Arnold, Fountain favored at USA Indoor Combined Champs in Bloomington

INDIANAPOLIS - Two-time NCAA decathlon champion Jake Arnold (Maria Carrillo HS, Santa Rosa 2002; Arizona 2007) will be in search of his fourth U.S. Indoor men’s heptathlon title, and 2008 Olympic Games heptathlon silver medalist Hyleas Fountain will be favored in the women’s pentathlon this weekend at the 2011 USA Indoor Combined Events Championships on the campus of Indiana University in Bloomington.
Arnold posted a clutch performance in the seventh and final event to win the men's heptathlon for the third time in his career at last year’s championships. He needed to defeat 2003 World decathlon champion and three-time Olympian Tom Pappas by 4.50 seconds in the final event of the competition (1,000m) to win the overall title. He crossed the finish line first in 2:49.62 (770 points), with Pappas finishing fifth in 2:55.72 (707 points).

Arnold, who finished the 2010 campaign ranked #7 in the world in the decathlon by Track & Field News, made it a clean sweep of the final afternoon's three events in also winning the men's 60m hurdles in 8.05 seconds, prior to capturing the pole vault with a best clearance of 5.00 meters/16 feet 4.75 inches. Arnold's two-day performance gave him a seven-event tally of 5,861 points, and his third consecutive USA Indoor Combined Events title.

Arnold and Paul Terek (2003, '04, '07) are the only two competitors ever to win this event on three separate occasions.

Leading challengers to Arnold include former University of Missouri standout and 2007 U.S. Junior decathlon champion Nick Adcock, who has the highest heptathlon personal record in the field with 5,939 points. Also keep an eye on former University of Tennessee star and 2004 U.S. Junior decathlon champion Chris Helwick, who owns a personal best score of 5,917 points.

Fountain hoping to win again

Hyleas Fountain enters the women’s pentathlon competition looking for her second USA Indoor Combined events title to go along with the one she captured in 2005. Fountain, who owns four U.S. Outdoor heptathlon national titles, ended the 2010 season ranked #5 in the world and #1 in the U.S. by Track & Field News.

Challengers to Fountain include Bettie Wade, who finished third in the heptathlon at the 2010 USA Outdoor Championships, and ended that campaign ranked #3 in the U.S. Also watch for Kasey Hill, who ended the 2010 season ranked #5 in the U.S. by Track & Field News. Diana Pickler, who won this event the last three years, will not compete in Bloomington this year.

Schedule

Saturday, March 5, 2011

1:00 p.m. – Men’s Heptathlon (Day 1)

Sunday, March 6, 2011

12:00 p.m. – Women’s Pentathlon
1:00 p.m. – Men’s Heptathlon (Day 2)

For more information on the 2011 USA Indoor Combined Events Championships, visit: www.usatf.org,
For a look at media guides for both championships courtesy of Dr. Frank Zarnowski, visit: www.decathlonusa.typepad.com.
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