Thursday, September 30, 2010

FloTrack Tabs Sheila Reid as #2 Woman in NCAA Cross Country



FloTrack has posted their initial set of awards, and three Villanova runners are highlighted. In the ranking of the top individual women in the country this cross country season, Sheila Reid is ranked #2, behind #1 Kendra Schaff (a recent transfer to UNC from Washington) and ahead of #3 Jordan Hasay (Oregon). Here is what FloTrack said about Sheila:

2. Sheila Reid -- Villanova

Reid was undefeated through last year's regular season and regional. She ran a gutsy race in Terre Haute helping her team to the National Title. In indoor, she set a big time PB of 9:01.13 3k and became an All-American twice over. She was fourth in the 1500 meters in the outdoor NCAA Championships.


Also cited was Amanda Marino, as the #2 ranked "sleeper" who might be able to steal the individual title.

Also, Emily Lipari is listed among the so-called notable "FloFrosh."

Finally, FloTrack's top teams are ranked this way: (1) Villanova, (2) Florida State, and (3) Washington, with Oregon as the "sleeper" team to worry about.

Click this post's title to be sent to the FloTrack page.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Former Nova All-American Carey Pinkowski Readies Another Chicago Marathon



Chicago Marathon race director Carey Pinkowski
By Jim Ferstle for RunnersWorld

The 33rd running of what is now the Bank of America Chicago Marathon features the hottest female marathoner, plus the winners of Chicago, Boston, and London Marathons in the men’s divisions during the last year. It filled its 45,000 entrant field in 50 days, a record, and has a Beijing like race date 10-10-10 (October 10, 2010). Runners are hoping that the triple tens are their lucky numbers for a calm, cool day on the flat, fast course ideal for setting personal bests. Below, Race Director Carey Pinkowski talks about Mayor Richard M. Daley’s final marathon, the World Marathon Majors, and his high hopes for this year’s elite race. Pinkowski was interviewed prior to Ryan Hall's withdrawal from the October 10 race.

Since Mayor Daley has announced he won’t be seeking reelection, this will be his last marathon as mayor.
Carey Pinkowski: The mayor’s been very supportive. I think he’s enjoyed participating. Sunday is family day for him, so we’ll have to see if it will still be that way when he’s out of office. I have to talk to him and see; maybe we can get him to help out next year.

There’s been a lot of talk about the World Marathon Majors, whether or not it is having an impact. This year, Chicago could be decide both the men’s and women’s titles. What are your thoughts on the WMM?
CP: Yes, the race within the race. I am extremely proud of the relationship with the WMM. The integration we see with all five events. Our operations people meet and share their experiences. That’s really one of the great facets of the relationship. Our medical people, our media and PR people. A lot of the positive relationships most people don’t see.

For example, this past January, the five race directors and our medical directors got together. We dedicated two days to address those areas. There are a lot of similarities, and a lot of areas where we can learn from one another about overall philosophy and protocols. It was an opportunity for staff to observe and participate.

You're also competitors in the area of recruiting the top runners.
CP: We’re great friends and collaborators, but we each want the best athletes. I think that competition is good. It’s mostly the athletes who benefit.

It helps them negotiate better deals?
CP: (Laughs) Yeah, that’s part of it.

How much do you think the general public is aware of the WMM?
CP: There is a certain amount of visibility, and there are some things we can improve on. I think in Chicago it is in the general consciousness of the average person. When I talk to people I meet or at clinics, they have referred to Chicago as one of the majors. I was in Davenport for Bix. I was talking to a group of runners there, and they said the same thing.

What specific things have happened within the WMM organization that made a difference?
CP: A lot of the things that we collaborated on and supported. We were on the front end of the EPO testing. We continue to expand on what we’ve been doing. We’ve done some great things with the charity component. In 2009, for example, we raised $10.1 million for charity, which is great. Last year we had over 8,000 sign up through the charities. This year we have over 10,000.

The improvements in the charity component of the race were a direct response to collaboration we had from the successful charity programs they have in London and Berlin. In addition to the money raised, I think it has contributed to the demand of the event. We opened registration for the race February and in 50 days, we closed. That’s the shortest period of time we’ve had. We also do a lot of other things that benefit from what we’ve learned from the other WMM events. We have a youth imitative and a youth running program. We support groups doing school and after school programs. We support a youth cross country program. New York and Boston have done that. It’s just and opportunity to collaborate and brainstorm.

Why do you think that events such as the marathon are still thriving, even in a tough economy?
CP: I think that people who discover marathoning, whether they participate in the training groups or with the charities, feel that it is an opportunity to challenge themselves, and I think people are attracted to that. In this day and age, there is something basic and refreshing to that challenge. Take that training and express themselves. That’s what drives the participants. Also, I think the runners feel there is still something unique about being to line up with the Olympic champion or world record holders. Run over the same course, experience the same conditions. I think that is something that intrigues them.

Also, one of the things we’ve discovered is that people come to Chicago and discover what a vibrant city it is. We commission a study done by the University of Illinois every year to measure the impact on the local economy. Last year, they estimated that race weekend generated $150 million, and the weekend is also one of the top grossing weekends for hotels and restaurants.

A lot of marathons have added events to the weekend, but Chicago hasn’t followed that trend.
CP: Over the years, we’ve tried different events. I’m not saying we won’t do those again, but as the marathon numbers continued to grow in the past eight years, we decided to focus on trying to make the marathon the best in the world.

It seems that all the top events make a claim to be the best, and it’s hard to find objective measures to settle even which one of the WMM should be rated the best.
CP: All five are inherently different as the cities are inherently different. But I think I’m pretty safe in saying that they are the top five in the world.

A lot of marketing right now is catch phrases or slogans that are used to give the product or event a brand or image. The marathons don’t seem to have something like that. How would you do that for your event?
CP: The way our course is designed, it’s always been built for speed. Also, it’s a great tour of the city, convenient. The fact that we have the start and finish in the same venue. That part of it resonates with our participants. The course is also very accessible to the runners’ friends and family members. That’s evident from the number of people who buy metro day passes. That part of it adds to the vibrancy of the event.

Also, we’ve always had great athletes–Khalid Khannouchi, Steve Jones, Paula Radcliffe–a history and tradition. I think that adds to the atmosphere. This year Bank of America is using the “10-10-10 The date to motivate” as their slogan. Each year they, Bank of America, do a great job of coming up with a slogan, a focus like that. This year, we’ve had the most response we’ve ever had to the promotion, The Bank took 10 Chicago area participants – they’re from your neighborhood. Put them on the ads. Put them on the Kennedy(Freeway) mural.

People really responded to this. These people were all great members of their communities, What was important is what they do all year round. They’re just very giving people. They are just a wonderful part of their communities. (The promotion was) a real departure from what we’ve done in the past. We’ve had a lot of response from other neighborhoods who want to be a part, who wonder how they can get marathon banners up in their community.

All this stuff is very important to the event, but I know that one of the things that energizes you is the elite field. This year’s event is one of the stronger ones in years for the potential to have fast, competitive races.
CP: I’m really excited by this year’s field. I saw Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot’s run at Boston this year, and I was just blown away by what he did. It was one of the greatest performances I’ve seen, arguably the greatest marathon ever run in North America. If he can bring that fitness level to Chicago…

I’ve seen Tsegaye Kebede run in Fukuoka and in London this year, and I was impressed. Sammy (Wanjiru) is well, Sammy. But what impresses me most is that they are all at the front end of their careers. In 2002, I thought we had our greatest field here in Chicago. We had Paul Tergat, Khalid (Khannouchi), El Mouaziz, Takaoka, but they were near the end of their careers. These guys that we have this year are on the rise. They’ve all known they were going to run here since the Spring. There’s a lot of luck that goes into it, but if we can get everybody to the line healthy, favorable weather with not too much wind. To have them go under 2:05 would be cool.

There are also some good Americans that aren’t getting much notice but may do well. For example, Desiree Davila was here not long ago to do a tempo run on the course. She really impressed me. I don’t see her threatening (Lilya) Shobukhova (the defending champion and 2010 Flora London Marathon champion), but I think she will run well here. And, of course Magdelena (Lewy Boulet) ran 2:26 in Rotterdam this year and should be ready to run. I’m really looking forward to this year’s race.

Cross Women to Compete at Notre Dame | Split Squad to Paul Short



Gina Procaccio will send out her complete "A" squad this Friday at Notre Dame. The team will consist of Sheila Reid, Amanda Marino, Bogdana Mimic, Ali Smith, Sarah Morrison, Callie Hogan, and Emily Lipari. The first four listed ran on Villanova's NCAA championship last year. Hogan and Morrison red-shirted a year ago, and Lipari is a true freshman in her second collegiate meet. This looks to be the season-long top seven, and the field at Notre Dame is packed with the nation's elite programs. The Villanova women went undefeated last year; this meet will place their streak in jeopardy, as five of the top eight teams in the current national rankings will face off at Notre Dame. The rest of the women's squad will compete at the Paul Short Run at Lehigh. Here is the official story from Villanova.com:

Villanova Among the Numerous Top Teams Running in Friday's Notre Dame Invitational

Villanova faces its first big test of the season at this week's Notre Dame Invitational.

