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I've been quiet for a couple days, mostly because I've been editing photos. You wouldn't know it from the rate at which I've been posting them, but I've been working very hard. There's one essential step in the photo editing process that my software is doing incredibly slowly, causing the holdup, but I'll keep doing my best to get things up as quickly as possible.
I thought I wouldn't have much to say about the 800 semis, but unfortunately the first heat of the women's 800 was more "exciting" than one would normally expect. USATF has posted some great photos of what happened in the first heat. At first, I was completely heartbroken for all four athletes who fell, and even felt that it wasn't even fair to those who didn't (because they didn't get a real race). Thankfully, the officials made a good call and advanced everyone in that first heat to the final. This is still not completely "fair," because then it becomes a situation where anyone in the first heat was actually lucky, and those who were eliminated from the second heat would have been better off in the first heat, but I think they came up with the fairest possible solution, given the events that occurred. Hopefully having a 12-woman final tonight will not be a problem. Based on what I've observed so far, Maggie Vessey is my darkhorse pick to make the team. I should just keep my mouth shut on this one, because chances are that she won't make the team, but if she does, she'll make me look like a genius.
I think the men's 800 final is going to be one of the best races of the meet. When one of the other photographers asked me who was going to win one of the semifinals, I realized there were so many good choices. Some of the other events at this meet have much stronger favorites, whereas I think the men's 800 has quite a few very strong contenders, and few people who can be ruled out. Vin Lananna seemed to be trying to play his chances down this morning, but I'd be surprised if Andrew Wheating didn't make the team. I also think some great 800 runners were eliminated in the semis. (I was particularly sorry to see Jacob Hernandez and Sam Burley go, because on a different day, I think they could contend for spots on the team.)
I am particularly excited to watch the women's steeplechase semis tonight. I think this is the event where we're most likely to see an American record (not including the event where we already have seen an American record). But more importantly, and somewhat unbelievably, we will be selecting our first-ever women's steeplechase squad for the Olympic Games on July 3rd. It's about time!
I attended a TAFWA breakfast this morning and became a member of the organization. I say this with tons of respect for the white, male, age 40+ members of the organization, but we need more young, non-white, and/or female writers and photographers covering the sport (and joining TAFWA). Thanks to Nike, we got a free breakfast, and we also got to hear from Olympic coach Bubba Thornton, Vin Lananna, and the three women who will be representing the U.S. in the 100 in Beijing—Muna Lee, Torri Edwards, and Lauryn Williams. My favorite line of the morning came from Lananna. When asked if Andrew Wheating was the biggest surprise of his coaching career, he responded, and I am paraphrasing here, that he coached Gabe Jennings, and with Gabe, every day was a surprise. But he confirmed that yes, Andrew has been a big surprise. (Lananna's delivery was much better than mine.) And though I don't cover sprints, multis, or field events (due to both a lack of in-depth knowledge, as well as a lack of time), I am a big fan of all of of the events that make up this sport. This was my first encounter with Lauryn Williams and any further success she has will be great for the sport. She is intelligent, witty, and good with the media.
Posted by Alison Wade at 1:02 p.m. | Tags: 2008 Olympic T&F Trials | Comments (0)
I admit it, Amy Yoder Begley made me cry. Midway through tonight's women's 10,000m final at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials — Track & Field, I wasn't particularly excited about the race. Shalane Flanagan, Kara Goucher, and Amy Yoder Begley and broken away, but I was looking up the track to find Katie McGregor and Molly Huddle, because the way things were going, one of them (Katie was ahead) was going to make the Olympic team. The early pace was slow, and though Amy Yoder Begley was running a very gutsy race and hanging in there with two of the world's best 10,000m runners, it appeared likely that she would not dip under the Olympic "A" standard of 31:45.00. So once again, we would be choosing a U.S. Olympic distance team based on who had a qualifying time, rather than who ran best at the Olympic Trials.
In fact, I admit that since I wasn't paying attention to splits, other than to note that they had gone out way too slowly, I wasn't aware that Yoder Begley had a shot at dipping under the "A" standard. Once the announcer pointed it out, that changed everything, and the women's 10,000 suddenly became a riveting race. I was so focused on Yoder Begley, that the race between Shalane Flanagan and Kara Goucher became secondary. Yes, it's wonderful to see two very deserving women qualify for the Olympic team, but they had their amazing breakthroughs last year, and it really only would have been notable if they didn't make the Olympic team. Aside from Bernard Lagat, there isn't a stronger distance favorite here. But 2008 is apparently Amy Yoder Begley's amazing breakthrough year, and it couldn't have happened to a nicer person.
