2016 Portland TwilightMay 11, 2016 by Meg Bellino
Kate Grace, Lopez Lomong Headline Speedy Fields | Portland Twilight Preview
Kate Grace, Lopez Lomong Headline Speedy Fields | Portland Twilight Preview
On Sunday, May 15, the Portland Twilight meet will be streamed LIVE on FloTrack! Starting at 5:30PM PST, tune in to see the following highlights. Kate Grace
On Sunday, May 15, the Portland Twilight meet will be streamed LIVE on FloTrack! Starting at 5:30PM PST, tune in to see the following highlights.
Kate Grace, Shelby Houlihan, Treniere Moser Headline Stacked Women’s 800m
Grace made the move to the NorCal Distance Project last June, and has been enjoying a successful 2016. She picked up PBs in the indoor mile (4:28), indoor 1500m (4:06.75) and most recently finished second to Jenny Simpson at Drake Relays in 4:07.15—another new PB! She’ll run her first 800m since 2014 this weekend.
In arguably her best season, Grace finished fourth in the 800m at the U.S. Championships went on to break 2:00 in Paris. After a foot injury sidelined her in 2015, the oiselle athlete is benefitting from new training partners in the strength (Kim Conley) and speed (Lauren Wallace) departments.
Wallace, who ran 2:00 last season, will make her 800m season debut this weekend. She spent the indoor season racing events like the mile and 3000m.
Fiona Benson, 23, is one of Canada’s newest track stars. The Portland Twilight meet will mark her outdoor season debut in the 800m. Last season, Benson ran 1:59 twice, was crowned the Canadian national champion, and advanced to semifinals at the world championships. With PBs of 1:59.59 for 800m, 4:05.24 for 1500m and 4:25 for the mile, Benson should be a force to behold on Sunday.
For Nike Oregon Project athletes Treniere Moser (800m) and Jordan Hasay (800m, 1500m), the Portland Twilight meet is a valuable opportunity for speed work. Moser is coming off a double victory at the Oregon Twilight where she ran 2:05 for 800m and 4:13 for 1500m, then reportedly completed a killer workout. Hasay recently nabbed her Olympic standard in the 10,000m at Payton Jordan, and also completed the middle-distance double in Eugene just five days later.
Shelby Houlihan, who ran 9:01 and 15:06 this indoor season, has since moved back down to her signature middle-distance races this outdoor season. She opened with a 4:09 1500m to finish seventh at Payton Jordan. Although she was far behind Linden Hall’s 4:04 Olympic standard, it’s Houlihan’s first professional season and first sub-4:10 opener ever. She’ll look to improve her 2:03 season best on Sunday, but the bigger question is, what Houlihan will contest at the Olympic Trials? With 2:01 800m speed and a 15:06 indoor 5K PR, it wouldn't be crazy to see her test her strength against the world's best 5000m runners.
Lopez Lomong, Portland Pilots Stars, Suguru Osako Highlight Men’s Fields
Portland residents will clash in the men’s 800m and 1500m races.
Olympian Lopez Lomong will contest the 800m. He ran the race in 1:48.18 at the Mt. SAC Relays last month—his fastest since 2013—just one day after running 1:49 at the Bryan Clay Invite. Backed by an excellent combination of strength (13:07 5K PB) and speed (3:51 mile PB), Lomong's early-season two-lappers are all a part of the process as he gears up to make his third Olympic team.
In the 1500m, Portland Pilots Reid Buchanan and William Kincaid will toe the line against Nike Oregon Project’s Suguru Osako.
Kincaid, one of the NCAA's top 5000m runners, ran 13:44 for 5K and 7:48 for 3K this indoor season before succumbing to injury. Recently, he busted some rust with a 3:43 1500m at the Bryan Clay Invite and a 13:51 5K at Payton Jordan. This Sunday, Kincaid and Buchanan will look to sharpen their tools to prepare for NCAA Regionals. Buchanan ran a 3:44 1500m and a 13:48 5K this outdoor season, and finished 15th in the NCAA Indoor 3K.