Sept. 28, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa.--In just its second competition of the young season, the Villanova women's cross country team will be racing against stiff competition at the Notre Dame Invitational this Friday, as the team entry list consists of a `Who's Who' of the best teams from around the nation. Then again, the large group of nationally-ranked squads competing in this meet is headlined by the Wildcats, who remain the unanimous number one team in the nation.

This early in the year, a race that will feature four of the top five teams in the country and a total of 12 schools ranked in the top 30 of this week's U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national poll is a great test for defending national champion Villanova.

Not much has changed on the national scene since last November, when the Wildcats brought home the program's eighth national title. The top three teams at last year's NCAA Championships meet - Villanova, Florida State and Washington - just happen to be ranked in that same order in this week's national rankings. And they will all go head-to-head on Friday afternoon, along with No. 5 Oregon and No. 8 Princeton among others.

Head coach Gina Procaccio has an experienced veteran team and will enter a powerful lineup in this week's race. Senior Sheila Reid (Newmarket, Ont.) will be making her season debut and returns to the top of the Wildcat lineup along with classmate Amanda Marino (Jackson, N.J.), who won last week's three-mile race at the Main Line Invitational.

The core of Villanova's returning group of runners is formed by Reid along with Marino, junior Bogdana Mimic (Pancevo, Serbia) and senior Ali Smith (Columbia, Md.). The latter three occupied the top three spots at the season-opening meet last week, with the Wildcats claiming the top six finishers overall (in the three-mile race little more than a minute separated the top six Villanova runners).

Freshman Emily Lipari (Greenvale, N.Y.) made an impressive collegiate debut last week at Haverford, running with her older teammates for much of the race before coming in fourth. Seniors Sarah Morrison (Chambersburg, Pa.) and Callie Hogan (Bay Shore, N.Y.) complete the Wildcats lineup for the team's upcoming race after placing fifth and sixth, respectively, in the Main Line meet.

Friday's meet will be held at the Notre Dame Golf Course on the southwest corner of the Fighting Irish campus. The women will run on a 5K course and Villanova is racing in the Blue Division race, which begins at 4:15 p.m.

Six Team Members to Compete at Paul Short Run

Villanova will have six of its runners in competition at the Paul Short Run on Friday morning at Lehigh. The women's gold race begins at 11:45 a.m. and will cover a 6K course. Included in the contingent of Wildcats that will be running are senior Kaitlin O'Sullivan (Gansevoort, N.Y.), sophomores Shannon Browne (Staten Island, N.Y.), Anna Francis (Brookhaven, N.Y.), Ariann Neutts (Succasunna, N.J.) and Meghan Smith (Newark, Del.), and freshman Nicky Akande (Lawrenceville, Ga.).

Men's Cross Country Weekend: Notre Dame & Paul Short



Matt Gibney, Hugo Beamish, and Mathew Mildenhall will not compete this weekend. Gibney is being brought back carefully from a stress reaction in his hip that derailed his outdoor season in the spring. He is basically healthy, but is being saved for later, as it were. Beamish and Mildenhall are resting some tweaked hamstrings and will also be held out. These three individuals constitute a large portion of the top end of the squad, so view the team results with some context. Here is the story from Villanova.com's XC page.

Villanova Heads to Notre Dame Invitational in Second Meet of Season
Sept. 28, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa.--Fresh off a successful start to the season last week, the Villanova men's cross country team will gear up for its first big test of the year this coming Friday, when the Wildcats compete in the Notre Dame Invitational against many of the top teams from around the nation.

One of those highly-ranked squads is Villanova, which is ranked No. 14 in the latest U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) national poll. This week's race at Notre Dame features two of the country's top five teams and a total of seven schools from the top 30 of the USTFCCCA poll.

The meet will be held on the Notre Dame Golf Course on the southwest corner of the Fighting Irish campus, and the men will run an 8K course in the Blue Division race beginning at 5 p.m. Aside from host Notre Dame, the Wildcats are the only other BIG EAST squad running in the meet.

Although two upperclassmen will miss this week's competition due to minor lingering injuries, Villanova will have the services of senior Carl Mackenzie (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) and junior Matt Kane (Fairfield, Conn.) among its contingent of eight runners. The pair finished first and second, respectively, at last week's season-opening Main Line Invitational.

Head coach Marcus O'Sullivan has an experienced group of runners this season and the group of Wildcats that compete on Friday will feature four seniors and two juniors. Mackenzie is joined by classmates Keith Capecci (New Hope, Pa.), Brian Long (Louisville, Ky.) and Matt Wikler (Richboro, Pa.), while Kane and Joseph LoRusso (Oak Hill, Va.) are both third-year runners.

In addition to its solid core of returnees, Villanova had several redshirt freshmen make their official debuts for the Wildcats last week. Among that group were sophomores John Pickhaver (Drexel Hill, Pa.) and Greg Morrin (Hockessin, Del.), who will each be running at Notre Dame on Friday evening.

Villanova is behind just two other team entries in the class of seven top-30 squads. Oregon (No. 3) and Alabama (No. 5) lead the way, while New Mexico (No. 16), Arizona State (t-No. 18), Florida State (No. 21) and UCLA (No. 30) have also entered the competition.

Villanova Also Sending a Delegation To Paul Short Run at Bucknell University.

Several members of the Wildcats will be in action earlier on Friday in the annual Paul Short Run. As a team, Villanova will have six runners in the men's Brown race which begins at 12:15 p.m. on the 8K course. The group running as a team includes seniors Mark Hogan (Clifton, Va.), Brian Tetreault (Cinnaminson, N.J.) and Chris Williams (New York, N.Y.), junior Joseph Capecci (New Hope, Pa.) and sophomores Dan Norman (Lexington, Ky.) and Alex Tully (Little Rock, Ark.).

In addition to the team entry, the Wildcats will have a group of runners competing as unattached entries. They will go off in the men's open race starting at 10:10 a.m.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Interview with Amanda Marino



Villanova's Amanda Marino on Recovering from Iron Deficiency the prospects for the 2010 XC Season

Sixth at last year's NCAA cross country meet, Amanda Marino seemed primed for a breakout track season. Unfortunately, an iron deficiency during hampered her track season. She got back in the swing of things by the end of the spring season, earning her 5th All American Honor and now looks ready to take on her final XC season. She opens up this Friday at Notre Dame. This interview is courtesy of the folks at FloTrack.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Main Line Invite at Haverford -- Video Highlights




Comparing the 2010 and the 2009 Main Line Invite times for those who ran both races, we get the following:

Men's Race: 4 Miles
Name_________________2010_time__________2009_time
Carl Mackenzie_______ 19:53.13___________ 20:00.78
Matt Kane___________ 19:53.37___________ 20:07.61
Mat Mildenhall_______ 19:54.45___________ 19:51.17
Matt Wickler_________ 20:33.37___________ 21:32.52
Alex Orlando_________ 20:41.80___________ 22:01.87
Mark Hogan__________ 21:47.92___________ 21:42.77
Phil O'Connell________ 21:50.79___________ 22:40.44
Joe Capecci__________ 22:25.94___________ 22:42.28

Women's Race: 3 Miles
Name_________________2010_time__________2009_time
Amanda Marino________ 16:48.10___________ 16:23.02
Bogdana Mimic________ 16:48.58___________ 16:44.94
Meghan Smith_________ 18:33.35___________ 19:06.88
Kaitlin O'Sullivan_______ 18:56.31___________ 18:38.44

Sunday, September 26, 2010

Remembering the First 5th Avenue Mile



The 30th anual running of the 5th Avenue Mile took place today (see earlier posts). The first and fastest 5th Avenue Mile was won by Villanova's own Sydney Maree in 1981. Eamonn Coghlan and Ross Donoghue also competed. Here is the October 5, 1981Sports Illustrated article describing that inaugural race.
On The Straight And Narrow

The field Was fast, the crowd immense, but did the inaugural Fifth Avenue Mile in New York City prove to be more than a curiosity? The milers certainly think so
Craig Neff

The fastest field of milers ever assembled lined up across Fifth Avenue in front of New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art last Saturday afternoon to run downtown before an estimated 100,000 spectators, the largest crowd ever to see a mile foot race. Their route would be from 82nd Street to 62nd—a straight but undulating course consisting of a total of three uphill blocks, eight level and nine downhill—under a canopy of Central Park beech trees, past the elegant apartment houses of Millionaire's Row and along a canted surface that, according to an informal survey, was strewn with 124 potholes and 22 manhole covers. "There's no gaping holes they'll fall into," said a city maintenance man. "I've run on tracks that were in worse shape," said Tom Byers of Eugene, Ore., one of 13 starters.

"An historic day," said Race Director Fred Lebow, Saturday morning. "It's tremendous," said former mile world-record holder John Walker of New Zealand. "Could be the biggest thing on Fifth Avenue next to the St. Patrick's Day parade," said Eamonn Coghlan of Ireland, the indoor mile world-record holder.