I've been following Amy Yoder Begley's career for as long as I've been following distance running. In fact, I had almost erased this embarrassing fact from my memory, but I wrote her fan mail when I was in high school, and we used to be penpals (back before anyone had e-mail). She was the first athlete I ever interviewed for the web site I ran from 2000-2005, fast-women.com. I watched her win her NCAA 10,000 meter title for the University of Arkansas on the Oregon track in 2001, but I also watched her struggle quite a bit since she graduated from Arkansas. In fact, one of the few people who might rival Kara Goucher in the setback department is her training partner, Yoder Begley. She'd had some good performances here and there since college, but had never really delivered on her college potential.
In 2006, Parker Morse and I talked to Yoder Begley about the track camp she was running in conjunction with U.S. nationals. She later finished eighth in the 5,000 at that meet, which was a pretty typical post-collegiate result for her—a solid finish, but not necessarily contending for a title or a U.S. team. Yoder Begley showed a spark of her potential when she won the Manchester Road Race last Thanksgiving, but a couple months later, she underwent foot surgery.
When I soliciting recipes via e-mail for The Runner's Cookbook back in January, Yoder Begley responded to my e-mail by sending two of her favorite recipes, mentioning that she had just had plantar release surgery (my first thought was "so much for her comeback") so she'd be out for a while, and asking if I needed any help collecting recipes. Before I knew it, I was getting recipes from athletes who I hadn't been able to reach, which really made the fundraising cookbook possible.
I've digressed, but hopefully I've demonstrated some of the ways in which Amy Yoder Begley is good for the sport. I admire the honesty she displays in the journal entries she's posted on her web site, which is just one of the many ways she has "given back" to the sport that has made her semi-famous (and now possibly fully famous). So while I would have been happy for any athlete in Amy Yoder Begley's shoes in tonight's 10,000 meter final, racing against the clock with one lap to go, I was particularly happy that this was happening to such a great person. Yoder Begley finished the race in 31:43.60, with 1.4 seconds to spare, before collapsing to the track. When she got up, reality seemed to sink in, and she was overwhelmed with emotion. And despite all I've said about her, I wouldn't actually say I know Amy Yoder Begley, but knowing what I know about her, and seeing her reaction, I couldn't help but cry a little too.
It seemed to take Kara Goucher a few minutes to figure out what had happened behind her, but as soon as she did, she was jumping up and down and screaming with Yoder Begley. All three of the athletes who made the team have a Nike/Portland connection, even though Flanagan is now living in North Carolina. From what I've heard, Goucher was an inspiration to Flanagan while she was struggling with her foot problem in 2006. While this may have been the beginning (or continuation) of a Flanagan/Goucher rivalry, I get the sense that all three women who will be representing the U.S. in Beijing have a mutual respect for one another. We'll have a good team representing us in Beijing, but we'll also have a nice team, made up of incredible role models.
Other notes from the evening:
*It was also heartbreaking to watch Alysia Johnson's exit from the track tonight. She pulled out of NCAAs with a minor injury, ostensibly with the idea of focusing on the Trials. She appeared to be in extreme physical pain as she was assisted off the track, and I'm sure there was a great deal of emotional pain involved as well.
*It was really cute to see Andrew Wheating's little-kid-in-a-candy-shop smile when he was introduced to the crowd. The Hayward Field crowd loves him, and it appears that the feeling is mutual.
*The crowd here really gets it. When the announcer pointed out that "the runner in pink," Laura Roesler, is a high school sophomore, the crowd immediately got behind her. They cheered as she surged up the homestretch during her 800m prelim, and kicked her way into the semi-final. You can always tell when the leaders are coming around again (if, say, you're looking down and trying to edit your photos on the fly) because of the rhythmic clapping the crowd does as the leaders go by.
*I don't have much to say about the men's 5,000m prelims. The favorites all looked fine. Bernard Lagat just kept running right off the track at the finish. I'm sorry to see Andrew Carlson eliminated, and glad to see Brent Vaughn barely sneak in to the final. This is going to be a great final.
*Khadevis Robinson was lucky to advance to the next round, whereas NCAA stars Jacob Hernandez and Andrew Wheating looked great. If the veterans aren't careful, one or more of these young kids might snatch up a spot on the Olympic team.
*Kudos to Lisa Koll for going for it during the 10,000 final. She tried to go with Flanagan, Goucher, and Yoder Begley when they pulled away. It didn't work out, and it probably hurt her overall finish place, but she gave it a shot, and maybe next time she'll hang on a little longer.
