indoor 1500 champion, are both eyeing a second national title of their own. 

Parlympian and New York native Michael Brannigan is slated to race after competing for the United States at the 2024 Paris Paralympic Games, where he came away with his second Parlympic medal in the men’s T20 1500, earning bronze to go with his 2016 gold from the Rio Games. 

Derek Johnson, Titus Winder and Kirubel Erassa will be other names to watch out for in the men’s race. 

Rodenfels earned her first USATF national title by defeating Rachel Smith by four seconds in last year’s women’s race, running 15:22. 

Rodenfels has since won another USATF national title earlier this season, winning the 2024 USATF 6 km Championship race by 13 seconds on July 13 in Canton, Ohio. 

With a win on Saturday, Rodenfels could join Weini Kelati as the only competitors to repeat as USATF 5 km champions at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k course and the sixth woman to complete consecutive national titles in the history of the USATF 5 km Championships. 

Challenging Rodenfels will be Emma Grace Hurley, who will be racing in her seventh USATF Running Circuit race this year, with her latest effort being a third-place finish at the USATF 10 km Championships in Northport, New York, on September 21. 

Hurley, who was ninth at last year’s USATF 5 km Championships, has finished as high as second place in two USATF Running Circuit races this year at the USATF 8 km Championships and the USATF Cross Country Championships. 

Susanna Sullivan and Natosha Rogers are a pair of veterans coming off great races in their recent outings looking to mix it up in the top half of the field. 

Sullivan completed this year’s Chicago Marathon as the top American, running a lifetime best of 2:21:56 to finish seventh overall, making her the 10th-fastest American marathoner in history. 

Rogers won the Medtronic Twin Cities 10 Mile in St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minnesota, on October 6, in 52:29 just two weeks after finishing second at the USATF 10 km Championships. 

Logan Jolly, Cailie Logue and Elena Hayday are other competitors entered in this year’s USATF 5 km Championships with past results on this year’s USATF Running Circuit. 

2023 Cross Country champion Katie Wasserman adds some intrigue to the field, running in her first road race since 2022.

About the USATF Running Circuit

The USATF Running Circuit is a USATF road series featuring USATF championships from one mile through marathon and consistently attracts the best American distance runners with more than $500,000 awarded in total prize money. A total of $60,000 in prize money will be awarded at the USATF 5 km Championships. 

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USATF Running Circuit race. For the USATF 5 km Championships, scoring is set as 15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1, with those earning the most points receiving prize money at the end of the series. 

The mission of the USATF Running Circuit is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USATF Running Circuit and its race have provided over $7 million to U.S. Distance runners.

(11/01/2024) Views: 158 ⚡AMP
by Keenan Gray

Ollie Hoare to defend Wanamaker mile title at Millrose Games

Organizers of the Millrose Games have announced that Ollie Hoare will defend his Wanamaker Mile title at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in New York on February 11.

Hoare, the Commonwealth 1500m champion, won last year’s Wanamaker mile in an Oceanian indoor record of 3:50.83.

“I’m thrilled to be able to come back and defend my Wanamaker title,” said the Australian. “It will be great to be out there competing at one of my favorite mile races in the world.”

He will take on a field that includes 2021 US 1500m champion and Olympic finalist Cole Hocker, European bronze medalist Mario Garcia Romo of Spain, US Olympian Yared Nuguse, NCAA record-holder Eliud Kipsang of Kenya, 2017 world finalist Johnny Gregorek, three-time New Zealand champion Sam Tanner, world indoor and outdoor finalist Neil Gourley, as well as USA’s Josh Thompson, Sam Prakel and Drew Hunter.

(01/12/2023) Views: 768 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

USA names 151-strong team for World Championships in Oregon

A team of 151 athletes will represent the USA on home soil at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 on July 15-24.

Multiple global champions and world record-holders feature in the squad as Eugene’s Hayward Field gets ready to welcome the world for the first-ever outdoor World Athletics Championships to be hosted in the USA.

World record-holder and Olympic champion Sydney McLaughlin will take on the former world record-holder and reigning world champion Dalilah Muhammad as they look to further cement the US women’s global dominance in the 400m hurdles final on July 22.

In the men’s shot put on July 17, world record-holder and Olympic champion Ryan Crouser will go after the one title that has so far eluded him – that of world champion – and will take on two-time world champion Joe Kovacs.

Such is the strength of the women’s 800m squad of Athing Mu, Ajee Wilson and Raevyn Rogers, as well as the men’s 200m team of Noah Lyles, Erriyon Knighton, Fred Kerley and Kenny Bednarek, that athletes will be aiming for USA medal sweeps.

Returning to defend the titles they won in Doha in 2019 are Nia Ali (women's 100m hurdles), Donavan Brazier (men's 800m), Christian Coleman (men's 100m), Grant Holloway (men's 110m hurdles), Kovacs (men's shot put), Lyles (men's 200m), Muhammad (women's 400m hurdles), DeAnna Price (women's hammer) and Christian Taylor (men's triple jump).

Making her 10th World Championships appearance will be Allyson Felix, who has 18 world medals, including 13 golds, to her name and will be in the mixed 4x400m pool.

“I couldn’t be prouder to lead this amazing team for this once-in-a-lifetime event,” said USATF CEO Max Siegel. “We have been given the unique opportunity to impact the track and field landscape in the US, and we’ve put our best team forward.”