What they were talking about was the inaugural Fifth Avenue Mile, a commercially packaged, controversial, intriguing event concocted by Lebow, the 49-year-old president of the New York Road Runners Club. For all the optimism, no one knew quite what to expect from a mile race without turns. "In a straight-line race, you have no idea where you are," said Coghlan. "You've got to sprint from the word go." The predicted times ranged from Sydney Maree's "under 4:00" to Coghlan's "could break 3:50." Some even thought Sebastian Coe's 3:47.33 world record might be surpassed, although not officially broken in this, a road race.

A women's mile, run 25 minutes beforehand, served as a preview of the potential for speed and a pitfall the men would also face. University of Oregon junior Leann Warren's winning time of 4:25.31 was a personal best by nearly five seconds. The first-place finishers in two other preliminary races had also gotten PRs, but in all three events several runners, seeing the finish line from the crest of Lenox Hill, almost half a mile away, prematurely began their kicks and died.

At last, the field—conspicuous by their absence were Coe, who was at an International Olympic Committee meeting in Baden-Baden, and former mile world-record holder Steve Ovett, who had pulled out six days earlier pleading a virus—was sent off into a gentle breeze. The runners clustered immediately on the crown of the avenue, led by Coghlan, Ross Donaghue and Maree, and it was apparent that no one was holding anything back or playing mind games. "This was more honest than any track race I've ever run," Walker would say. "It was a sprint. Nobody cared about anyone else."

Maree and Donaghue carried the tight pack past the quarter-mile mark in 53.2, more than two seconds under Coe's record pace. "That time, it blew up my mind," said Mike Boit of Kenya. Originally, there were to have been pacing clocks every five blocks, but even had they been set up, they would have been ignored. "We couldn't have turned to look at them," Ireland's Ray Flynn said. "It was too intense a race. I've never seen anything like it."

Byers made a move at 74th Street, just before the halfway point, as the runners hit the lone uphill stretch. "My strategy was to break some people, but I ended up breaking myself," he said, not the last to so err. In the lead, Donaghue, Maree and Britain's Steve Cram were virtually abreast—and barely ahead of the 10 other milers. They reached the half in 1:52.8, now less than half a second ahead of record pace. A few blocks later, they all caught sight of the finish line.

Faces suddenly snapped taut with strain as the runners instinctively accelerated. Walker and Boit bolted up front with Cram. The brief incline had slowed the runners so that the leader was now behind Coe's pace, but on the downhill stretch between 70th and 66th streets they were making up for lost time. Then, all at once, as they entered the final 440 yards, those who had sprinted especially hard hit the equivalent of a marathoner's "wall."

"I've never gone into such oxygen debt," said Walker. Boit said, "It was so difficult. I could see the finish. I was sprinting as fast as I could. But I was not gaining ground." Quite simply, they all had kicked too soon. And in doing so they left the door open for Maree.

Pushed by the roar of the crowd, which was eight deep on both sides for the last 100 yards, the 25-year-old South African took the lead with 300 yards to go and steadily pulled away. He finished in 3:47.52, unofficially the second-best clocking ever, followed by Boit (3:49.59), who called it the toughest race of his life, and Dr. Thomas Wessinghage of West Germany (3:50.48).

While the runners all but raved about how exciting they had found the race, Lebow talked of holding similar events on San Francisco's Market Street, Chicago's Miracle Mile, London's Mall and the Champs-Elys�es in Paris. "Maybe, if we finally do decide to become a family in South Africa... Johannesburg," offered Maree.

"This was like a swimming race," said Walker, who finished sixth. "They don't have pacemakers, they don't play games and they don't care." Said Wessinghage, "On the track, sometimes the smartest runner may win. Here on the road, the best will win."


RESULTS

1.Sydney Maree 3:47.52 (Still the event record)
2.Mike Boit (Kenya) 3:49.59
3.Thomas Wessinghage (Germany) 3:50.48
4.Steve Cram (Great Britain) 3:50.78
5.Ray Flynn (Ireland) 3:51.49
6.John Walker (New Zealand) 3:53.26
7.Steve Scott 3:53.84
8.Tom Byers 3:56.24
9.Eamonn Coghlan (Ireland) 3:57.23
10.Ross Donoghue 3:58.74
11.Omar Khalifa (Sudan) 3:59.5(ht)
12.Vince Draddy 4:01.0(ht)
13.Craig Masback 4:08.3

Douma 8th, Blincoe 10th in Manhattan



Carmen Douma-Hussar came 8th after leading with 400 to go at today's 30th annual Fifth Avenue Mile in New York. Her time was 4:27.53. In the men's race, in his final race before he'll compete at 5000 meters at the Commonwealth Games, Adrian Blincoe finished 10th, in 3:56.07. Here are the elite race results:

Women's Results

1 Shannon Rowbury 26 San Francisco CA USA Nike 4:24.12
2 Sara Hall 27 Mammoth Lakes CA USA Asics 4:24.34
3 Erin Donohue 27 Haddonfield NJ USA Nike 4:24.40
4 Hannah England 23 Birmingham Great Britain Nike 4:25.29
5 Molly Huddle 26 Providence RI USA Saucony 4:25.92
6 Morgan Uceny 25 Mammoth Lakes CA USA Reebok 4:26.27
7 Amy Mortimer 29 Kansas City MO USA Reebok 4:27.07
8 Carmen Douma-Hussar 33 Ardmore PA Canada NB 4:27.53
9 Elisa Cusma Piccione 29 Modena Italy Nike 4:28.50
10 Treniere Moser 28 Knoxville TN USA Nike 4:28.84
11 Nicole Edwards 24 Ann Arbor MI Canada Saucony 4:29.14
12 Gabriele Anderson 24 Minneapolis MN USA Brooks 4:30.95
13 Heather Dorniden 23 Minneapolis MN USA Team USA 4:31.05
14 Hilary Stellingwerff 29 Canada New Balance 4:32.06
15 Megan Wright 28 Morgantown WV Canada NB 4:35.28
16 Liz Maloy 25 Washington DC USA NYAC 4:37.06
17 Aziza Aliyu 24 Bronx NY Ethiopia 4:37.84
18 Brenda Martinez 23 Alamosa CO USA NB 4:46.36


Men's Results

1 Amine Laalou 28 Rabaat Morocco Nike 3:52.83
2 Bernard Lagat 35 Tucson AZ USA Nike 3:53.30
3 Andy Baddeley 28 London Great Britain New Balance 3:53.34
4 Alan Webb 27 Portland OR USA Nike 3:53.72
5 Leonel Manzano 26 Austin TX USA Nike 3:54.17
6 Nick Willis 27 Ann Arbor MI New Zealand Reebok 3:54.81
7 Will Leer 25 Eugene OR USA Oregon TC Elite 3:55.02
8 Tom Lancashire 25 Manchester Great Britain Nike 3:55.22
9 David Torrence 24 Berkeley CA USA Nike 3:55.43
10 Adrian Blincoe 30 Bryn Mawr PA New Zealand New Balance 3:56.07
11 Garrett Heath 24 Palo Alto CA USA Saucony 3:56.15
12 Daniel Huling 27 Geneva IL USA Reebok 3:56.77
13 Pedro Antonio Esteso 33 Madrid Spain Strands.com 3:56.96
14 Haron Lagat 27 Lubbok TX Kenya New Balance 3:57.43
15 Taylor Milne 29 Guelph ON Canada New Balance 3:58.05
16 Tim Bayley 28 Lafayette CA Great Britain Puma 3:58.29
17 Alistair Cragg 30 Mammoth Lakes CA Ireland adidas 3:58.59
18 Abiyot Endale 24 Bronx NY Ethiopia Westchester TC 4:02.41
19 Sean Brosnan 33 Wantagh NY USA Mizuno 4:04.92
20 Jon Rankin 28 Seattle WA Cayman Islands 4:12.06

Saturday, September 25, 2010

W(h)ither the Irish Pipeline to US Colleges?



Running Out of Road on the US Route

ATHLETICS: For young Irish distance runners the American scholarship route isn’t yet completely shut down, and may well continue, if only for very small numbers, writes
IAN O'RIORDAN, The Irish Times
September 25, 2010

I REMEMBER when you could run a decent seven-mile loop around Belfield and not even pass any students. You came in by Fosters Avenue, circled the fields behind the football grounds, cut through woodland and headed up towards Roebuck Castle. You ran down to the open spaces around the Clonskeagh entrance, headed left towards the Donnybrook gates, past Belfield House and the running track, through more woodland, and finished up in the fields behind the old Merville House.

Indeed on this loop you were more likely to pass famous runners such as John Treacy or Jerry Kiernan than you were any actual students of University College Dublin. Times have a-changed, naturally, but when I went running around Belfield this week I couldn’t help thinking they paved this little piece of paradise, and put up a parking lot.

Plus, I continually ran past students, whole groups of them, and the annoying thing about that wasn’t that they upset my stride, but how impossibly young they looked. Most of them, I suspected, were first years, bubbling with enthusiasm as they sauntered back to their new student residence, a freshly-printed syllabus in their hands, their whole lives finally opening up before them. The sad realisation was that these first years would always turn back the clock on me, that every year they’d have the faces of angels.

