Olympian John Nunn (San Diego, Calif.) has been named USA Track & Field's Athlete of the Week

Nunn named Athlete of the Week



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INDIANAPOLIS - Olympian John Nunn (San Diego, Calif.) has been named USA Track & Field's Athlete of the Week after he lead Team USA to a second place finish at the Pan American Race Walk Cup held in Medellin, Colombia on Sunday.
Nunn covered the 20 km course at altitude in 1:31.26 to capture 11th place out of 30 competitors. Over the first half of the race, Nunn followed off the back of the lead pack and motivated himself to pass athletes as they began to fall off the pace.

Nunn not only led Team USA with the fastest performance of the day, but also with his perspective as a veteran athlete. Nunn gathered his teammates Patrick Stroupe and Dan Seriani before the start of the race to help motivate them for the competition.

"We are in a situation where we can medal. I feel confident that we can be on the podium," Nunn proclaimed. "But all three of us have to keep fighting the whole way, and I'm confident we can do it."

Nunn's confidence paid off as Stroupe held off two competitors to finish right behind his teammate in 12th place. Serani completed the trio's efforts with a 1:34:50 to take 16th place.

"It was a team effort," Nunn said, "We couldn't have gotten to the podium without three solid performances."

The team was able to bring home the Pan Am Silver in the best finish by a USA Men's squad since 2003 when the men took the 20 km title in Tijuana, México.

Now in its tenth year, USATF's Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on the USATF website. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.

Winners: January 5, Bill Tribou; January 12, Tyler Sorensen; January 20, Josh Cox; January 26,Ben Shorey; February 2, Ashton Eaton; February 9, Ashton Eaton; February 16, Bernard Lagat; February 23, Ryan Crouser; March 2, Jillian Camarena-Williams; March 10, Bill Collins; March 16, Miles Batty; March 23, Shalane Flanagan; March 30, John Nunn

WEEK IN REVIEW - MARCH 21-27
From USATF Statistician Glen McMicken

PIXLER, HALL CONTINUE HOT STANFORD DISTANCE TRADITION

Colorado's Jessica Pixler and Sara Hall (Asics) were just a couple of the U.S. distance stars who rolled to great early-season world-leading performances at the Stanford Invitational. Pixler, who joined the Buffs this season from Seattle Pacific, knocked a huge chunk off her 5000m PR with a 15:25.58, while two-time World Indoors 3,000m runner Hall dropped her steeplechase best to 9:50.68 in her third attempt at the distance.

Another world leader came in the women's 10,000m, where Loyola Marymount's Tara Erdmann won in 33:10.15.

NCAA Indoor 3,000m bronze medalist Andrew Bayer, who is redshirting the outdoor season at Indiana, trimmed more than 10 seconds off his 5K lifetime best with a 13:32.74. Off the track, reigning Olympic discus gold medalist Stephanie Brown-Trafton opened her 2011 campaign with a winning 56.96m/186-10 toss.

MCCORORY WL IN 400 AT RALEIGH

Last year's U.S. 400m silver medalist and indoor American Record holder Francena McCorory zipped to a world-leading 51.98 at the Raleigh Relays in her second one-lapper of the year.

2009 NCAA 110m hurdle champion Ronnie Ash highlighted the men's events with his 13.66 win over the barriers after a 13.58 season-opener in the heats.

WINEBERG TAKES QUARTER WIN FROM VCB

Olympic 4x400m gold medalist Mary Wineberg had a season-best 52.00 to win the 400m at the UCF Invitational in Orlando, taking the measure of Jamaica's reigning Olympic 200m champ Veronica Campbell-Brown, who finished second in 52.25.

FLORIDA PREP GALLOPS TO CENTURY WIN AT FSU RELAYS

Florida high schooler Marvin Bracy, who will not turn 18 until December, had a stunning 2011 debut at the Florida State Relays, winning the 100 in a lifetime-best 10.28.

10.10W IS WHAT'S UP DOC

Ageless Doc Patton, twice a 4x100m gold medalist at the World Championships and the 2003 200m silver medalist, showed that he is already in superb shape with a windy (+3.3) 10.10 in a low-key meet at the University of North Texas in Denton.

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.