USA team for Oregon

Women

100m: Aleia Hobbs, Melissa Jefferson, Twanisha Terry

200m: Tamara Clark, Jenna Prandini, Abby Steiner

400m: Talitha Diggs, Kendall Ellis, Lynna Irby

800m: Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers, Ajee Wilson

1500m: Sinclaire Johnson, Cory McGee, Elle St. Pierre

5000m: Elise Cranny, Emily Infeld, Karissa Schweizer

10,000m: Alicia Monson, Natosha Rogers, Karissa Schweizer

Marathon: Emma Bates, Keira D’Amato, Sara Hall

3000m steeplechase: Emma Coburn, Courtney Frerichs, Courtney Wayment

100m hurdles: Nia Ali, Alia Armstrong, Keni Harrison, Alaysha Johnson

400m hurdles: Shamier Little, Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, Britton Wilson

Heptathlon: Michelle Atherley, Anna Hall, Kendell Williams, Ashtin Zamzow-Mahler

High jump: Vashti Cunningham, Rachel Glenn, Rachel McCoy

Pole vault: Gabriela Leon, Sandi Morris, Katie Nageotte

Long jump: Quanesha Burks, Tiffany Flynn, Jasmine Moore

Triple jump: Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore, Keturah Orji

Shot put: Adelaide Aquilla, Chase Ealey, Maggie Ewen, Jessica Woodard

Discus: Valarie Allman, Rachel Dincoff, Veronica Fraley, Laulauga Tausaga-Collins

Hammer: Brooke Andersen, Annette Echikunwoke, Janee Kassanavoid, DeAnna Price

Javelin: Ariana Ince, Maggie Malone, Kara Winger

20km race walk: Robyn Stevens, Miranda Melville

35km race walk: Stephanie Casey, Miranda Melville, Maria Michta-Coffey

4x100m: Celera Barnes, Tamari Davis, Gabby Thomas (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

4x400m: Wadeline Jonathas, Jaide Stepter, Kaylin Whitney (plus athletes named in individual sprints) 

Men

100m: Marvin Bracy, Trayvon Bromell, Christian Coleman, Fred Kerley

200m: Kenny Bednarek, Fred Kerley, Erriyon Knighton, Noah Lyles

400m: Champion Allison, Michael Cherry, Michael Norman, Randolph Ross

800m: Donavan Brazier, Bryce Hoppel, Jonah Koech, Brandon Miller

1500m: Johnny Gregorek, Cooper Teare, Josh Thompson

5000m: Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid, Abdihamid Nur

10,000m: Grant Fisher, Joe Klecker, Sean McGorty 

Marathon: Elkanah Kibet, Colin Mickow, Galen Rupp

3000m steeplechase: Hillary Bor, Evan Jager, Benard Keter

110m hurdles: Devon Allen, Trey Cunningham, Grant Holloway, Daniel Roberts

400m hurdles: Trevor Bassitt, Rai Benjamin, Khallifah Rosser

Decathlon: Steven Bastien, Kyle Garland, Zach ZiemekHigh jump: Darius Carbin, JuVaughn Harrison, Shelby McEwen

Pole vault: Andrew Irwin, Chris Nilsen, Luke WinderLong jump: Marquis Dendy, Steffin McCarter, Will Williams

Triple jump: Chris Benard, Will Claye, Donald Scott, Christian Taylor

Shot put: Josh Awotunde, Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs, Tripp Piperi Discus: Andrew Evans, Sam Mattis, Brian Williams

Hammer: Daniel Haugh, Rudy Winkler, Alex Young

Javelin: Ethan Dabbs, Tim Glover, Curtis Thompson

20km race walk: Nick Christie, Dan Nehnevaj

35km race walk: Nick Christie 

4x100m: Kyree King, Josephus Lyles, Elijah Hall-Thompson (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

4x400m: Bryce Deadmon, Vernon Norwood, Elija Godwin (plus athletes named in individual sprints)

Mixed

4x400m: Allyson Felix, Kennedy Simon, Ismail Turner, Noah Williams (plus athletes named in individual sprints).

(07/06/2022) Views: 1,119 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

It Shouldn’t Be This Hard to Be a Running Fan

Despite incredible performances at the USATF Outdoor Championships, the meet’s presentation failed to make the sport accessible for a wider audience.

The USATF Outdoor Championships were last weekend. But unless you made the trek to Eugene, Oregon, or you knew exactly where to watch at exactly the right time, you might have missed some (or all) of the action. 

Even if you managed to watch the meet, you might have been left wondering who actually qualified to represent Team USA at the World Athletics Championships from July 15–24. Why will sprinter Christian Coleman run worlds after skipping out on the 100-meter final, despite running the rounds? But Jonathan Davis, who finished second in the men’s 1500 meters, did not qualify? There are answers to these questions, but such answers require prior knowledge of an elaborate qualification system that’s bound to confuse the casual viewer.

Those unclear qualification parameters, along with schedule changes, expensive travel and lodging, and an inconvenient number of streaming services, turned a celebration of athleticism into a Twitter gripe-fest, led by some of the sport’s biggest stars. 

That’s not to say the U.S. championships weren’t exciting. Quite the opposite, in fact—the best part of the championships were the athletes’ performances. But everything outside the physical races, throws, vaults, and jumps was simply not on par with other professional sports’ presentations. 