Anyhow it’s 20 years now since I started college, not in Belfield, but across the pond in Brown University, Rhode Island. Yes, the Ivy League, the cream of America – as in rich, and thick. But I was not alone. Back in 1990, an American scholarship was the aspiration for every young distance runner in Ireland, and with a bit of effort was perfectly attainable.

Off the top of my head I can list over a dozen young Irish distance runners who went to America that same year: Niall Bruton, Nigel Brunton, Mark Carroll, Séamus Power, John Murray, Conor Holt, Declan O’Callaghan, Martin McCarthy, Ken Nason, Frank Hanley; young Irish women distance runners too such as Natalie Davey, Sinéad Delahunty, and Geraldine Nolan. I’d say over 20 of us left that year alone, and while most of us stuck with it, and only some of us went on to greater things (take a bow, Mark Carroll), our lives were only bettered by the experience.

It was the peak of the American scholarship era, and there must have been over 100 of us, spread across most of the 50 States. We were of course following in the footsteps of practically all the great Irish distance runners, from John Joe Barry to Ronnie Delany, and Eamonn Coghlan to Sonia O’Sullivan. Our dream was as real as theirs, even if our talent wasn’t. The American scholarship route has helped produce several more champion Irish distance runners since my time, such as Keith Kelly, Martin Fagan, Mary Cullen, even Alistair Cragg.

Now it seems this great era and tradition is coming to an end.

According to Brother John Dooley, the Irish authority on athletic scholarships, only four young distance runners have made the journey this year: Eimear Black, from Antrim, has started at Bryant University, in Smithfield, Rhode Island; Chris Jones, formerly of St Fintan’s in Sutton, at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas; Cheryl Nolan, from the St Abban’s club in Laois, at Arkansas Tech, located in Russellville, Arkansas (and not be confused with Arkansas University); and Tara Jameson, from Wicklow, at Iona College, in New Rochelle, upstate New York.

In distance running terms, that’s it for 2010, and they’re not exactly headline acts – although promising young hammer thrower Aoife Hickey from Kilkenny has also started at the University of Alabama, in Tuscaloosa. Brother Dooley reckons in his 30 or so years of advising and supporting young Irish distance runners going to America that’s an all-time low.

“It’s unbelievable, really, how much it’s dropped back,” he says. “And it does look like the end of an era. There are lots of reasons, the main one being we just don’t have the depth of young distance runners anymore. I mean the inter-club cross country this year, back in March, was embarrassing, really. The junior women in particular. The junior men weren’t much better. The top three or four would be of decent quality, but it really drops off after that.

“The American college coaches are also more conscious of the risk of taking Irish athletes, given the increased costs. They might get two Americans for the same deal. They’ve tightened the whole scholarship system as well, and it’s more about financial aid now, based on family income. On top of that, American distance running has got great depth now. They’re putting the work in. In the past, for example, an Irish junior running 3:55 for the 1,500 metres would have been recruited. These days he would want to be running 3:48, because that’s what the Americans are running.”

In fact only the exceptionally talented can hope to be recruited by the traditional Irish breeding grounds such as Villanova, Providence College, and Arkansas. Down youngster Ciara Mageean is the one athlete who currently falls into that category, but has deferred her college options for a year, perhaps wisely so.

“The number of American colleges on to Ciara was incredible,” says Brother Dooley. “They were like bees around a jam pot. But she was the exception. Those more familiar colleges have become so successful, partly on the back of the Irish, that the world is really their recruiting village. Look at the Arkansas rooster now, for example, and they have seven or eight different nationalities, including Kenya, New Zealand, and Australia.”

The flip side of this, obviously, is that more of our young distance runners are attending Irish universities, now a real alternative. Paul Robinson from Kildare, who this summer ran an Irish junior mile record of 4:00.93, is joining up with the successful athletics academy at Dublin City University, as is promising young steeplechaser Emmet Jennings. In fact Deirdre Doyle is also starting fresh there again, having returned home after her first year at Bryant University.

There’s another underlying factor: athletics – and particularly distance running – has dropped further down the list of school sports, especially as rugby, soccer, and GAA tighten their grip. Brother Dooley tells a story from his teaching days at North Monastery in Cork which is even more applicable these days: “I had both Setanta and Aisake Ó hAilpín during my time there, and they ran cross country in first and second year. Once March arrived the coach from Na Piarsaigh would be down to tell them that was the end of the running, it’s hurling from now on. Both of those were unbelievably talented, and could have been very good distance runners. Aisake, I know, would have been very good.

“And from my information there are over 20 young Irish women on soccer scholarships in America. Quite a few young men as well, around 15. One went out this year, including a nephew of the runner Ann Keenan Buckley. Golfers too. I know of three Irish golfers at East Tennessee University, which is Ray Flynn’s old alma mater.”

For young Irish distance runners the American scholarship route isn’t yet completely shut down, and may well continue, if only in very small numbers. But the landscape it seems has changed, irreversibly so, and not only around Belfield.

Defending Champs Start Well at Haverford



HAVERFORD, Pa. - In its first meet of the season, the Villanova women's cross country team had nine runners in action at the Main Line Invitational, held on the Alumni Course at Haverford College early Thursday evening. Senior Amanda Marino (Jackson, N.J.) won the three-mile race with a time of 16:48.1.

Marino and junior Bogdana Mimic (Pancevo, Serbia) crossed the finish line together with nearly identical times and were six seconds ahead of the rest of the field. Mimic registered a time of 16:48.58 and senior Ali Smith (Columbia, Md.) rounded out the first three Villanova runners with a time of 16:54.62.

"It felt really good today," Marino said. "We just ran nice and controlled and tried to pick it up a little bit as the race went on. Today was really about getting used to racing again because next week we fly out to Notre Dame. It was good for us to have kind of a practice race so we can go from here and get ready for next week."

On a warm and humid afternoon, the Wildcats showed some of the potential that has them ranked No. 1 in the nation to begin the season. Villanova had all nine of its runners finish in the top 12, including having each of the top six finishers.

Freshman Emily Lipari (Greenvale, N.Y.) was in fourth place and was followed by seniors Sarah Morrison (Chambersburg, Pa.) and Callie Hogan (Bay Shore, N.Y.) in fifth and sixth, respectively.

That group was followed by freshman Nicky Akande (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and sophomore Meghan Smith (Newark, Del.) in eighth and ninth place, while senior Kaitlin O'Sullivan (Gansevoort, N.Y.) was 12th overall.

There was no team scoring at Thursday's race, which included runners from six different local schools.

Next up for the Wildcats is the Notre Dame Invitational next Friday (October 1st) beginning at 2 p.m. on the Notre Dame Golf Course.


Main Line Invite (3 Miles)

1 - Amanda Marino (16:48.10)
2 - Bogdana Mimic (16:48.58)
3 - Ali Smith (16:54.62)
4 - Emily Lipari (17:21.41)
5 - Sarah Morrison (17:33.99)
6 - Callie Hogan (17:59.98)
8 - Nicky Akande (18:31.60)
9 - Meghan Smith (18:33.35)
12 - Kaitlin O'Sullivan (18:56.31)

Nova XC Men Roll at Main Line Invitational




HAVERFORD, Pa. - In its first meet of the season, the Villanova men's cross country team had nine runners (plus 10 mored as unattached) competing at the Main Line Invitational, held on the Alumni Course at Haverford College early Thursday evening. Senior Carl Mackenzie (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) and junior Matt Kane (Fairfield, Conn.) came in first and second, respectively, in the four-mile race with nearly identical times. Junior Mathew Mildenhall (Auckland, New Zealand) rounded out the top three runners for the Wildcats.

Mackenzie crossed the finish line first with a time of 19:53.13 and Kane was right with him in 19:53.37. With the majority of its team racing in Thursday's meet, Villanova occupied the top three finishing spots and had nine of the top 14 finishers overall.

It was a good opening race for the Wildcats on a warm and humid afternoon at the course, as the squad continues to prepare for its first big meet of the season next week at Notre Dame. Kane discussed the team's good start to the season following the race.

"I feel really good coming out of today's race," Kane said. "I had a lot of fun out there and everything went according to our plan. Coach [Marcus O'Sullivan] told us to run a relaxed pace between 4:40-5:00 [per mile] and we hit that exactly. I think everyone is happy with how they ran today."

Mildenhall recorded a time of 19:54.45 to finish only a second behind the team's two leading runners. Junior Joseph LoRusso (Oak Hill, Va.) came in sixth place while sophomores Greg Morrin (Hockessin, Del.) and John Pickhaver (Drexel Hill, Pa.) were eighth and 10th, respectively.

The race results for Morrin and Pickhaver were particularly strong, as the duo leads a group of redshirt freshmen who are making their official Villanova debuts this fall after competing unattached during parts of the 2009 season.

Overall, the Wildcats were able to show some of the potential that has them ranked at the top of the Mid-Atlantic Region and No. 14 in the nation to begin the season.

"For someone like me, today's race was a confidence booster," Kane said. "I ran a good 15 seconds or so faster than I did last year and was farther up on the team than I had expected. We are excited to get ready for a fast course at Notre Dame next week. I expect that we will be competitive as a team. I feel that this is the best team we have had since I have been year and I am happy to be a part of it."

