NE Runner dev site
Camarena-Williams, Rupp set ARs; 5 world leaders turned in at USATF Classic
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. ÛÓ Jillian Camarena-Williams and Galen Rupp set
American records as five world-leading marks ÛÓ including one in each
round of the women’s 60 meters ÛÓ were posted at Saturday’s USA Track
& Field Classic.
The third stop of USATF’s 2012 Indoor Visa Championship Series, the USA
Track & Field Classic will be broadcast from 12:30-2:30 p.m.
Eastern Time Sunday on ESPN2.
JCW, Rupp roll
In the very first event of the night, Camarena-Williams picked up where
she left off in 2011, breaking her own American record in the women’s
shot put with her toss of 19.89m/65-3.75. USA Outdoor champion Michelle
Carter was second with 19.09m/62-7.75. Defending U.S. indoor champion
Ryan Whiting won the men’s shot with a mark of 21.43m/70-3.75,
second-farthest throw in the world this year.
Rupp’s performance came near the end of the evening. In his first
attempt at the distance, Rupp eyed Bernard Lagat’s 2-mile American mark
of 8:10.07, set in 2011. Saturday night in Fayetteville, Rupp ran a
well-paced race, striding behind pacemaker Craig Miller for nine laps.
The final 1,400 meters were a solo effort, and a 28.86 last lap
propelled Rupp to a record time of 8:09.72.(Lagat on Saturday broke
Rupp’s 5,000m American record, running 13:07.15 at the Millrose Games.)
Scorching Hollister Mile
The Geoff Hollister men’s mile lived up to the excellence of the race’s
namesake, with six men running under the 2012 world-leading time. World
Outdoor silver medalist Silas Kiplagat chalked up his second win in the
2012 Indoor Visa Championship Series, edging out Kenyan countryman
Caleb Ndiku with a time of 3:52.63. Ndiku was just a whisker behind in
3:52.66, followed by Daniel Kipchirchir Komen (3:53.93), American
Russell Brown (3:54.08), Amine Laalou of Morocco (3:54.49) and New
Balance Indoor
Grand Prix winner Ciaran O’Lionard of Ireland (3:54.76). All six
eclipsed the previous 2012 world-leading time of 3:55.09. Jeff See
(3:55.79) and Leo Manzano (3:57.92) brought the full field in under
3:58.
In the first running event on the track, World Outdoor champion Kirani
James won the men’s 400 in 45.19 to post a 2012 world-leading mark,
with Calvin Smith second in 45.73.
Tianna Madison ran a world leader in the first round of the 60 meters
with her personal-best time of 7.05, while Allyson Felix ran a
personal-best time of 7.10 in taking second in heat 2. In the final,
Madison improved upon her own world leader, winning in 7.02 to defeat
defending world champion Veronica Campbell-Brown (7.08) and Christine
Ahoure of the Ivory Coast (7.09)
In the men’s 60 meters, Lerone Clarke of Jamaica ran a world-leading
time of 6.52, followed by Justin Gatlin in second and Trell Kimmons in
third, both in 6.57.
U.S. Open winner Brenda Martinez had a lead of close to 10 meters in
the women’s 1,500m but was kicked down in the last lap as Siham Hilali
(4:09.36) and Btissam Lakhouad (4:09.72) of Morocco overcome her to
finish first and second. Martinez was third in 4:09.96, just off her
outdoor personal best of 4:09.52.
Ginnie Crawford got out to a fast start in the women’s 60m hurdles,
holding off Olympic gold medalist Dawn Harper’s strong finish. Crawford
clocked 7.97 to Harper’s 8.03.
2011 USA indoor and outdoor champion Janay DeLoach topped a great field
in the women’s long jump with a best jump of 6.83m/22-5. Bianca Stuart
was second at 6.79m/22-3.5, with reigning world indoor and outdoor gold
medalist Brittney Reese third with 6.65/21-10.
For more on the Visa Championship Series, including links to results, visit www.visachampionshipseries.com.
Athlete Quotes, USA Track & Field Classic
Jillian Camarena-Williams, women’s shot put
– “I didn’t feel that great to be honest. I had changed up my training
and was wanting to see what worked. I’ve been throwing well and wanted
to just get in the ring and compete. I’m still working on a lot of
things and I’m still trying to tweak my technique. I’m very happy with
today. Something like this motivates me to keep working hard and I’m
looking forward to the next five to six months and see where I’m at.”
Ryan Whiting, men’s shot put
ÛÓ “It was pretty good. I fouled on the first throw, and I got a little
out of rhythm. I had two season bests tonight. It was my fifth best
indoor meet. My PR is from the 2008 NCAA Championships, so I’ve thrown
well here before.”
Kirani James, men’s 400 – “I had a great run.
Today was a positive day for me. Only good things come out of a day
like today. My main motivation right now is to stay healthy and stay
focused on each race one at a time. Now I move on to Orlando and go
from there, but I’m very happy with today.”
Siham Hilali, women’s 1,500
– “The race was good for me. My body felt good and with this being my
first competition here, I couldn’t be more happy with how I ran on this
track.”
Silas Kiplagat, Geoff Hollister men’s mile
– “It was a very fast race all around. I’m definitely happy with where
I am at with still plenty of time to improve before this summer. I felt
good coming into this race and this is the most experienced I’ve been
where I know what to expect. Now I’ll be able to take this as I move
forward and try to improve my time even more.”
Ginnie Powell, women’s 60m hurdles
– “Getting here late and dealing with a lot of travel issues, I didn’t
really have much time to prepare other than just go out and run. I just
wanted to concentrate on the race and it worked out for me. Practices
have been going good, and I’m starting to find my rhythm. I don’t do
indoors very often, but I’m surprised how fast I am this early in the
year. I’ll take a time under 8 (seconds), no problem.”
Janay DeLoach, women’s long jump
– “I was feeling good all the way up to the competition. My goal was to
stay at my previous long, so I can’t complain. I’ve still got a ways to
go in the next few months. I’ve got some work left to do, but luckily I
still have plenty of time to get an even bigger mark.”
Galen Rupp, men’s 2 mile
ÛÓ “It was a great race. Any day you brake a record is a great day. I
didn’t feel good the last few days, so I was just going to go out and
do my best. I wanted to keep pushing on those last laps. I knew I would
probably be by myself on those last laps. I just didn’t want to take my
foot off the gas and not let up. I was ready for it and just went out
and did what I wanted to do.”
Lerone Clarke, men’s 60m
– Ive been training hard. I’ve been practicing to execute. I did it in
the Perkins and went back and did it in the finals. I went out there
got out of the blocks and ran hard.
Tiana Madison, women’s 60m
– “It always feels good to win, bit that wasn’t the focus. The focus
was on nationals and getting better for that meet. I felt really good
coming in. The point today was to stay in your lane and run the race.
That’s it. I’m completely pleased with the weekend.”
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track
& field, long-distance running and race walking in the United
States. USATF encompasses the world’s oldest organized sports, the
World’s #1 Track & Field Team, the most-watched events at the
Olympics, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory
sport, and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States: www.usatf.org.
You must be logged in to post a comment.