How can running become a more accessible sport to the general public? A lot of factors are at play, but critiquing the current shortcomings is step one.

Eugene is difficult and expensive to get to

Hayward Field is undoubtedly a historic venue in track history, and its home city, Eugene, is often dubbed Tracktown USA. So it makes sense that it should host major U.S. meets. But that doesn’t mean it should host all of the important events. 

Between Memorial Day weekend and late July, the University of Oregon stadium will have hosted the Prefontaine Classic, the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships, the USATF Outdoor Championships, and the World Athletics Championships—the four best meets in the U.S. this year. 

It’s definitely an outlier year—the World Athletics Championships are on U.S. soil for the first time—but that means the NCAA championships and USATF Outdoor Championships should have been held elsewhere. (The Prefontaine Classic won’t and shouldn’t leave Hayward, because of Steve Prefontaine’s connection to the state and university.) 

But track fans who live outside the state face complicated and expensive trips to make it to just one of these meets, let alone four over the course of two months.

An estimated 55,000 people will be in Eugene for the World Athletics Championships, and it shows in hotel supply and demand. Oregon Live reported that the Best Western close to Hayward Field costs $110 per night on a typical week, but it will skyrocket to $596 per night during Worlds. Add in the cost of a flight to Eugene—or a flight to Portland, plus a rental car—and track fans could likely only afford one trip this year, skipping the U.S. championships in favor of Worlds.

The attendance numbers speak for themselves. Only 13,306 people showed up for the 2022 USATF Outdoor Championships—an average of 3,327 each day in a stadium with the capacity for 12,650, expandable to nearly 25,000. In 2019, the last World Championships year, 30,367 fans traveled to Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa, to watch the U.S. national meet.

The takeaway isn’t simply to host the U.S. championships elsewhere, however. Hayward Field hosted the 2015 U.S. championships that qualified for worlds and 38,705 people were there. (It also hosted the Olympic Trials last year, though Olympic years generally have higher attendance numbers.) USATF needs to encourage other venues to bid for a chance to host the U.S. championships—preferably in locales more accommodating to large sporting events. 

Unfortunately, hosting the national championships is a big undertaking, and USATF doesn’t recommend new cities go straight from nothing to hosting the big one. Hayward Field already has the infrastructure in place to put on big meets—but so do Hornet Stadium in Sacramento, California, which hosted U.S. nationals in 2017, and Drake Stadium. In a unique year like this one, USATF should do more work to ensure fans aren’t stuck paying big bucks to go to the same stadium four times in two months. 

Fans at home navigate increasingly convoluted streaming and broadcasting schedules and costs

If the prevalence of “how to watch this event” articles tells you anything about track, it’s that viewing the sport at home requires multiple streaming subscriptions, a beefy cable package, and hour-by-hour knowledge of which network shows which events. 

This year, the USATF Outdoor Championships were broadcast across three different channels: NBC, CNBC, and USA. All three are owned by NBCUniversal. The meet streamed on two services: Peacock, which is NBC’s streaming service, and USATF.TV, a partner site on Runnerspace. 

To catch every event live, you had to bounce around. Day one was only streamed on USATF.TV. Day two streamed on Peacock and broadcast on CNBC. On day three, the first hour of competition was on USATF.TV, while the rest was on Peacock and NBC. Every full-length field competition streamed on USATF.TV.

The final day didn’t go as planned. It was supposed to stream on Peacock, while the first half broadcast on NBC and the second half on USA. If the broadcast splitting into two networks mid-meet wasn’t ridiculous enough, a last-minute schedule change (due to high temperatures in Eugene) pushed some events earlier in the day, which disrupted the broadcast and streaming schedule. 

Therefore, fans had to again turn to USATF.TV for the updated portion of the schedule, then log back into Peacock or turn on their televisions for the rest of the events. 

Streaming is normally the simplest and most cost-effective way to watch the U.S. national meet. To watch live sports on Peacock, you have to pay a $4.99 per month fee. A USATF.TV subscription is more costly—a monthly pass costs $12.99, and a yearly pass costs $119.88, which works out to $9.99 per month—but also gives you access to all other Runnerspace content. And if you only wanted to tune into the U.S. track championships, you only had to pay $18 total for a one-month subscription to each—that’s much less than a ticket to most sporting events. 

But here’s the trouble: if you’re a running fan who diligently follows the sport, you can’t watch every event on those two services alone.

Flotrack owns the rights to stream many of the major invitational track meets across the U.S., and they charge $29.99 monthly or $12.49 per month with an annual subscription. ESPN owns the rights to the NCAA championships, some major NCAA conference meets, the American Track League, and the New York City Marathon, which are only streamable if you have a cable subscription. The website Cable TV analyzed 381 plans across 15 providers and concluded that the average cost of cable is $79—and that’s without an internet bundle.

So how much does it cost to be a track fan that wants to watch most events live? Over $100 per month with annual subscriptions. That’s not cheap—especially when coverage is across disparate platforms subject to change at day’s notice and varies in quality. 

Unfortunately, there’s no easy solution to this problem. While a singular running broadcast hub would be fantastic, it’s simply not feasible. Each network and service has rights to certain events and control them as such. But there are two things track fans can demand: clear and timely communication from USATF about where they can watch events live, and the respect of cable television networks, like NBC or ESPN, to show meets in their entirety on a single channel—without cutting to commercial mid-race.

