USATF Outdoor Championships

Top 7 Moments From USA Outdoors: Day 4

Top 7 Moments From USA Outdoors: Day 4

Jun 28, 2015 by Karsten Kaufmann
Top 7 Moments From USA Outdoors: Day 4


7. Jenna Prandini Bounces Back, Wins 200m.

After failing to podium in the 100m on Friday evening, Jenna Prandini was firing on all cylinders for the last day of competition at Hayward Field. In a wind legal time, and a new PR of 22.20, Prandini pulled away in the last 30m of the 200m in dominating fashion. Joining Prandini in Bejing will be Nike athletes Candyce McGrone, and Jeneba Tarmoh who finished second and third, respectively.


6. Ryan Hill Crowned Victor, Ben True 2nd Again, Rupp Hangs on for 3rd in Men's 5K Final

Ryan Hill of Bowerman Track club closed his last 1600m in 3:59 to take the win over Ben True and Galen Rupp in the men’s 5K. After taking the lead with 1K to go, Rupp came around the final Bowerman Curve with lots of company, and ended up edging out fourth-place finisher Garrett Heath by just seven-hundredths of a second. True, who has never run at the World Championships is the only runner without the standard, and announced that he will be dropping the 10K for Worlds. This will be the second World team for Ryan Hill, and the fifth world team for Rupp. Despite finishing third, Rupp said he was not disappointed with his result


5. Nicole Tully Suprises in Women's 5K, Kara Goucher Responds to Alberto Salazar's Statement.

Nicole Tully proved herself to be the strongest kicker of the day, as she edged out Marielle Hall by just one-hundredth of a second to take the win in the women's 5K. Abbey D'Agostino finished less than a second behind the duo to punch the final ticket to Bejing, edging out Bowerman Track Club teammates Emily Infeld and Shalane Flanagan. This is the first World team for all three qualifiers. Tully, who had previously focused on the 1500m, ran her first 5K on the track just two months ago at the Payton Jordan Invitational.
 

Goucher, who finished in 18th-place overall, spoke with the media about Alberto Salazar's statement regarding the recent doping allegations released earlier this week.



4. Jenny Simpson Defends 1500m title, Rowbury Closes for 2nd and Lauren Johnson to Chase Standard

In the last distance event of the day, Jenny Simpson defended her 1500m title, winning in a time of 4:14.86. Due to Simpson's status as the defending World champion, fourth-place finisher Lauren Johnson will also move on to Bejing if she can hit the standard of 4:06, with second-place finisher Shannon Rowbury, and third-place finisher Kerri Gallagher, who also needs the "A" standard.


3. Justin Gatlin Runs 19.57, #5 All Time in the 200m

Justin Gatlin took a tenth of a second off of his personal best to win the 200m final with a blazing time of 19.57, also good for the No. 5 fastest mark of all time. Joining him on the podium was Isiah Young and Wallace Spearmon, who finished second and third, respectively. This will be the second World team for Young, the third team for Gatlin, and fifth for Spearmon.


2. Evan Jager Breaks Meet Record, Donn Cabral, and Dan Huling Round Out Top Three in Steeple

After his preliminary race, American record-holder Evan Jager said he did not consider himself a lock for the win in the steeplechase final. With the depth of talent in the field, it took quite a performance from Jager to take the win. Jager picked up the pace for the last two laps with Don Cabral, Dan Huling and Stanley Kebenei in striking distance. With 250m to go, Kebenei stumbled over the barrier, and the race for third was over.  Jager took the win in a meet record mark of 8:12, followed by Cabral who came away with a six second personal best in 8:13, and Huling who finished in third for a season's best of 8:14.


1. Nick Symmonds Muscles the 800m Win, Duane Solomon Walks to a 3:08. 

Despite a 1:46.37 season's best prior to the USA Outdoor Championships, the field's veteran Nick Symmonds once again found himself crossing the line first in the men's 800m. Flexing across the finish line, Symmonds closed for a winning time and season's best mark of 1:44.53. 


In a shocking turn of events, Duane Solomon went through the first lap in 49.7, while Symmonds characteristically sat patiently in the back of the pack. With 250m to go, it was Solomon, Eric Sowinski and Cas Loxsom in contention, eight meters in front of a surging Symmonds. Around the final bend there were four men fighting for three spots. After being passed by the trio with 75m to go, and no chance at a World team, Solomon stopped running and dropped to his knees on the homestretch, eventually walking crossing the finish line at 3:08. The performance marks Symmonds' fifth time qualifying for the World Championships, and the first appearance for Loxsom and Sowinski. Watch Duane's interview here.