RESULTS

Ben True only had to run sub-13:23 to hit the 5,000m IAAF standard and punch his ticket to Beijing, but the 29-year-old had bigger plans than that on Saturday evening in Heusden, Belgium.

 

True, who finished runner-up in last month’s 5,000m at the US Championships, ran 13:06.15 today at the KBC Night of Athletics meeting in Heusden, good for a third place finish. The time is the second-fastest 5,000m race of True’s career, less than four seconds away from his 13:02.74 PR from 2014. 13:06 is the fastest time run by an American in 2015.

 

After finishing 2nd in the 5k at USAs, True said that he would just run the 5,000m at the IAAF World Championships if he were to hit the standard, foregoing his 10,000m spot that earned by virtue of finishing second in that event at USAs. 

 

Perhaps more impressive than True’s finish was former Oregon Duck Eric Jenkins huge 11-second PR of 13:07.33 for 5th place, second-fastest by an American in 2015 behind only True. At 23 years and 237 days, Jenkins is the fastest American 5k runner at his age ever.

Overall, his 13:07 ranks him as the 11th fastest 5,000m runner in US history.  

Fellow Americans Will Geoghegan and Chris Derrick were 15th and 17th in 13:17 and 13:19, respectively. For Geoghegan, also a recent graduate of Oregon, it was a 32-second PR. 2012 Olympic silver medalist Dejen Gebremeskel of Ethiopia won the race in 13:05.38.