It’s exhausting to explain the world championships qualification process to a casual viewer

Before 2019, USATF selected world championships qualifiers based on two main factors: whether you finished top three at the USATF Outdoor Championships, and whether you had the world qualification standard. The world standards are put in place by World Athletics—the international governing body of track & field—to limit the global championships to the best athletes.

If the top three finishers did not have the world standard, they were allowed to chase the standard for a period after the national meet ended and before the world meet began. If one of those athletes did not get the standard in time, the next person in finishing order at the USATF Outdoor Championships would qualify instead. 

For example, athletes A, B, and C get first, second, and third at the U.S. championships in their event. Athlete C, however, did not achieve the world standard mark. Athlete C chases the standard, but fails to achieve it in the allotted time frame. Athlete D, who finished fourth, does have the standard, and will compete at the world championships instead of athlete C.

Does that already sound a bit confusing? Well, in 2019, World Athletics introduced a world ranking system, where “athletes score points based on a combination of result and place depending on the level of the competition in which the result is achieved.” This adds a new dimension to qualification, which assists athletes who might not achieve the standard but have been performing well in highly competitive meets, like the Diamond League circuit. 

At the U.S. championships, this is normally not an issue. The top three athletes usually either have the standard or have a high enough world ranking that they qualify. At this year’s championships, however, one event caused everyone in the track world to scratch their heads. 

The men’s 1500 meters is often a slow, tactical race, which leads to unconventional outcomes. Four men in this year’s final achieved the world standard mark of 3:35.00. But only one of those men placed top three—Cooper Teare, who won the race in a pedestrian 3:45.86. Second-place finisher Jonathan Davis had neither the standard nor a high enough world ranking, because he competed in the NCAA for the University of Illinois all season. Third-place finisher Josh Thompson similarly did not hit the standard, but he did have a high enough world ranking in 39th. The next two people with the world standard were Johnny Gregorek in sixth, and Yared Nuguse in 11th. But because this race counts toward world rankings, someone in between Thompson and Gregorek, like Eric Holt in fourth, could potentially jump the world rankings list to snag the third world team spot. However, Holt would have to land in the top 45 on the world ranking list—he sat 73rd before the race.

Chaos ensued over the next few hours as journalists, athletes, and fans deliberated over Twitter about who would actually qualify. But when the dust settled, there was no definitive answer. By the end of the last day of the U.S. championships, June 26, World Athletics released new rankings. Davis jumped from 110th to 93rd, while Holt remained the same. Neither earned the World Championships berth, as the qualification window closed on June 29.

Such a convoluted system isn’t just a blight for fans. Athletes like Davis, who ran the race of his life to earn second place, miss out on a chance to represent the United States. And those opportunities don’t come often.

“It was a little bittersweet,” Davis told Runner’s World. “It’d be really nice if it would have been similar to past years, where a top finish would possibly get you into the world championships. But [my coach and I] knew this was a possibility and that we have to deal with it.”

Davis believes emphasizing national meet placement would be more fair—and that the NCAA championships should have more impact on world rankings. But overall, he was happy with his performance and not too worried about missing out on worlds. “If I’m back next year, we’ll make sure I have the standard and get into some better races to increase my world rank,” he said. 

But when asked directly about his thoughts on just how confusing the qualification procedures are, he laughed and said, “I’m not going to explain them to my grandparents.”

The world rankings are still a work in progress, according to World Athletics: “As we develop tools and processes to further expand the reach of our statistical service, these figures are destined to grow steadily and consistently.” In the meantime, athletes suffer, fans get confused, and casual viewers remain apathetic.

(07/03/2022) Views: 1,169 ⚡AMP
by CHRIS HATLER, Runners World

USATF 2022 Championships finals results through June 25

There has already been a lot of a action during the 2022 USATF Championships in Eugene Oregon.  Sydney McLaughlin set a new world record in the 400m hurdles (Second photo).  Michael Norman won the 400m (first photo) and Fred Kerley won the 100m (third photo). Photos  by Jivko

Women’s 100m

1. Melissa Jefferson — 10.69 2. Aleia Hobbs — 10.72 3. Twanisha Terry — 10.744. Tamari Davis — 10.785. Tamara Clark — 10.826. Celera Barnes — 10.86

Women’s 400m 

1. Talitha Diggs — 50.22 2. Kendall Ellis — 50.35 3. Lynna Irby — 50.674. Wadeline Jonathas — 50.845. Kennedy Simon — 50.906. Allyson Felix — 51.307. Jaide Stepter — 51.308. Kaylin Whitney — 51.31

Women’s 1500m 

1. Sinclaire Johnson — 4:03.29 2. Cory McGee — 4:04.52 3. Elle St. Pierre — 4:05.144. Karissa Schweizer — 4:05.405. Heather MacLean — 4:06.40

Women’s 10,000m (from May 27)

1. Karissa Schweizer — 30:49.56 2. Alicia Monson — 30:51.09 3. Natosha Rogers — 31:29.804. Emily Infeld — 31:30.045. Weini Kelati — 31:39.90

Women’s 100m Hurdles 

1. Keni Harrison — 12.34 2. Alaysha Johnson — 12.35 3. Alia Armstrong — 12.474. Tonea Marshall — 12.555. Tia Jones — 12.59DNS. Nia Ali (has bye onto world team)