Next week's (October 1st) Notre Dame Invitational will begin at 2 p.m. on the Notre Dame Golf Course.


Main Line Invite (4 Miles)

1 - Carl Mackenzie (19:53.13)
2 - Matthew Kane (19:53.37)
3 - Mathew Mildenhall (19:54.45)
6 - Joseph LoRusso (20:13.53)
8 - Greg Morrin (20:16.93)
10 - John Pickhaver (20:21.35)
11 - Keith Capecci (20:22.89)
12 - Matt Wikler (20:33.37)
14 - Brian Long (20:37.04)
15 - Dusty Solis (20:37.30)
17 - Alex Orlando (20:41.80)
18 - Chris O'Sullivan (20:46.73)
19 - Brian Tetreault (20:47.13)
23 - Brian Basili (20:54.56)
24 - Mark Lee (20:58.38)
27 - Chris Williams (21:02.00)
30 - Chris Pietrocarlo (21:15.22)
36 - Mark Hogan (21:24.53)
38 - Dan Harris (21:29.33)
44 - Chris Fitzsimons (21:43.27)
51 - Phil O'Connell (21:50.79)
64 - Joseph Capecci (22:25.94)
65 - Richie Bohny (22:26.22)

Friday, September 24, 2010

Post-Collegiate Cats Working with Gagliano



Frances Koons, Sean Tully, and Nicole Schappert are among a group of post-collegiate runners training together under the tutelage of Frank Gagliano. Most of the session are evidently taking place at Rutgers. Here is the story from Walt Murphy.

Frank Gagliano--One More Training Group
by Walt Murphy

It didn't take long for Frank Gagliano, affectionately known as "Gags", to gather together another group of runners who will train under his guidance.

After spending a number of years on the West Coast, where he was the coach of the Nike Farm Team at Stanford and The Oregon Elite T.C. in Eugene(after leading the Reebok Enclave in D.C.), the native New Yorker returned home to the East Coast in late 2008 to tend to family matters. He got back into coaching slowly late last year, taking 2008 Olympian Erin Donohue and former Seton Hall star Rob Novak under his wing. They will now have plenty of company during their training sessions at Rutgers, where the group meets 2-3 times a week.

"Rutgers has been great for letting us use their facilities", said Gags. (Of course, it helps that he was a former head coach at the New Jersey school and the current men's coach, Mike Mulqueen, ran for him at Manhattan College!). "We look forward to supporting some indoor track meets in the Armory and outdoor meets in the New York-New Jersey area, as well as meets in Boston".

Here is the current roster for the as-yet unnamed group of middle distance runners (with their former college affiliation and PRs)

Erin Donohue (North Carolina) 1:59.99, 4:03.49, 4:26.48
Rob Novak (Seton Hall) 1:46.85, 3:40.90
Frances Koons (Villanova) 4:13.23, 4:33.24i, 9:01.02i, 15:43.78
Delilah DiCrescenzo (Columbia) 4:12.78, 9:02.50, 15:40.00,
Julie Culley (Rutgers) 2:10.43, 4:13.18, 4:34.80, 8:55.62i, 15:21.87
Nicole Schappert (Villanova) 2:08.06, 4:17.99, 4:35.97i, 9:12.51i
Christine Whalen (Georgetown) 2:04.49, 4:21.21
Deon Bascom (Pittsburgh) 1:48.52
Sean Tully (Villanova) 1:46.84, 3:46.63, 4:01.95
Liam Boylan-Pett (Columbia) 1:48.28, 3:40.15, 3:59.40i
Alex Wechsler (Lafayette) 3:45.96, 4:05.82
Aidan Walsh (FDU) 3:43.99, 4:04.97
Max Smith (Providence) 3:39.93, 3:56.46, 7:55.19i

Also trainng with Gags one day a week (in Rye, NY) are veterans John Trautmann, the 1992 Olympian at 5000-meters, St.John's assistant coach John Honerkamp, who had bests of 1:47.26 and 3:41.58 in the late 1990s, Tom Nohilly, who was 4th in the steeplechase at the 1992 and 1996 U.S. Olympic Trials, Lesley Higgins, who was an All-American in the mile and 3000 at Colorado in the early 2000s, and Katie Hitchcock-McManus, who ran 2:07.74 for Boston U. back in 1997.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

#14 Men Start Cross Season Today at Haverford -- Down Under Contingent to Lead the Pack



Sept. 21, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The first meet of the season is on tap for this coming Thursday for the Villanova men's cross country team, which is currently ranked No. 14 in the nation and No. 1 in the Mid-Atlantic Region in the latest USTFCCCA national and regional polls. The squad will race in the Main Line Invitational hosted by Haverford College in a four-mile race on the Alumni Course just a short distance from the Villanova campus. The men's race will get underway starting at 5:30 p.m.

In their first competition of the season, the Wildcats will have their entire team in action, including four runners who ran in last year's NCAA Championships. Junior Mathew Mildenhall (Auckland, New Zealand) is a returning All-American, while seniors Hugo Beamish (Havelock North, New Zealand), Matthew Gibney (Albury, Australia) and Carl Mackenzie (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) all were a part of a Villanova team that finished the 2009 season on a particularly strong note.

Overall, the Wildcats return 15 runners from last year's squad. In addition, five redshirt freshmen will make their official Villanova debuts this fall and another nine incoming freshmen have also joined the roster.

Following several weeks of practice, the Main Line Invitational is the perfect first meet for the Wildcats.

"The race on Thursday is a chance for us to find out where we are as a team," head coach Marcus O'Sullivan said. "I have always liked the Haverford course because it is one loop that the guys will go around four times and that gives me a chance to see a lot of them and see what we have."

Given that Villanova finished strong last year and brings back a number of its top runners, expectations are high entering the start of competition for the current season.

"I feel like we have as good a team as last year, if not better," O'Sullivan said. "I will be looking to see how our experienced runners can use the success from last year to get started on a positive note and how the new guys are able to become a part of what we have. One of the things that will come out of this race is for us to choose the team that will run for us at Notre Dame next week."

Results from the Main Line Invitational will be available on Villanova.com on Thursday night.

#1 Villanova Women's Cross Country Squad Opens Defense of its NCAA Crown Today at Haverford -- Lipari & Akande to Debut




Sept. 21, 2010

VILLANOVA, Pa. - The first meet of the season is on tap for this coming Thursday for the defending national champion Villanova women's cross country team. The squad will race in the Main Line Invitational hosted by Haverford College in a three-mile race on the Alumni Course just a short distance from the Villanova campus. The women's race will get underway starting at 5 p.m.

In their first competition of the season, the Wildcats will have nine runners in action, including three of the team's All-Americans from last year's national championship race. Seniors Amanda Marino (Jackson, N.J.) and Ali Smith (Columbia, Md.) plus junior Bogdana Mimic (Pancevo, Serbia) will lead the Villanova contingent in Thursday's race.

Among the other returning runners that will run for the Wildcats are the senior trio of Callie Hogan (Bay Shore, N.Y.), Sarah Morrison (Chambersburg, Pa.) and Kaitlin O'Sullivan (Gansevoort, N.Y.) in addition to sophomore Meghan Smith (Newark, Del.).

Freshmen Nicky Akande (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and Emily Lipari (Greenvale, N.Y.) will each make their Villanova debut at Haverford.

After several weeks of practice, the Main Line Invitational provides a good chance for the Wildcats to race for the first time and allow the coaches to evaluate the team in a competitive setting.

"The big thing in our first race is for us to figure out who our top seven runners are that we are going to take to Notre Dame next week," head coach Gina Procaccio said. "I haven't been able to tell yet from our training who our top seven are going to be."

Results from the Main Line Invitational will be available on Villanova.com on Thursday night.

Two Former Villanovans to Run the 30th Annual Continental Airlines 5th Avenue Mile




This Sunday, September 27, the 30th Annual Continental Airlines 5th Avenue Mile will be held. On the men's side, former Villanova all-american and NCAA 3000 meter champion Adrian Blincoe will take the charge down 5th Avenue. His track mile PR is 3:54.40, although he is a 5000 meter guy. On the women's end, two-time 5th Avenue Mile winner and multiple NCAA champion Carmen Douma-Hussar will attempt to capture her third title. Both fields are packed with top-quality milers.

For bios of the male competitiors, go to:
http://www.nyrr.org/races/2010/mile/mens_bios.asp

For bios of the female competitors, go to:
http://www.nyrr.org/races/2010/mile/womens_bios.asp

The races will be live streamed by the New York Road Runners. The elite races should start at approximately 12:50 ET, and can be seen here:
http://www.nyrr.org

If you're going mobile, try here:
http://mobile.livestream.com/nyrr


Monday, September 20, 2010

Marc Pelerin 1:10:19 at Philly Half Marathon Good for 48th Overall



Ex-Cat Marc Pelerin finished 48th overall at the Philadelphia Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon over the weekend. That time averages out to 5:22 per mile. Pelerin blogged as follows about the race:

I had thought I could run 66:30 or so, but clearly that wasn't going to happen even if I had the best day. My splits showed that after each 5k I got considerably slower than the previous one. However, I've conquered the half marathon distance and I set PRs at almost every distance above 5k. I set a 10k road, 10 mile, and half marathon PR. And as upset as I am about the slow time, I really can't complain about that 3 PRs.



