Track & Field News April 2019
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Track & Field News April 2019 — 1 A wide variety of T&FN tour offerings is available. Make your plans now to join us for one or more of these exciting track and travel opportunities. ■ U.S. ~NATIO 2019NAL S~/WORLD ■ OLYMPI~ C2020 TRIALS. June ~ 19-28. The CHAMPIONSHIPS TRIALS, Drake 2020 Trials will be in Eugene, Oregon, at University, Des Moines, IA. Meet dates, the exciting new stadium at Hayward (Arrive July 29, Depart Aug. 10). This July 25-28. Tour dates for 3 nts. 7/25-28; Field built for the 2021 World Champi- will be our 18th Summer Olympic tour. 4 nts. 7/24-29 or 7/24-28; 5nts. 7/24-29. onships. This facility will have comfort- $5,600 deposit per person. $750 deposit per person. able individual seating (unlike the old bench-type seating at the old stadium) ■ EUROPEAN DIAMOND LEAGUE. and these Trials will be the opening Tour dates: August 23 - September 7. showcase for the New Hayward Field. ■ U.S. NATIO~ 2021NALS/WORLD ~ CHAM- The itinerary has three nights in Paris, This is the meet that will determine the PIOnsHIPS TRIALS, $100 deposit per three in Konstanz, three in Berlin and U.S. team for the Tokyo Olympics, and person now accepted. Probably Eugene. three in Brussels for the Paris, Zurich & this is always one of the best meets of Brussels DL meets and Berlin’s ISTAF. ■ WORLD TRACK & FIELD CHAM- the quadrennium. Lodging in motels Projected tour price $3975 per person PIONSHIPS, Eugene, OR. We are ac- walking distance to stadium. Earliest double occupancy. $1750 deposit/per- cepting deposits for this, the first outdoor signups have best priority for lodging, son. Tour is currently sold out. Call to IAAF World Championships to be held etc. Current deposit, $750/person. join wait list. in the U.S. We expect to have lodging, ■ SUMMER OLYMPIC GAMES, To- walking distance to the stadium. $1100 ■ WORLD TRACK & FIELD CHAM- kyo, Japan. Game dates: July 24 - Aug. deposit. Aug. 6-15. PIONSHIPS, Doha, Qatar. Tour dates: 9. Tour dates: Entire Games—18 nights Sept. 26 - Oct. 7 (11 nights). $2500 de- (Arrive July 23, Depart Aug. 10) or just posit/person. Some space remaining. for the track & field period—12 nights T&FN has operated popular sports tours since 1952 and has taken more than 22,000 fans to 60 countries on five continents. Join us for one (or more) of these great upcoming trips. www.trackandfieldnews.com/tours Track & Field News Tours 2570 W El Camino Real, Suite 220 • Mountain View, CA 94040 [email protected] • Phone 650/948-8188 • Fax 650/948-9445 Track & Field News April 2019 — 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Volume 72, No. 4 April 2019 From The Editor — The 400 Is A Great Race… But It Could Be Better . 4 Focus On The U .S . Men’s 400 — Who’s Going To Doha? . 5 T&FN Interview — Fred Kerley . 10 South Carolina’s In-State 400 Rivalry — Richard & Hall . 13 Texas Relays — Anderson Peters Likes Throwing In Austin . 14 Florida Relays — Comebacking De Grasse Powers Canada . 16 Stanford Invitational — Olivia Gruver Soars In The Vault . 18 Emily Sisson Making The Most Of The Calendar . 20 Clay Invitational — A Big Decathlon Score . 22 Ayden Owens Suddenly An 8000-Pointer . 24 Oliver, Ollie or Olli — Hoare’s Middle Name Must Be “Fast” . 25 Michael Norman Ready For Pro 400 Opener . 26 Mt . SAC Relays Men — A Stunning Norman 400 . 28 Mt . SAC Women — World-Leading Hurdles For Keni Harrison . 30 Beach Invitational — Big Jumping & Throwing . 32 Imagine When Ryan Crouser Gets Healthy . 34 Which Throw Best For Alyssa Wilson? . 35 Johnson Invitational — 2 World Leads For Oduduru . 36 Kansas Relays — Bradford Highest Jayhawk Vaulter Ever . 37 LSU Alumni Gold — Stewart Yet Another 400 Threat . 38 Maggie Malone Is Back . 39 Sprinter/Jumper Boling Is The Talk Of High School Track . 40 Arcadia Boys — Christian Grubb Wins Sprint Showdown . 42 Arcadia Girls — Another HS High For Chloe Cunliffe . 43 The Course Is The Star At World XC Champs . 45 World XC Men — Cheptegei Wins Rematch . 46 World XC Women — Obiri’s Triple Makes History . 47 Boston Marathon Men — Cherono Wins Mad Dash To Finish . 48 Boston Marathon Women — Degefa Runs Away Early . 49 Anna Shields Bounces Back After A Half-Dozen Years . 50 2019 NCAA Men’s Formchart — LSU Over Florida . 51 2019 NCAA Women’s Formchart — USC Running Away With It . 53 ON YOUR MARKS . 55 TRACK SHORTS . 56 LAST LAP . 58 STATUS QUO . 61 FOR THE RECORD . 