Women’s 400m Hurdles 

1. Sydney McLaughlin — 51.41 WR 2. Britton Wilson — 53.08 3. Shamier Little — 53.924. Anna Cockrell — 53.985. Shannon Meisberger — 55.39

Men’s 100m 

1. Fred Kerley — 9.77 2. Marvin Bracy-Williams — 9.85 3. Trayvon Bromell — 9.884. Micah Williams — 9.905. Elijah Hall-Thompson — 9.906. Kyree King — 9.96DNS. Christian Coleman (has bye onto world team)

Men’s 400m 

1. Michael Norman — 43.56 2. Champion Allison — 43.70 3. Randolph Ross — 44.174. Elija Godwin — 44.345. Vernon Norwood — 44.356. Bryce Deadmon — 44.547. Noah Williams — 45.048. Ismail Turner — 45.56

Men’s 1500m

1. Cooper Teare — 3:45.86 2. Jonathan Davis — 3:46.01 (doesn’t have standard)3. Josh Thompson — 3:46.07 (doesn’t have standard)4. Eric Holt — 3:46.15 (doesn’t have standard)5. Reed Brown — 3:46.28 (doesn’t have standard)6. Johnny Gregorek — 3:46.36 (has standard)11. Yared Nuguse — 3:47.46 (has standard)

Men’s 10,000m (from May 27)

1. Joe Klecker — 28:28.71 2. Grant Fisher — 28:28.81 3. Sean McGorty — 28:29.574. Dillon Maggard — 28:30.755. Shadrack Kipchirchir — 28:30.79

Men’s 3000m Steeplechase 

1. Hillary Bor — 8:15.76 2. Evan Jager — 8:17.29 3. Benard Keter — 8:19.164. Duncan Hamilton — 8:20.235. Anthony Rotich — 8:23.15

(06/25/2022) Views: 1,251 ⚡AMP

Global 1500m champions Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Samuel Tefera ready to clash in Belgrade

Two global champions are on a collision course in the men’s 1500m at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Belgrade 22, with Olympic gold medallist Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway looking to depose Ethiopia’s Samuel Tefera as the world indoor champion.

Based on their recent clash in Lievin, where Ingebrigtsen broke Tefera’s world indoor 1500m record, clocking 3:30.60, the pressure and expectation will rest with the 21-year-old Norwegian. That Lievin race was Ingebrigtsen’s sole outing of the indoor season, and he looked majestic as he bounded away from Tefera over the final 300 metres after the pacemaker stepped aside.

A championship final, of course, will present a very different challenge, but Ingebrigtsen showed in Tokyo and at last year’s European Indoor Championships that he has the tactical nous to go with his physical gifts. With his long-time rival Timothy Cheruiyot bypassing the indoor season, he will likely have to do his own pace-making if he wants a fast final, the kind of race in which he has become nigh-on unbeatable.

Tefera, however, will not go down without a considerable fight, and the 22-year-old Ethiopian gave Ingebrigtsen a much better race in Lievin than the three-second margin of victory suggested.

Perhaps Ingebrigtsen’s biggest challenger, though, will be Kenya’s Abel Kipsang. He finished fourth in the Olympic final last year and showed impressive indoor credentials when taking victory in Birmingham last month in 3:34.57. A recent 1:45.84 clocking for 800m outdoors in Nairobi signals he’s got the speed to be a threat here.

The British challenge will be led by Neil Gourley, who clocked 3:35.32 in Boston last month and who was runner-up in a slow 1500m final at the British Indoor Championships. He will be joined by George Mills, who impressed in Birmingham last month when clocking a PB of 3:36.03 against a world-class field.

Another athlete keen to see a fast final will be Oliver Hoare, the Australian who clocked a 3:50.83 mile to win at the Millrose Games in New York in January. In that race he powered away from Olympic bronze medallist Josh Kerr, showing the kind of closing speed and strength that will make him dangerous, particularly in a fast race.

Spain’s Ignacio Fontes, like Hoare, was an Olympic finalist last year and he booked his place here with a runner-up finish behind Adel Mechaal at the Spanish Indoor Championships, with Mechaal later electing to focus on the 3000m in Belgrade.

Germany’s Robert Farken is another who’ll have high expectations after the 24-year-old lowered his PB to 3:35.44 in Birmingham last month, while Ethiopia’s Teddese Lemi clocked an indoor PB of 3:35.84 last month and has 1:44 800m speed – which should prove useful in this realm.

Ireland’s Andrew Coscoran will be hoping to reproduce the form that saw him take victory in Staten Island last month with a 3:53.64 mile, where he was followed in third place by compatriot Luke McCann, who will join him in Belgrade.

The US charge will be led by Josh Thompson and Sam Prakel, who finished second and fourth respectively at their national championships.

(03/15/2022) Views: 1,120 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

Grant Fisher (12:53.73) DESTROYS US 5,000 Record in Boston, Moh Ahmed (12:56.87) and Marc Scott (12:57.08) Break Canadian and British Records

As the runners were getting ready for the elite section of the men’s 5000 meters at the 2022 Boston University David Hemery Valentine Invitational on Saturday evening, we should have known we were in for a treat. After all, the slow heat had just been won in 13:05.

It’s crazy, when you think of it: Bowerman Track Club coach Jerry Schumacher had decided Woody Kincaid, the reigning US 10,000-meter champion, was not quite ready to mix it up with his BTC teammates in the fast section and Kincaid wound up running 13:05.56, at the time the second-fastest indoor 5,000m ever by an American. 