Posted by Alison Wade at 11:05 p.m. | Tags: 2008 Olympic T&F Trials | Comments (6)
Every time I have this thought, it's followed by a pang of guilt, but I do occasionally think that there are advantages to track & field being an unpopular sport in the U.S. For one, I can get credentials to the big events, and the logistics of attending said events are much easier than they are for sports like football and baseball. But it seems like track & field has finally arrived, because so far, the logistics of navigating the U.S. Olympic Team Trials — Track & Field have not been all that simple.
First, there is the fact that getting here was not cheap. Housing was easy, I am staying in the University of Oregon dorms, and the only reason I won't be able to watch the Trials from my dorm room window is that the Bowerman Building blocks my view. If I open the window, I can hear what's going on at the meet, loud and clear.
After 13 hours of travel yesterday, I arrived in Portland and got a ride to Eugene with some fellow members of the media. We drove about two hours to Eugene, and headed straight to Autzen Stadium to pick up our credentials. We were warned as we entered the stadium that we'd be waiting for a while, and they weren't kidding. We stood in line for about an hour before we finally had our photos taken and were issued our media credentials. The volunteers helping with this process were very nice and clearly felt bad about the situation, but they couldn't do anything about it. While we waited in line, they came by offering us water and candy bars.
I don't have a rental car, thank goodness, but I helped park the one we rode in from Portland to Eugene last night. We had to park it a mile away, which isn't a big deal for people who are used to running a lot, but we were pretty exhausted at that point. When a guy on a pedicab drove by us on our walk back, we decided to get a ride from him not only because it would be faster, but also because it felt like a Eugene-esque thing to do. It's not that there are a lot of pedicabs around Eugene, but more like this is a place where free-spirited people who decide to start pedicab businesses can thrive. A bike does seem like it's the way best to get around Eugene right now.
None of this is a big deal, of course, but I can tell you that when Sacramento hosted the Olympic Trials, you could hardly tell it if you got a half mile away from the track. Here, the Trials have taken over "Track Town USA." The logistics will be a bit tougher, but hopefully we will all be rewarded with the best track meet we have ever seen.
I haven't yet determined what form my coverage of these Trials will take, but since my occasional reporting assistant, Parker Morse, has been snatched up by an outlet that can pay him (and on that note, Runner's World is putting a lot of resources into their coverage, so it should be good), I am again a one-person "team." Since most everyone who reads this site will probably be watching the events on TV or the web, I'm probably just going to post my photos as quickly as I can and post some other notes about what it's like to be at the Trials, and any interesting news I come across.
If you've made it this far, you are a probably devoted reader, so I will let you know in advance that as of July 5th or 6th, this site is probably not going to be updated at all until August 17th or so. Even though I frequently use the term "we" when talking about this site, it is a one-person operation, and that one person is going to be in Kenya through August 16th. When I return, hopefully I will have some good photos to share. But before I go, hopefully I'll have some good stuff to post from the Trials.
Posted by Alison Wade at 4:58 p.m. | Tags: 2008 Olympic T&F Trials | Comments (2)
The Des Moines Register is reporting that UNI coach Chris Bucknam will take over John McDonnell's position at the University of Arkansas. More information can be found here.
Posted by Alison Wade at 4:44 p.m. | Tags: Running in the News | Comments (1)
NBC has published its coverage schedule for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team Trials — Track & Field. NBC (or the USA Network) will provide both television and streaming web coverage each day of the event.
Posted by Alison Wade at 8:41 p.m. | Tags: Television Coverage, Webcast | Comments (0)
The women's 800 kicked off the middle-distance action on the final day of the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Temperatures were in the high 80s and it was quite windy, with large gusts periodically coming along. This may have contributed to the slower pace early on, with Western Michigan's Becky Horn, LSU's Latavia Thomas, and Minnesota's Heather Dorniden running up front. With 200 meters to go, it was essentially down to five runners--Thomas, Horn, Dorniden, Michigan's Geena Gall, and Oregon's Zoe Buckman. In the homestretch, it looked like it was down to Horn, Buckman, and Gall. It momentarily looked like Horn might pull off an upset victory, but Geena Gall ran a great last 50 meters, and by the finish line, it wasn't even all that close. Gall won in 2:03.91, Thomas had a strong kick to finish second (2:04.38) with Horn third (2:04.67) and Buckman fourth (2:04.69).