Douma-Hussar Wins Grandma's Minnesota Mile



Ex-Villanova all american and multiple NCAA titlist Carmen Douma-Hussar won the Grandma's Minnesota Mile yesterday, held in conjunction with Grandma'a Marathon. Douma-Hussar set a new course record, running 4:35.60. She beat Amy Mortimer into second (see photo above). Here are the results and a story from the Duluth News Tribune.

1. Carmen Douma-Hussar, 33, Ardmore, Pa., 4:35.60 ($2,000)
2. Amy Mortimer, 29, Leonardville, Kan., 4:36.00 ($1,250)
3. Heather Dorniden, 23, Minneapolis, 4:39.40 ($1,000)
4. Gabriele Anderson, 24, Perham, Minn., 4:42.20 ($750)
5. Breeda Willis, 40, Stevens Point, Wis., 4:42.50 ($500)
6. Jamie Cheever, 23, Minneapolis, 4:49.20 ($250

Grandma's Minnesota Mile Records Broken
Kevin Pates, Duluth News Tribune

Taking the recommendations of friends, Kenyan-born Aron Rono of Sante Fe, N.M., and Canadian-born Olympian Carmen Douma-Hussar of Ardmore, Pa., entered the Grandma’s Minnesota Mile for the first time and won Sunday morning’s elite race titles on Superior Street.

Rono, 27, set a course record in 3 minutes, 58.18 seconds in the fourth annual event. He broke the mark of 3:59.69, set last year by Kenyan Haron Lagat, a teammate with the Ameri-Kenyan Running Club. Lagat had encouraged Rono to try the race.

Douma-Hussar, 33, ninth at 1,500 meters in the 2004 Summer Games, smashed the women’s course mark by more than five seconds in 4:35.60. Two-time winner Carrie Vickers of Carbondale, Colo., ran the previous best of 4:40.99 last year. Douma-Hussar was in Duluth after hearing about the race from former Villanova University roommate Carrie Tollefson of St. Paul, who has run the event. The winners each earned $2,000 from a $12,500 prize money purse.

“I want to try to make Kenya’s track team for the 2012 Summer Olympics, and my coach and I are deciding between 5,000 and 10,000 meters,” said Rono, a seven-time NAIA All-American in track and cross country through 2009 at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, Calif. “I have never run under four minutes in the mile and it was very important for me to do that. It shows I have some speed and proves I’m more of a 5K guy.”

Rono, 5-foot-8 and 124 pounds, won two straight NAIA cross country titles and two straight 1,500-meter outdoor track titles as a collegian, and has a track mile best of 4:01.30. He was part of a small group that broke away from a 29-runner elite field at about 800 meters, then tucked in behind with 400 meters to go and stepped out and around a few bodies with 20 meters left. It was his first road mile.

Minnesota native and former Stanford University star Garrett Heath of Palo Alto, Calif., was second, three-tenths of a second behind in 3:58.48, while Kenyan Felix Kiboiywo of Auburn, Ala., was third in 3:59.33. The top Duluthians were Justin Grunewald, 24, who was 17th in 4:15.63 and Jeremy Polson, 32, who was 19th in 4:18.88.

“It has been almost a month since my last race (a 1,500 event in France) and this was painful,” said Heath, 24, an eight-time state champion in cross country, track and Nordic skiing at Winona High School. “The last 400 meters was a little out of my comfort zone and I didn’t have that last gear to win, but I couldn’t have run any faster than I did.”

Douma-Hussar has eased her way back into racing after giving birth to her daughter, Pippa, 14 months ago. She was looking to redeem herself after a fourth-place at 1,500 meters in 4:17.79 in the Canadian Championships in July in Toronto. Her most recent road mile was a 4:22.8 to win the 2007 Fifth Avenue Mile in New York City.

“I didn’t really look at who was racing here, but I knew Amy Mortimer was running and I knew this would have to be a hard effort,” said Douma-Hussar, a three-time NCAA Division I champion, including at 1,500 meters outdoors. “It was fun to race here because I felt at home. I have seen all of the Great Lakes now, after seeing Lake Superior, and it’s beautiful.”

Mortimer, 29, from Leonardville, Kan., and a 12-time All-American at Kansas State, was second in 4:36.00 to win $1,250 near the end of a busy racing season. She won the Grand Blue Mile road race in 4:35 on April 20 in Des Moines, Iowa, and was sixth at 1,500 meters in 4:16.89 at the U.S. Championships on June 26 in Des Moines.

Heather Dorniden, 23, of Minneapolis of Team USA Minnesota, was third in 4:39.40 to win $1.000, just two days after being married.

There was a record 532 entrants in four mile events, including the largest elite fields in race history.

“We made a substantial effort to recruit more elite runners and to continue to make this one of the best road mile events in the United States,” said Grandma’s Marathon executive director Scott Keenan.

Winners in the Duluth Mile were Robert Jenson, 20, of Duluth in 4:49 and Katie Lovrien, 36, of St. Louis Park, Minn., in 5:24. Winners in the All City Mile were Tony Moen, 34, of Proctor in 5:29 and Gina Slotness, 29, of Duluth in 6:11.

The point-to-point race went from the Fitger’s Brewery Complex at about 600 East Superior to Fourth Avenue West. The weather was sunny and about 53 degrees.

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Marcus O'Sullivan to Speak at USTFCCCA Convention in San Antonio




Marcus O’Sullivan Joins the Lineup of USTFCCCA Convention Symposium Speakers

Marcus O’Sullivan, Director of Villanova track & field and head coach of the men’s cross country and track & field programs will conduct two separate symposium sessions at the 2010 USTFCCCA Convention in San Antonio. O’Sullivan established himself as one of ‘Nova’s all-time great distance runners during his collegiate career (1980-84) and since taking the helm of the program, has returned the Wildcats to prominence on the conference and national scenes. O’Sullivan has coached seven individual NCAA champions in various distance events and multiple athletes who have competed at the international level. As an athlete, the former three-time IAAF World Indoor Champion, O’Sullivan was a four-time Olympian and a former indoor 1500-meter world-record holder. He is one of only three men who have run under four minutes 100 times.

The 2010 USTFCCCA Convention will take place at the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort on December 13 – 16.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Carrie Tollefson on Runner's World Cover



Running magazine editors like to put Carrie Tollefson on the cover, for reasons that should be obvious. She graces the current October 2010 issue of Runner's World, where she is the focus of an article on returning to running after a break (in her case to give birth to her first child).

To see the article that discusses her post-pregnancy fitness routine, just click above on the title of this post.

Great Milers Recall the First 5th Avenue Mile


Sydney Maree charges down 5th Aveunue to win the 1981 race


It's been 29 years since the first 5th Avenue Mile was contested in New York City. Two Villanovans figured prominantly in that race (and subsequent ones as well). Eamonn Coghlan helped organized the race and recruit the excellent field, and Sydney Maree won the race in a spectacular 3:47.52, which remains the fastest time in the 29-race history.

Mile greats fondly recall first Fifth Avenue Mile

With the 30th running of New York's Fifth Avenue Mile, the oldest road race of its kind, coming up, four of the participants in that first race -- Eamonn Coghlan, Steve Cram, Steve Scott and Ray Flynn -- reflect on their Big Apple adventure in 1981.

By Joe Battaglia, Universal Sports
Sep 15, 7:52

On September 26, the New York Road Runners will host the 30th running of the Fifth Avenue Mile, the oldest road race of its kind. To mark the occasion, four of the participants in the 1981 race -- Eamonn Coghlan and Ray Flynn of Ireland, Steve Cram of Great Britain and Steve Scott of the U.S. -- spoke with a select group of reporters about that initial road mile as well as the state of the sport today. Here are their recollections of the 1981 race.

What is your first memory of the Fifth Avenue Mile?

Eamonn Coghlan: I remember coming out of Madison Square Garden after the Millrose Games Wannamaker Mile, and as I was walking over to the Penn Plaza Hotel with Fred Lebow, Fred said to me, ‘It's a shame that we don't get more people watching you great milers compete. I have an idea. I'm thinking about putting a mile down Fifth Avenue. What do you think?' I said, ‘Gosh Fred, I think that's a great idea. Why don't you finish it at the Irish Tourist Board on Fifth Avenue.' I was working there at the time. In Oslo about four months later, Fred said to me, ‘Hey Eamonn, I have a sponsor for the Fifth Avenue Mile. It's going to be called the Pepsi Challenge Fifth Avenue Mile and we want to fly you over for the press conference on the Concord.' That was the birth of the Fifth Avenue Mile.

How did Fred Lebow pitch the idea to get all of you guys into the field?

Eamonn Coghlan: It was totally different from what it is like today trying to get the best milers in the world to compete. Back then, we didn't hide - well, maybe Seb Coe and Steve Ovett did - but John Walker, Ray Flynn, Steve Scott, Thomas Wessinghage, Steve Cram, we went at it week after week indoors running really fast. Outdoors, the guys in Europe ran really fast. There was no holding back. When it came to the Fifth Avenue Mile that year, Fred literally told us that it was taking place, asked us to run and it was understood that we were going to show up because Fred and the New York Road Runners club was well know for taking care of the runners. When the Fifth Avenue Mile had really good sponsorship with Pepsi Cola, the money was there, the enticement was there. It was easy for us to say yes.