Just as crazy: Schumacher was kind of right. Because what we saw in the fast heat was the deepest 5,000-meter race ever contested on US soil, indoors or out.

Grant Fisher, a former high school phenom who won two Foot Locker titles and broke 4:00 in the mile while balancing soccer with running, delivered on his immense promise and ran 12:53.73 to win the race, smash Galen Rupp’s American indoor record of 13:01.26, and come within a whisker of Bernard Lagat’s American outdoor record of 12:53.60. He is now the fifth-fastest human ever at 5,000 meters indoors, one spot ahead of a guy by the name of Eliud Kipchoge.

Fisher’s Bowerman teammate Moh Ahmed, the Olympic silver medalist last year, was next across, running 12:56.87 to break his own Canadian indoor record of 13:04.60. Marc Scott completed the BTC national record sweep in third, and like Ahmed, Scott lowered his own European indoor record, taking it from 13:08.87 to 12:57.08.

In the process, Scott became the first man born in the United Kingdom – and just the third born in Europe – to break 13:00, indoors or out. The race marked the first time that three men broke 13:00 in the same race indoors (only once before had even two done it in the same race).

The times were so fast up front that would-be historic performances were relegated to also-ran status. Emmanuel Bor ran the second-fastest time in US 

indoor history (under Rupp’s previous AR) but was only 4th (13:00.48). Sam Atkin of Great Britain and Jonas Raess of Switzerland both ran faster than the previous European indoor record but had to settle for 5th (Atkin in 13:03.64) and 6th (Raess in 13:07.95).

Florida State’s Adriaan Wildschutt of South Africa ran the second-fastest NCAA time ever indoors and third-fastest under any conditions – 13:09.20 – setting a national indoor record in the process and he was only 5th – in the B heat. Notre Dame’s Dylan Jacobs ran 13:14.04, #4 on the NCAA all-time indoor list and an American indoor collegiate record.

It was sheer madness.

In the main race, the early pacing was good, with 2020 US indoor 1500 champ Josh Thompson and 27:20 man Zouhair Talbi of Morocco taking the field through 3k in 7:53.51, but the real racing didn’t get going until just under a mile to go, when Atkin signaled for Fisher to pass him, knowing he could no longer hold the pace Fisher wanted to run.

From there, Fisher conducted a symphony of pain on the BU track, stretching the field out until Atkin, Scott, Ahmed, and finally Bor had dropped, leaving Fisher all alone for the final 400 as the crowd roared him into the history books. His last four 400m splits: 60.00, 58.95,  59.91, 58.74, good for an otherworldly 3:57.56 final 1600.

Fisher’s performance, just like almost every elite distance performance in the year 2022, must be placed into the context of its era. Earlier in the day on the same track, Notre Dame’s Yared Nuguse, the Olympian and 2019 NCAA 1500 champ, broke Alistair Cragg’s 7:38.59 indoor collegiate record which had stood since 2004. And last night, Gabriela DeBues-Stafford and Elise Cranny set dueling Canadian/American records, Cranny taking 14 seconds off Shalane Flanagan’s 14:47.62 AR.

Fisher and Cranny’s talents have long been known, and they are undoubtedly great runners. Yet between them, they own a grand total of one NCAA and one US title. That they could annihilate national records established by two of the greatest distance runners in American history is yet more evidence that we have entered a new age of distance running ushered in by super shoes, one in which the standards must be (and are being) adjusted.

 

(02/13/2022) Views: 1,456 ⚡AMP
by Let’s Run

Ahmed, Quigley and others post PBs at Bowerman Track Club meet

The intra-squad meet saw huge personal bests from a number of athletes

Restrictions regarding social distancing and COVID-19 have been getting more relaxed in the U.S. lately, and that has allowed for clubs to hold in-person track meets and competitions. On Tuesday night, the Bowerman Track Club joined other high-profile and elite training groups which have held competitions in the past month, such as the Oregon and Atlanta track clubs, which held a dual meet a couple of weeks ago, and Team Boss in Colorado, which ran a record-breaking intra-squad mile event on June 27. The Bowerman event featured 1,500m and 5,000m races for both the men and women, and it saw some seriously fast times, with multiple athletes not just beating their PBs, but absolutely smashing them.

PBs for everyone

The women’s 5,000m saw seven athletes line up to race, and the top four walked away with new PBs. Elise Cranny won the race in 14:48.02, which was a more than 30-second improvement on her PB of 15:25.66. It was also good enough to make her the seventh-fastest American woman ever over 5,000m. Second place was Courtney Frerichs, who entered Tuesday night with an indoor PB of 15:02.91 but an outdoor best of 16:22.98 from 2013. She smashed both of those times, running 14:50.06, which catapults her to eighth on the all-time list of American women.

Colleen Quigley finished in third place, and although the 5,000m isn’t her specialty, she still dropped a blazing fast time of 15:10.42, which was 48 seconds faster than her previous best of 15:58.90. Finally, in fourth place was Gwen Jorgensen, who beat her outdoor PB with a time of 15:18.25 (although she has a faster indoor PB of 15:02.27).

On the men’s side, Sean McGorty won ahead of Grant Fisher, both of whom beat their 5,000m PBs with times of 13:11.22 and 13:11.68, respectively. McGorty’s previous best was 13:21.35 and Fisher’s was 13:29.03.