In the men's 800, Jacob Hernandez of Texas went straight to the lead, and USC's Duane Solomon followed, while the other top finisher, Andrew Wheating, hung out in the back. Unlike the women's 800, the pace was fast, so the field strung out a bit. Hernandez split 50.96 for the 400, with everyone else not far behind. On the backstretch, Wheating began to make his way up through the pack, but he had a good bit of ground to make up, and Hernandez and Solomon were still moving well. Up the homestretch, it looked like it would be a battle between Hernandez and Solomon, but Wheating seemed to find another gear in his final few strides (either that or he died less than the others), and Solomon faltered a bit. Wheating almost pulled off a dramatic come-from-behind win, but he came up one-hundredth of a second short. Instead, Hernandez pulled off an impressive wire-to-wire victory and led the first three runners under 1:46. Hernandez ran 1:45.31, Wheating 1:45.32, and Solomon 1:45.71.
Defending champion Brie Felnagle, who had the fastest time so far this season, took the race out quickly in the women's 1,500, with Sarah Bowman and the rest of the field right there. Sally Kipyego took over the lead with two laps to go, and looked like she would try to keep the pace going in an attempt to run away with the race. Though she succeeded in thinning the front pack down to five (Kipyego, Felnagle, Bowman, Hannah England, and Dacia Barr) with 600 meters to go, she was unable to shake her strongest competitors. With 200 to go, it was down to Kipyego, England, and Bowman. Bowman fell off the back slightly in the last 100, and Kipyego fought valiantly--but ultimately failed--to hold off England. England surged past Kipyego to win 4:06.19 to 4:06.67. Bowman, the top American in the race, finished third in an excellent time of 4:07.50.
As expected, the men's 1,500 was the Leonel Manzano show. Manzano sprinted into the lead, but didn't set a particularly fast pace. He seemed more interested in staying out of traffic in the 15-runner final (three more runners than usual, due to some falls and close finishes in the prelims). The race stayed close throughout, and there were still about seven runners in contention with 200 meters to go. Manzano didn't turn on his real kick until about 100 meters to go, and at that point, the race was all over. He won by 1.31 seconds in 3:41.25, giving the Texas men the middle distance sweep for the day. The University of Northern Iowa's Dorian Ulrey closed well to take second in 3:42.56, much to the delight of the crowd. Wisconsin sophomores Jack Bolas (third, 3:42.57) and Craig Miller (fourth 3:42.67) were close behind.
As a side note, the meet announcer mentioned that even though she was not competing in the meet, 2006 NCAA 1,500 meter champion Amy Lia had traveled to Des Moines with her University of Washington team. Earlier that day she and some of her teammates apparently had gone down to the Birdland area of Des Moines, where part of a levee had broken the night before, to help with the sandbagging efforts.
And this completes my coverage of the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships! Though I am now back in Massachusetts, my thoughts are with those who are suffering as a result of the flooding in Iowa. I will begin posting the remainder of my photos on Monday, June 16th.
Posted by Alison Wade at 1:30 p.m. | Tags: 2008 NCAA Outdoor T&F Champs | Comments (0)
I woke up to the news that a section of a levee in Des Moines had broken around 3:30 a.m. I was a little worried because this was between my hotel and the track, but I had no trouble whatsoever getting to the stadium today. While what's happening with the flooding in Des Moines is certainly serious, it is sensationalized a bit in the news. The NCAA Championships continue on as scheduled, and I am at the track preparing to shoot the 800 and 1,500 finals. I don't have a lot of time to get to the airport after the men's 1,500, so I have my escape strategy planned, and I am going to hightail it to the airport as soon as the last competitor makes it around the second turn for the final time. (If I shoot on the second turn, I am closer to my car and can get out of here faster!)
My friend from high school, who happens to be living in Iowa doing research this summer, came to Des Moines to watch the meet last night. It was interesting to hear about the races through her eyes. She was a good runner in her day, but she doesn't follow the sport all that closely now. I wasn't sure if she'd have a good time or be kind of ho-hum about watching the races. But when I met up with her after the meet, she was really excited and inspired by what she had seen, which was really nice to see.
My unofficial weather report is that it's hot out (88 degrees the last time I saw a thermometer) and quite windy. I wonder if the wind will affect anyone's race strategy. Make sure to watch the coverage (beginning momentarily) on CBS...you'll probably have a better view of the races than I will! Time to go assemble my camera...