62 LANDMARKS . 62 CALENDAR . 63 Track & Field News April 2019 — 3 From The Editor — The 400 Is A Great Race… But It Could Be Better by E. Garry Hill IF YOU’RE A BIG FAN of 1-lap racing—and who among us isn’t?—you’ll love this month’s edition, as we check out Michael Norman working some serious magic, have a nice long chat with Fred Kerley and analyze the overall U .S . men’s scene in the event . There’s no question that the 400—men or women—is one of my favorite run- ning events, simply because it’s the longest event where people are running so close to all-out for such an extended period of time . I’ve never quite understood how quartermilers can push themselves to the limit so much and not end up inspecting the contents of their stomach right after the race . That’s certainly the memory this triple jumper took away from his times being drafted for 4×4 duty . So my giving the 400 “favorite” status is fan-related . It’s not something I’d like to actually do on a regular (or even irregular) basis . But the headline to this column says the 400 could be better . It’s all about lanes and head-to-head racing, as opposed to being stuck alone . As a backdrop to that statement, let me digress and refer you to the ’76 Olympic 800, which featured one of the IAAF’s most ill-conceived rule changes ever: the 2-turn stagger . That’s right, instead of breaking for the pole after the first curve, they stayed in lanes until they entered the homestretch, meaning that instead of fighting for position after 100m they went head-to-head only after 300m had expired . Almost 40% of the race had all the drama sucked out of it . Fortunately, that protocol was quickly consigned to the garbage heap of history . the 400 should be run like the 800, with a break to “the pole after the first 100m. If the 800 was improved by having everybody run together longer, doesn’t it follow that the 400 could similarly benefit? As it is, too many 400s are simply too hard for the fans to follow, even if there’s an ace announcer who is able to do a good job of sorting out who’s ahead of whom in the staggers . Not until the race enters the homestretch—after 75% of the race has been run—is relative position confirmed . I think the fans deserve better . And so do the athletes, who are spread out across 8 or 9 lanes and have little idea where their competition is . My take? As I’ve suggested in this space before, the 400 should be run like the 800, with a break to the pole after the first 100m . Yes, the 400 people are probably bigger, stronger—and definitely running faster—than the halfmilers, and while I’m not advocating that we create a martial arts division, a little more close-quarters running would provide a lot more excitement . Look at how short-track speedskating became an instant sensation in the Winter Olympics . I think the athletes would find it a much fairer way to race too, given that the lane draw goes such a long way towards deciding who finishes where . If it turns out that this creates a too-rough situation, simply cut the number of racers from 8 to 6 . And while we’re tinkering with the 400, let’s extend the lanes-are-bad concept to the 4×4 as well . That race, it says here, lost some of its excitement when the 3-turn stagger was introduced . Not only does that necessitate such a big differentiation in staggers that the first leg is nigh on impossible for a fan to figure out until the actual handoffs, but it also robs the race of another 100m of what should be serious head-to-head racing . Go back to the 2-turn stagger (or, following my individual 400 thinking, a 1-turn stagger) . But that’s not all . Current rules mandate that the athletes receiving the baton line up in the order of their teams when they enter the final bend . That’s nuts . There’s no end of changing positions with half the carry still to go . At worst, the order should be determined as they enter the straightaway, but my druthers would be—as it was in the wild, wild west—to let the runners continue to sort themselves out until the very last seconds before the handoff . Injecting more life into any event is nothing but a good thing . My oft-stated solution to making the 400 more exciting without running the risk of turning it into Roller Derby is to change the event from a 400 to a 500 . I can only imagine that most of the athletes would hate it (uh, oh—here comes breakfast as well as lunch!), but I can see it as a fan favorite .