1,500m runs

The 1,500m events had fewer participants, but both races saw a PB each. The men’s run had a thrilling sprint finish between Josh Thompson, Lopez Lomong and Canadian Mohammed Ahmed. Thompson ran 3:39.652 to edge out Lomong, who ran 3:39.660, and Ahmed, who posted a PB of 3:39.84. The women’s race also saw a tight finish, with Shelby Houlihan eking out a win in 4:02.37 over Karissa Schweizer, who ran a four-second PB with a time of 4:02.81.

Official races may still be on hold, but the Bowerman athletes have sent a message to the rest of the track world, showing everyone that they’ll be fit, fast and ready to race whenever the season resumes.

(07/05/2020) Views: 1,109 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Shelby Houlihan & Josh Thompson Complete Bowerman TC Sweep of 1500s at 2020 USATF Indoors

The Bowerman Track Club has owned the women’s distance events at USA Indoors in recent years, sweeping the 1500 and 3000 (or the equivalent mile/2-mile) every year since 2017. Well, more accurately, Shelby Houlihan — who earned seven of those eight titles — has owned the distance events.

Today, a Bowerman TC man finally got into the act as Josh Thompson (3:44.07) held off defending champ Craig Engels (3rd, 3:44.62) and the surprising Nick Harris (2nd, 3:44.57) in the 1500 to earn BTC’s first men’s indoor title since 2016. Coupled with another dominant Houlihan victory, it gave BTC a sweep of the metric mile at this year’s USATF Indoor Championships and capped off a successful weekend that saw Jerry Schumacher’s outfit sweep the top three spots in both the women’s 1500 and 3000.

Mens Race

Thompson, who was trying to make it as a steeplechaser this time last year, announced himself as one of the country’s best milers by placing third in the 1500 at USA outdoors last year. Now, after his first national title, there’s no doubt about his best event.

Thompson ran a tactically perfect race, which began by putting himself in ideal position on leader Garrett O’Toole’s shoulder at 400 meters. Once Willy Fink took the lead shortly thereafter, Thompson followed along, content to stay in second as Engels moved behind him into third.

The pack was still tightly bunched when Thompson made his move to the lead at 300 to go, with the Oregon Track Club’s Vincent Ciattei following along into second. But with Olympic bronze medalist Clayton Murphy a scratch, this was always going to come down to Thompson vs. Engels, and that’s what happened once Engels passed Ciattei into second at the bell. Engels made a concerted effort to get around Thompson on the back straight, but Thompson would not yield, fighting him off and forcing Engels to run wide around the final turn. Engels, spent from the effort of trying to pass Thompson, had nothing left in the home straight, and he faded to third, nipped by unsponsored Harris at the line, as Thompson powered away to win in 3:44.07 with a 26.86 final lap.

Womans Race

he women’s race wasn’t quite as dramatic, especially once American mile record holder Elle Purrier was announced as a pre-race scratch following her 4th-place finish in last night’s 3k. The racing began in earnest when Karissa Schweizer took the lead with three laps to go, and it was the BTC show from there as Houlihan and Quigley followed her into second and third. It would remain that way until just over 200 to go, when Houlihan moved to the front, and, as usual, no one could match her top gear as she closed out national title #13 in 4:06.41 with a 29.87 final lap (non one else could even break 31 seconds). Quigley barely held off the impressive Schweizer for second, 4:08.30 to 4:08.32

(02/16/2020) Views: 1,555 ⚡AMP

Josh Thompson and Cory McGee kicked their way to victories in the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile this weekend

Josh Thompson and Cory McGee kicked their way to victories in the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, held on the eve of the 47th annual New Balance Falmouth Road Race. Both Thompson and McGee used moves in the final lap to charge to the front and secure the $3,500 first-place prize.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile is the fourth stop of the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour.

McGee, a Team New Balance athlete living and training in Boulder, CO, sat patiently in fourth among the pack of seven women as they passed halfway in 2:18. Moving to the front was Katie Mackey, a three-time winner here who did her best to shake up the field before hitting the bell in 3:25.

McGee was the only competitor to immediately respond to Mackey’s move, and the pair led down the backstretch on the final lap. With the roars of spectators growing at an impending duel, McGee drew even with 200 meters to go and never looked back. She’d break the tape going away in 4:29.51 to earn her first Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile crown.

“I’m so happy to be back in the Boston area,” said McGee. “This race is really one of the most exciting miles in the country. It has more history than a lot of the others and just has a really fun energy surrounding it with the [New Balance Falmouth] Road Race. I’ve been in the mix a few times but finally winning it is really fun!”

Heather Kampf passed Mackey in the final straight to take second, 4:31.24 to 4:31.69. Eleanor Fulton (4:32.39) and Dana Giordano (4:33.07) rounded out the top five.

McGee was happy to improve on her third place finish from a year ago, and has said she’s been motivated to race fiercely after a disappointing experience at the USATF Outdoor Championships last month, where she was disqualified in her 1500-meter prelim. By running under 4:31, McGee picked up an additional $1,000 in a winner’s time bonus.

“I feel fit and it’s fun to win!” she said. “I want to race a few more times [this season]. I know I worked really hard this year so I’m just doing what I worked for.”

Thompson, the men’s champion, also made his bid for the win in the final lap, choosing to do so with 300 meters remaining. Up until that point, Maine native Riley Masters had done all of the pacing, taking the field through three-quarters in 3:00.