What did you think when you first heard about this from Fred Lebow and what are your memories of that first race?

Steve Scott: I thought it was a great idea. You didn't really know what the reception was going to be like in the city. We all knew about the New York City Marathon and all the different events that were held in New York and we just hoped that it would have the same reception as those events, and it did. From a tactical point of view it was a difficult thing to adjust to. From a social point of view it was great because it was at the end of the season, and it brought all of the great milers together in one place. The Road Runners treated us like kings and we went out afterward to Studio 54. It was a great event and from that year forward, every miler was looking to get an invitation to the Fifth Avenue Mile.

The race record of 3:47.32 by Sydney Maree still stands. What do you think some of the reasons for the longevity of that mark and do you remember thinking that it was a really fast time on that day?

Ray Flynn: At that time, miling was so exciting and there were so many records being broken all the time, and we had never run a mile in a straight line on a street like Fifth Avenue in New York City. We as athletes wanted to see how fast we could run in a straight line. We didn't have experience where to kick or what to do. We just ran as fast as we could right from the gun. With that and the atmosphere from the crowds that lined the streets, I think that's what brought about this fast result.

Steve Scott: That first year we were all kind of ignorant. We didn't really know what to expect. We were very aggressive and everybody ran really hard thinking that finish line was a lot closer than it was and people tried making moves early. I think in subsequent years the race was run more cautiously. Plus it wasn't a track race where you had to worry about Track & Field News rankings. During that time, everybody wanted to be ranked very highly by Track & Field News and since it was a road mile it didn't count. We could ran as fast as we could and if we didn't win it didn't matter because it wasn't going to count against you.

Eamonn Coghlan: Unlike a track race where there are four laps to the mile and you can pace yourself through the first 440y, 880y, three-quarter miles and know exactly where you're at and what time you're running, we were going from gun to tape all out without knowing where we were with each split. We were able to be right there until about 200 meters to go but Sydney just wanted it more than everyone else. It was that hunger that made him run 3:47 point.

When you look at the field, it was the caliber of an Olympic field and that's without Seb Coe and Steve Ovett who weren't there. Do you think this was the best ever era of milers?

Steve Cram: I think so. I was chatting with some people today and the memories are still very vivid for fans of middle distance running and miling in those days. The race was actually televised by the BBC back home and the reason for that was that we had these great characters. Miling at the time was perhaps the biggest story in the U.K. especially with what Coe and Ovett had done at the Moscow Olympics the year before. There was huge interest in the field and huge interest in this new event.

There remains such a fascination with the mile. What is it do you think about the mile that makes it such a compelling event for the public to follow?

Eamonn Coghlan: I think there is a magic about the mile, whether its four minutes, or four laps to the track or straightaway down Fifth Avenue. I think the common person out there may not understand how good 3:26 is for 1500 meters but if you say somebody has run a 3:59 mile they can relate to that. The knowledge, the tradition and the history of the mile is engrained in people's minds.

Sydney Maree wasn't able to race often because of the political situation he was in being from South Africa. For that reason, did you suspect that he had extra to prove in this race compared to the guys who had pretty full seasons?

Ray Flynn: I think Sydney was a front runner and he liked to push the pace. This was an opportunity for him to do that against the world's best milers. If you look at how he raced, he always liked to go out as hard as he could. He was close to the front the whole way in that race.

Steve Scott: He also very much liked to make a political statement. I think because of what he was going through at the time. This was a perfect chance. The race was going to be shown worldwide He didn't get the opportunity to race as much as others so this was a great chance for him to state his case politically.

Villanova's Cross Country Champs Honored at White House Ceremony



Members of the the Villanova women's cross country team, winner of the 2009 NCAA national title, were honored by President Obama on the White House lawn yesterday, as part of a ceremony for collegiate championship teams from all sports. The #1 ranked 'Cats begin the defense of that national title on Saturday at the Delaware Invitational in Newark.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Will Blincoe & Kiwis Compete at Commonwealth Games?



This from the New Zealand Herald. Concerns about security, sanitary conditions in Delhi, India may jeopardize New Zealand's participation in next month's Commonwealth Games. Villanova's Adrian Blincoe, the NZ national record holder, is scheduled to contest the 5000 meters.

Review to decide Commonwealth Games go-ahead
By David Leggat Monday Sep 13, 2010

New Zealand Commonwealth Games bosses today went into overdrive, insisting they won't be cutting any corners on security ahead of the October 3 opening of the event in New Delhi.

New Zealand have gone in with Canada, Australia, England and Wales in a joint operation to assess security and general readiness of New Delhi for the Games.

Around September 23, the advance group will report back to the New Zealand Olympic Committee.

"We'll come back and (report that) either it will be okay or we don't think this is viable," New Zealand Games team chief Dave Currie said.

The five countries are pooling their resources with a group of over 40 personnel working together, including seven from New Zealand, two of whom will be embedded within the New Zealand team.

The idea is to make the most comprehensive possible assessment on a variety of fronts.

They include whether basic amenities are working, such as showers and toilets, the state of security round the food in the athletes' village through to issues including transport and health.

However NZOC president Mike Stanley said that while the five will be working closely ultimately there won't be a binding decision taken on whether to continue with the Games or pull out.

"It is going to be a collective consultation and collaboration in all of this," he told the Herald.

"But we are an independent body and will make our own decision based on that.

"Naturally if you engage with a group of nations of a high level of expertise and who have got similar sorts of experience with the Games, obviously we'll take on board their view. But at the end of the day it's our decision."

Currie took a swipe at both those sports sections who have employed independent security advisers on top of the NZOC assessments, and media for speculation around Games issues.

"It's not helpful when people speculate round the situation, whether it be dengue fever or 1000 athletes that haven't arrived. That's mischevious in my view and there's no basis for that at all," Currie said.

He wondered why Netball New Zealand, Hockey New Zealand and the New Zealand Rugby Union have sought extra security information.

"To me there's no logic. They've chosen to do it but I don't know why they've done it.

"Clearly the athletes federation are working with a range of sports. If you think about it, five countries, with all the resources, all the security agencies feeding information into a commol pool.

"(Independent advice) is not going to be ignored but thus far they've come up with nothing different to that which we've got from everybody else."

Both Stanley and Currie were at pains to insist the athletes' security is top priority.

"There will be a ring of steel round the village like you won't believe," Currie said.

Stanley added that "if the New Zealand Government can't advise that our athletes will be safe, then we won't go".

"Anyone suggesting we are going to put athletes at risk is being mischevious. This is our No 1 priority, make no mistake."

This Day in Villanova T&F History


Larry James, Lee Evans, and Ron Freeman atop the medal stand in Mexico City, 1968.

On this day in 1968 Villanova's Larry "The Mighty Burner" James set a very short-lived World Record over 400 meters at the US Olympic Trials in Echo Summit, California. In his first heat at the Trials, James ran 44.19, setting a new American Record. Next, he ran 44.1 to better his national record and set a new world mark in the event. As would be the case at the Olympic Games in Mexico City later that summer, James' accomplishments were over-shadowed by Lee Evans. At the Trials on this day in 1968, Evans bettered James' national and world marks, motoring through in 44.0. The IAAF did not accept Evans' mark because he was wearing an unapproved spike (the illegal brush spike shoe).

Nonetheless, James and Evans were the top men in the world at the Olympic Games as well. In the 400 meter final, Evans won Gold with a time of 43.86. James was second, winning the Silver in 43.97; both broke the existing World Record. Evans and James were the first two men to run 400 meters in under 44 seconds (see photo below). The Americans swept the medals in the event when Ron Freeman cam third, in 44.41. Interesting, this Evans-James-Freeman finish at Mexico City was the identical finishing trio at the 1968 NCAA championships in Berkeley, California. James won a Gold medal at the Mexico City Games as well, running the third leg in the USA's World Record-setting 4 x 400 meter relay team. Vince Matthews, Ron Freeman, Larry James, and Lee Evans crushed the opposition -- defeating the Kenyan team by 3.5 seconds -- in running 2:56.16. This World Record stood from 1968 until 1992.


While at Villanova, James was a four-time NCAA individual champion. He won the NCAA outdoor title at 440 yards in 1970 (45.5). James won the NCAA 440 yard indoor titles in 1968, 1969, and 1970. He was part of 6 Penn Relays championship relay squads from 1968 through 1970, and was 10-time IC4A champion (5 outdoor and 5 indoor).
James died on his 61st birthday on November 6, 2008. The New York Times obituary follows below:

G. Larry James, Olympic Gold Medalist, Dies at 61
By FRANK LITSKY
Published: November 7, 2008

G. Larry James, a former champion runner who won gold and silver medals in the racially charged 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, died Thursday, on his birthday, at his home in Galloway, N.J. He was 61.

The cause was colon cancer, said William Preston, the coordinator of cross-country and track and field at Richard Stockton College in Pomona, N.J. James had been the athletic director there for 28 years.