Osako is riding some momentum from his 27:50 Olympic-standard performance in the Payton Jordan 10,000m race. His 1500m PB of 3:42 is from 2012, and this will be his first race over this distance since 2014.
Kate Grace, Shelby Houlihan, Treniere Moser Headline Stacked Women’s 800m
Grace made the move to the NorCal Distance Project last June, and has been enjoying a successful 2016. She picked up PBs in the indoor mile (4:28), indoor 1500m (4:06.75) and most recently finished second to Jenny Simpson at Drake Relays in 4:07.15—another new PB! She’ll run her first 800m since 2014 this weekend.
Finished 2nd in 407.Felt strong and that felt good. Plus a giant check. Thank you for well wishes!My phone keeps dying in the cold.Off to CD
— Kate Grace (@fastk8) April 30, 2016
In arguably her best season, Grace finished fourth in the 800m at the U.S. Championships went on to break 2:00 in Paris. After a foot injury sidelined her in 2015, the oiselle athlete is benefitting from new training partners in the strength (Kim Conley) and speed (Lauren Wallace) departments.
Wallace, who ran 2:00 last season, will make her 800m season debut this weekend. She spent the indoor season racing events like the mile and 3000m.
Fiona Benson, 23, is one of Canada’s newest track stars. The Portland Twilight meet will mark her outdoor season debut in the 800m. Last season, Benson ran 1:59 twice, was crowned the Canadian national champion, and advanced to semifinals at the world championships. With PBs of 1:59.59 for 800m, 4:05.24 for 1500m and 4:25 for the mile, Benson should be a force to behold on Sunday.
For Nike Oregon Project athletes Treniere Moser (800m) and Jordan Hasay (800m, 1500m), the Portland Twilight meet is a valuable opportunity for speed work. Moser is coming off a double victory at the Oregon Twilight where she ran 2:05 for 800m and 4:13 for 1500m, then reportedly completed a killer workout. Hasay recently nabbed her Olympic standard in the 10,000m at Payton Jordan, and also completed the middle-distance double in Eugene just five days later.
Shelby Houlihan, who ran 9:01 and 15:06 this indoor season, has since moved back down to her signature middle-distance races this outdoor season. She opened with a 4:09 1500m to finish seventh at Payton Jordan. Although she was far behind Linden Hall’s 4:04 Olympic standard, it’s Houlihan’s first professional season and first sub-4:10 opener ever. She’ll look to improve her 2:03 season best on Sunday, but the bigger question is, what Houlihan will contest at the Olympic Trials? With 2:01 800m speed and a 15:06 indoor 5K PR, it wouldn't be crazy to see her test her strength against the world's best 5000m runners.
Lopez Lomong, Portland Pilots Stars, Suguru Osako Highlight Men’s Fields
Portland residents will clash in the men’s 800m and 1500m races.
Olympian Lopez Lomong will contest the 800m. He ran the race in 1:48.18 at the Mt. SAC Relays last month—his fastest since 2013—just one day after running 1:49 at the Bryan Clay Invite. Backed by an excellent combination of strength (13:07 5K PB) and speed (3:51 mile PB), Lomong's early-season two-lappers are all a part of the process as he gears up to make his third Olympic team.
In the 1500m, Portland Pilots Reid Buchanan and William Kincaid will toe the line against Nike Oregon Project’s Suguru Osako.
Kincaid, one of the NCAA's top 5000m runners, ran 13:44 for 5K and 7:48 for 3K this indoor season before succumbing to injury. Recently, he busted some rust with a 3:43 1500m at the Bryan Clay Invite and a 13:51 5K at Payton Jordan. This Sunday, Kincaid and Buchanan will look to sharpen their tools to prepare for NCAA Regionals. Buchanan ran a 3:44 1500m and a 13:48 5K this outdoor season, and finished 15th in the NCAA Indoor 3K.
Osako is riding some momentum from his 27:50 Olympic-standard performance in the Payton Jordan 10,000m race. His 1500m PB of 3:42 is from 2012, and this will be his first race over this distance since 2014.