With each lap, Thompson’s faith in his kick grew stronger. Masters and Craig Nowak were setting the tempo, and all Thompson had to do was decide when to move from third to first.

“I was feeling pretty confident,” said Thompson, giving credit to Masters and Nowak. “When the last lap came I knew I was going to wait until 300 meters just to be safe.”

As Thompson moved into first, David Ribich slipped into second and the pair put three meters on the field. Bearing down and opening his stride around the bend, Thompson held off the former Division II standout, 3:58.39 to 3:59.78.

“It means a lot. It gets my confidence up,” said Thompson of the victory, his first win of the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour. “I’ve struggled in the past [with injuries], and to come here and win this race, I mean, Falmouth put on a great race. This is pretty cool – I’ve never been in this type of an environment. So to just come out here, winning, it’s just another step for me in training and my confidence level.”

Tripp Hurt was third in 4:00.57, followed by Daniel Herrera in 4:00.86.

(08/19/2019) Views: 2,189 ⚡AMP

Katie Mackey, the only three-time winner in the race’s history, and Tripp Hurt, the reigning USA 1 Mile Road Champion, lead the fields for the 24th Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile

Katie Mackey, the only three-time winner in the race’s history, and Tripp Hurt, the reigning USA 1 Mile Road Champion, lead the fields for the 24th Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile on August 17, organizers announced today. The mile is part of the Falmouth Track Festival, held the evening before the New Balance Falmouth Road Race.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile will begin at 5 p.m. on Saturday, August 17, on the James T. Kalperis Track at Falmouth High School. Total prize purse for the men’s and women’s fields is $15,000, not including possible time bonuses, with the winners each taking home $3,500.

Beginning with the SBLI Family Fun Run and followed by the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile and the Tommy Cochary High School Mile, the track festival will be streamed live on the New Balance Falmouth Road Race Facebook page beginning at 4 p.m.

Mackey, 31, is the 2017 USA 1-Mile Road Champion, 2018 USATF Club Cross Country Champion, American record-holder in the 4x1500m relay, and was eighth at 3000 meters in the 2018 IAAF World Indoor Championships. Hurt, 26, was third at this year’s USATF Indoor Championships in the 2 Mile and is a two-time USATF Outdoor Championships steeplechase finalist.

Also among the headliners in the women’s race is Heather Kampf, a member of the same medal-winning relay team as Mackey and a four-time USA 1 Mile Road Champion. After three events, Kampf and Hurt lead the standings in the 2019 Bring Back the Mile Grand Prix Tour, on which the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile is the fourth stop.

Challenging Mackey and Kampf will be Cory McGee, who was fourth in the 2015 Pan American Games at 1500 meters and won the Sir Walter Miler on August 2 in 4:27.87; Stephanie Garcia, a two-time member of Team USA at the IAAF World Championships in the 3000-meter steeplechase (2011, 2015); Allie Buchalski, 2018 NCAA 5000-meter runner-up; Jessica Harris, third at 1500 meters in the 2019 NCAA Championships; Lianne Farber, a three-time All-American at the University of North Carolina who runs for Team New Balance Boston; Eleanor Fulton, a two-time member of Team USA for the mixed relay at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships (2017, 2019); Vanessa Fraser, fourth in the 2018 NCAA 5000 meters; Dana Giordano, third at 1500 meters in 2016 NCAA Championships, who competes on the B.A.A. High Performance Team and has a family home in Woods Hole; and Heather MacLean, a Massachusetts state champion out of Peabody High School and an All-American while at UMass-Amherst who just finished seventh at USATF Outdoor Nationals in a personal best 4:05.27.

For the men, Tripp will face Josh Thompson, third at 1500 meters at the 2019 USATF Outdoor Championships; Garrett Heath, two-time USA 1 Mile Road Champion (2013, 2015); Pat Casey, the 2018 NACAC silver medalist at 1500 meters; Patrick Joseph, a member of Virginia Tech’s 2018 NCAA Indoor Champion Distance Medley team and fourth in the mile; Daniel Herrera, Mexico’s national record-holder in the mile; Riley Masters, 2018 USA 1 Mile Road Champion; David Ribich, two-time NCAA Division II 1500-meter champion (2017, 2018); Mason Ferlic, 2016 NCAA Champion in the 3000-meter steeplechase; Craig Nowak, a two-time All-American while at Oklahoma State; and Garrett O’Toole, the 2018 Ivy League indoor mile champion who now competes for Arizona State.  

O’Toole, whose 4:01.89 mile while running for The Middlesex School was the fastest high school mile in the U.S. in 2014, won the Tommy Cochary High School Mile here in 2013, and still holds the meet record. At the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, O’Toole will be attempting to break the 4-minute barrier for the first time.

The Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile, which began in 1995, has played host to more than two dozen Olympians, including Morgan Uceny, Amy Rudolph, Carmen Douma-Hussar, Carrie Tollefson, Suzy Hamilton, Donn Cabral, Marc Davis, Robert Gary, Jason Pyrah, 2012 Olympic silver medalist Leo Manzano and two-time Olympic medalist Nick Willis of New Zealand. The event records are held by Hamilton (4:25.27, 2002) and Jordan McNamara (3:54.89, 2011).

(08/13/2019) Views: 2,263 ⚡AMP