Middle distance fields get even faster at USA Track & Field Classic
INDIANAPOLIS – The fast fields competing in the Geoff Hollister men’s mile and women’s 1,500 at Saturday’s USA Track & Field Classic in Fayetteville, Ark., have gotten faster. Five newly announced entrants, including a World Indoor silver medalist and World Junior champion, deepen the fields.
With the addition of two-time World Indoor silver medalist Daniel Kipchirchir Komen of Kenya (3:48.28PR), the Geoff Hollister Mile now includes five men with personal bests of 3:50 or faster. Also added to the field is American Russell Brown (Stanford 2008), who ran a PR of 3:51.45 at the 2011 Nike Prefontaine Classic. Announced on Wednesday were World Outdoor silver medalist and U.S. Open champion Silas Kiplagat of Kenya (3:49.39PR), four-time NCAA mile and 1,500m champion Leo Manzano (3:50.64PR), 2010 5th Avenue Mile champion Amine Laalou of Morocco (3:50.22PR), and 2010 World Junior champion Caleb Ndiku of Kenya (3:49.77PR).
The women’s 1,500 now includes New Balance Indoor Grand Prix 1,000m champion and World Outdoor fourth-place finisher Btissam Lakhouad of Morocco (3:59.35PR), 18-year-old World Junior champion Tizita Bogale of Ethiopia and Siham Hilali of Morocco (4:01.33PR). They join a field with previously announced Americans Anna Pierce (3:59.38PR), three-time USA outdoor 1,500m champion Treniere Moser (4:03.32PR), and U.S. Open winner Brenda Martinez.
Held at the University of Arkansas’ Randal Tyson Center, the USA Track & Field Classic is the third stop on USATF’s 2012 Indoor Visa Championship Series. The meet will be televised on ESPN2 from 12:30-2:30 p.m. Eastern on Sunday, February 12. The meet will be held in conjunction with the 2012 Tyson Invitational, one of the nation’s premier collegiate meets. For more information and scheduled fields for the USA Track & Field Classic, visit www.visachampionshipseries.com .
Huddle, Braun head to St. Louis for USA Cross Country Championships
INDIANAPOLIS – Molly Huddle (Providence, R.I.) and Aaron Braun (Flagstaff, Ariz.) lead the fields this Saturday as the city of St. Louis will host the first of two consecutive USA Cross Country Championships. Both the 2012 and 2013 editions will be held at Forest Park, the site of the 2004 Women’s Olympic Trials Marathon.
In addition to the national titles on the line in St. Louis, open and junior men and women will qualify to represent Team USA at the North American, Central American, Caribbean (NACAC) Cross Country Championships March 17 in Port of Spain, Trinidad.
In the women’s race, Huddle, the American 5,000-meter record holder, leads a field that includes Pan American Games gold medalist in the steeple chase Sara Hall (Flagstaff, Ariz.)(Montgomery HS, Santa Rosa 2001; Stanford 2005); five-time World Cross Country team member Renee Metivier Baillie (Boulder, Colo.); and 2011 Team USA steeplechaser Stephanie Garcia (Charlottesville, Va.).
On the men’s side, 2010 USA National Club Cross Country champion Braun will face 2011 USA 8 km champion Bobby Mack (Raleigh, N.C.) and 2008 NCAA Division I steeplechase champion Kyle Alcorn (Mesa, Ariz.)(Buchanan HS, Clovis 2003).
The championships will consist of six cross country championship races for men’s and women’s categories with national titles on the line for junior, masters and open divisions. The nation’s premier cross country event, the Championships will feature $35,000 in prize money.
Junior men
The junior men's race will feature Ohio State freshman Michael Bradjic, who competed for Team USA at last month's Great Edinburgh International Cross Country Team Challenge, where he finished seventh to help lead the squad to the team title.
Other contenders to watch include California state cross country champion Darren Fahy of La Costa Canyon HS in Carlsbad, along with Craig Nowak of Cypress Woods HS in Cypress, Texas, and Zach Herriott of Rockhurst HS in Kansas City. Nowak was third in the Nike Cross Nationals, and Herriott was ninth in the same race.
Junior women
Some of the leading contenders in the junior women's race include Sarah Fakler of Xavier College Prep in Phoenix, who competed for Team USA at last year's NACAC Cross Country Championships in Trinidad, and Grace Tinkey of First Presbyterian Day School in Macon, Georgia, who was sixth in the 2011 Foot Locker cross country championships in San Diego.
Julie Nacouzi (Montgomery HS, Santa Rosa 2011), who was a member of Team USA at last year's IAAF world cross country championships in Punta Umbria, Spain, is also in the field and could contend for the national title. Others to watch include University of Wisconsin freshman Jenna McMiller, and NCAA cross country championships competitor Shaylyn Tuite of Syracuse University.
Masters Championships
National championships will also be decided for masters men and women at 8 km with titles on the line in five-year age groups beginning at age 40 and up.
The fields will feature masters aces Tracy Lokken (Marquette, Mich.); and Kathryn Martin (Northport, N.Y.).
Webcast Information
The USA Cross Country Championships will be webcast in cooperation with RunnerSpace.com at www.USARunningCircuit.com beginning at live beginning at 9:45 a.m. CST.
For more information on the 2012 USA Cross Country Championships visit www.usatf.org.
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.
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