Posted by Alison Wade at 3:36 p.m. | Tags: 2008 NCAA Outdoor T&F Champs | Comments (0)
Tonight's update is going to have to be brief because I have a guest visiting and I don't want to be rude! Watching TV all day, it was hard to think about much other than the flooding that is currently threatening Des Moines. However, head over to Drake Stadium and it's quite easy to forget what's going on just a few miles away. Today's weather was the best it's been yet for the distance races--less humid, and 71 degrees just after the men's 5,000.
Jenny Barringer absolutely dominated the steeplechase. She will tough to beat at the Olympic Trials if she runs the way she did tonight. Her loss to Irene Kimaiyo at the Big 12 Championships earlier this season raised some doubts, but if her 9:44 at the Midwest Regional didn't send the message that she's back, this did. Her time of 9:29.20 was only .45 of a second slower than the American record, set by Lisa Galaviz last year. SMU freshman Silje Fjortoft--who I admit I've never heard of until tonight--took second in 9:55.54 and might be the one to watch in 2010, once Jenny Barringer is long gone.
The men's steeplechase remained a lot closer for much of the race, and since the light was so bad, I spent more time trying to find a decent place to stand rather than paying much attention to the race. (Precisely why I am not doing formal race reports from this meet.) I rushed up the track to get to the finish line, missing what was going on in the race, and with one lap to go, Kyle Alcorn had broken away. He held on to win in 8:28.26, despite a strong charge from Billy Nelson (8:28.85) at the end.
I'm being rude to my guest...so I'm going to sum the 5ks up very briefly, especially since most of you loyal track fans probably watched the race on tonight's webcast. Sally Kipyego pulled a Lisa Koll (or I could say a Jenny Barringer, I suppose) and took off right from the gun. She dominated the race, and like last night's 10k, it was the race for second which was much more interesting. Kipyego won in 15:15.08, and Angela Bizzarri had a great race to take second in 15:46.08. In the men's 5,000, the CU trio of Brent Vaughn, Stephen Pifer, and Kenyon Neuman did most of the pacesetting. They were unable to break away from the pack, however, and there were plenty of runners still in contention with 1,200 meters go to. Bobby Curtis had the best finish of the bunch, and he cruised to victory in 13:33.93. I last saw Brent Vaughn with about 50 meters to go, and I am surprised to look at the results now and see that his teammate, Stephen Pifer, beat him by a tenth of a second, 13:39.34 to 13:39.44, because Vaughn seemed to have second place wrapped up.
At every multi-day meet, I seem to hit a point where I am hopelessly behind on posting photos. I have now reached that point. I will be posting photos from yesterday's 1,500 and 800 meter rounds momentarily, but after that, I won't be able to post any additional photos until I return home.
Posted by Alison Wade at 12:44 a.m. | Tags: 2008 NCAA Outdoor T&F Champs | Comments (0)
According to a link on the CSTV web site, coverage of tonight's NCAA action will be streamed live here beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET. (And if that link doesn't work at the scheduled broadcast time, try this.) Apparently the broadcast is going to be on TV as well, for those who get CSTV. Tomorrow's action will be shown live on CBS beginning at 4:00 p.m. ET.
Posted by Alison Wade at 4:15 p.m. | Tags: Television Coverage, Webcast | Comments (1)
Despite the lovely weather outside, the flooding in Des Moines continues to worsen. I'm spending my morning editing photos and updating the news links while keeping an eye on the TV. My hotel, Drake's stadium, and the Des Moines airport don't appear to be in any imminent danger, but many of the surrounding roads are flooded, making getting from one place to the next a bit more challenging than usual. The water levels of the Des Moines River are expected to crest around 8:00 p.m. to midnight tonight, and city officials are now asking for a voluntary evacuation of the 500-year floodplain area. This includes some areas less than two miles from Drake's stadium.
I had to take a different route back from the track last night because of a new road closure. I am a little nervous about getting to and from the track today and tomorrow, not to mention the airport tomorrow evening, in a timely fashion. I admit that I will breathe a sigh of relief when (if) my plane takes off for Chicago tomorrow evening. I can't imagine what this is like for those whom this is home. On Wednesday evening, I was sitting in the lobby of my hotel and I heard a coach of a runner from nowhere near Iowa ask the front desk worker where he could go to help with the sandbagging efforts. He mentioned that he had nothing to do until 6:00 p.m. the next day. I was really impressed.
I won't be heading over to the track until this evening, but I will do my best to keep providing updates both on the track action as well as any developments regarding the flooding. (And, no, it hasn't escaped my notice that today is Friday the 13th!)
Posted by Alison Wade at 1:15 p.m. | Tags: 2008 NCAA Outdoor T&F Champs | Comments (0)