James, nicknamed the Mighty Burner, was an explosive runner, but deceptively so. Slender and carrying only 155 pounds on his 6-foot frame, he ran with a floating, almost feathery stride.

He won his Olympic laurels in Games best remembered for a black power demonstration staged by his fellow African-American teammates Tommie Smith and John Carlos during an awards ceremony in October 1968.

Standing on the winners’ platform, Smith, who had won the gold medal in the 200-meter dash, and Carlos, who had won the bronze in that event, bowed their heads and raised a black-gloved fist as the “The Star-Spangled Banner” was played.

The display of politics at the Games angered the International Olympic Committee, which forced the United States Olympic Committee to send the two home.

Three days later, in the 400-meter final, the United States swept the medals with Lee Evans first, James second and Ron Freeman third. Evans (43.86 seconds) and James (43.97) broke the world record.

At the medals ceremony, the three Americans wore black socks and black berets and raised their fists, but when the national anthem was played, they removed the berets and lowered their fists.

Two days after that, those three runners and Vince Matthews won the 4x400-meter relay in 2 minutes 56.16 seconds, earning gold medals and a world record that would last 24 years. There was no demonstration during the awards ceremony.


In 1974, in an interview with The New York Times, James expressed second thoughts about his participation in the protest. “I was young, and was expected to have answers to all kinds of questions,” he said. “I went along with people who were my idols. I still respect them, as athletes, but I’m my own man now.”

George Larry James was born Nov. 6, 1947, in Mount Pleasant, N.Y. “I started track in seventh grade because I couldn’t do anything else very well,” he told Track and Field News in 1968.

At White Plains High School, his main events were the intermediate hurdles and the triple jump. He went on to Villanova University, where he won four N.C.A.A. titles and broke or tied world indoor records at 440, 500 and 600 yards.

In the 1968 Penn Relays in Philadelphia, he ran the 440-yard anchor leg of a one-mile relay in 43.9 seconds, the fastest at the time.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Villanova and a master’s in public policy from Rutgers in 1987.

In 2003, he was elected to the National Track and Field Hall of Fame. He also served in the United States Marine Corps Reserves, achieving the rank of major.

He is survived by his wife of 37 years, the former Cynthia Daughtry; a daughter, Tamaiya Forbey of Galloway; a son, Larry, of Tulsa, Okla.; five grandchildren; a sister, Julia James of White Plains; and his mother, Martha James of Greenburgh, N.Y.

In 1973, James ran for the International Track Association’s new and short-lived professional circuit.

After his running career, he was a manager of United States track teams in international competitions and, beginning in 1980, dean of athletics and recreational programs and services at Richard Stockton College.

At Stockton, he helped secure training camps for the United States women’s Olympic basketball team in 1992, Saudi Arabia’s World Cup soccer team in 1994 and its Olympic soccer team in 1996. Last year, the college renamed its track and soccer facility “G. Larry James Stadium.”

In 1973, when the college was known as Stockton State College, he was assistant athletic director and coached the track team.

“Occasionally,” he told The Times, “I spot the boys 20 yards in a 440 and, if I catch them, they have to do three more laps.”

He usually caught them, he said.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Happy Birthday, Marty Liquori




Marty Liquori, America's premier miler and 5000 meter man in the 1970s and the youngest ever 1500 meter Olympic finalist, turns 61 years old today. He is the last American runner to be ranked #1 in the world at the mile (1969 and 1971) and the last American runner to be ranked #1 in the world at 5000 meters (1977). He set American records at two miles (8:17.12) and at 5000 meters (13:15.1).

Friday, September 10, 2010

Carmen Douma-Hussar to Seek Third 5th Avenue Mile Title



Here is the press release from the New York Road Runners concerning the upcoming 5th Avenue Mile. This race was primarily the creation of Villanova's own Eamonn Coghlan, and Villanovans have been prominantly on display in this race over the years. Carmen Douma is entered in this year's field; she won the race in both 2005 and 2007.

Olympians Bernard Lagat and Leonel Manzano Head Strong Field for 30th Running of the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile

Defending champions Andy Baddeley and Shannon Rowbury look to hold off the field on Sunday, September 26

American mile record-holder Alan Webb continues comeback after surgery

New York, September 9, 2010—Two-time Olympic medalist Bernard Lagat will face strong competition as he races against fellow Olympians Leonel Manzano, Nick Willis, and defending champion Andy Baddeley, as well as American mile record-holder Alan Webb at the 30th running of the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile on Sunday, September 26, it was announced today by New York Road Runners president and CEO Mary Wittenberg. This year, all heats will be broadcast live on nyrr.org via Livestream.com, starting at 9:00 a.m. and continuing through the professional races at 12:50 and 1:05 p.m.

Shannon Rowbury is looking to defend her title against a strong women’s field that includes past champions Sara Hall and Carmen Douma-Hussar as well as surging racers Molly Huddle and Kalkidan Gezahegn.

“A red-hot field of superstars is making the 30th running of the Fifth Avenue Mile a must-see, must-run event,” said Wittenberg. “We are thrilled to announce superstars like Bernard, Shannon, and Leonel, as well as, for the first time, live streaming of the entire race.”

Lagat, 36, of Tucson, AZ, is the American record-holder in the 1500, 3000, and 5000 meters, an eight-time Wanamaker Mile winner at the Millrose Games, and has won four gold medals at the World Championships. He is also a two-time Olympic medalist in the 1500 meters for his native Kenya, having earned the silver in 2004 and the bronze in 2000. Lagat has had a successful 2010 which included three American records, a win at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in the 3000 meters, and wins this past Sunday at the IAAF Continental Cup in the 3000 and 5000 meters.

Manzano, 26, of Austin, TX, a five-time NCAA champion and 11-time NCAA All-American at the University of Texas, finished second in the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials 1500 meters. In 2010, Manzano has established five personal bests, including a 3:50.64 mile at the Aviva London Grand Prix. He was third in the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile in 2009 with a time of 3:52.2.

Rowbury, 25, of San Francisco, earned top honors at this event in 2009 with her 4:23.3 finish. Rowbury earned a spot on the 2008 Olympic team in the 1500 meters. At the Beijing Games she advanced to the finals and finished seventh, the highest-ever placing for an American woman in that event. Rowbury also took home the bronze medal at the 2009 World Championships 1500 meters.

Huddle, 26, of Elmira, NY, became the American record-holder in the 5000 meters after running 14:44.76 at the Diamond League meet in Brussels in August. The Notre Dame graduate is a nine-time NCAA All-American and holds four school records.

Gezahegn, 19, of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, is the World Indoor 1500-meter champion. The youngest contender in the field, Gezahegn owns the World Junior record for the indoor mile at 4:24.10.

Other top entrants in the field:

* Willis, 27, of New Zealand, currently residing in Ann Arbor, MI, topped the field at the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile in 2008, when he finished in a time of 3:50.5. Willis competed in the 2008 Olympics representing New Zealand, where he earned a silver medal in the 1500 meters.
* Baddeley, 28, of England, won the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile in 2009 by two-tenths of a second in 3:51.8. Baddeley finished ninth in the final at the 1500 meters in the 2008 Olympics.
* Webb, 27, of Portland, OR, is the American mile record-holder (3:46.91). Webb, who is making his comeback after Achilles surgery earlier this year, trains under three-time New York City Marathon champion Alberto Salazar.
* Amine Laalou, 28, of Morocco, set his personal best time of 3:50.22 earlier this year. He also finished fifth in the 2009 World Championship 800 meters, and he won the 1500 meters at the IAAF Continental Cup last weekend.
* Hall, 27, Mammoth Lakes, CA, took home the Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile title in 2006, when she finished in a time of 4:28.0. Hall has a road mile personal best time of 4:23, set in 2009. A four-time NCAA All-American at Stanford, Hall was also the USA 5K champion in 2006.
* Douma-Hussar, 33, of Ardmore, PA, is a two-time Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile champion (2005, 2007). Douma-Hussar competed for her native Canada in the 2004 Olympics in the 1500 meters, where she finished ninth. The silver medalist in the 1500 meters at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships, Douma-Hussar is making her comeback after giving birth to a daughter, Pippa, in 2009.
* Morgan Uceny, 25, of Mammoth Lakes, CA, captured her first national title in February at the USA Indoor 1500-meter Championships. She followed that up with a victory at the BAA Road Mile on Boston Marathon weekend. Over the course of the 2010 season, Uceny has lowered her 800 meter personal best by 1.5 seconds (to 1:58.67) and her 1500-meter personal best by 4.5 seconds (to 4:02.72).

The Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile begins near East 80th Street and finishes at East 60th Street. The wheelchair and handcycle race will kick off the event at 9:00 a.m. After that, entrants will run in heats according to age and gender. The professional women’s race is scheduled to start at 12:50 p.m., followed by the professional men’s race at 1:05 p.m. A total prize purse of $30,000 for the men’s and women’s professional races will be offered with the top men’s and women’s professional finishers each receiving $5,000. A total prize purse of $30,000 for the men’s and women’s professional races will be offered with the top men’s and women’s professional finishers each receiving $5,000.