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Armory Follows 10 IAAF World Championships Competitors: Recap OnePublished by
The 15th IAAF World Championships are finally here and we’re following 10 athletes who have made major impacts at The Armory as they compete within the Bird’s Nest in Beijing, China. This is not to say we won’t be mentioning others, but the 10 listed below will be the main focus for our recaps, which will be posted on August 23, 25, 27, 29 and 30. All times listed are EST.
David Verburg: 400m David Verburg set the tone for a very fast 400m prelim by winning heat one of six with 44.43, just two hundredths of a second off of his personal best. In heat two, Saudi Arabia’s Yousef Ahmed Masrahi and Jamaica’s Rusheen McDonald finished in blistering, identical times of 43.93, breaking the event’s Asian and Jamaican records. Fellow Americans LaShawn Merritt and Vernon Norwood also made it through to the semi-finals. Merritt won heat three with 44.51 and Norwood qualified out of heat five, placing third with 45.53. Despite his bib number being awkwardly stuck to his neck throughout much of the race, Verburg reported that he was happy with round one’s outcome and is ready for the semi-final, where he’ll run in heat one against a field that includes Olympic Champion Kirani James and Olympic silver medalist Luguelin Santos. Competiton Schedule: Semi-finals on August 24 at 8:05am and finals on August 26 at 9:25am.
Erik Sowinski: 800m Unfortunately, Erik Sowinski was unable to advance to the 800m final after finishing seventh in heat three of the semi-finals. The last automatic qualifying spot from heat three was taken by Kenya’s Ferguson Cheruiyot Rotich, who finished in 1:44.85. Morocco’s’ Nader Belhanbel, who also ran in heat three, was the last to qualify on time with 1:45.28. Sowinski reported that he was disappointed after having run 1:47.16, but is looking at the situation as a learning experience that will hopefully prepare him for next year’s Olympic games. With reportedly stale legs, Erik Sowinski qualified for the semi-final by placing fourth in the third preliminary heat with 1:46.63. No Americans will be featured in the 800m final with Casimir Loxsom and Clayton Murphy also succumbing to the deep 800m field.
Evan Jager: 3,000m Steeplechase Kenyan athletes have dominated the steeplechase for decades, so it comes as no surprise that each of the four East African nation’s competitors qualified for the event’s final. But it is somewhat surprising to see Team USA with each of its three competitors in the final as well. Evan Jager, Don Cabral and Daniel Huling all advanced to Monday’s 15-athlete final. Jager is in a great position to earn USA’s first World Championships medal in the event. Gold is not out of the question, either. He was happy to see his opening round move through the first 2k at a measured pace (6:06) and hung tight with race’s late surge to finish third with 8:41.51. Jager’s time was the second slowest to qualify for the final, which gives him the advantage of having relatively fresh legs. Competition Schedule: Finals on August 24 at 9:15am.
Shannon Rowbury: 1,500m Shannon Rowbury reported having to run a little faster than expected during the first round of the 1,500m (4:05.66), but had a calmer experience during round two (4:16.64) to qualify for the event’s final. Rowbury ran in heat one of the semi-finals. Her fifth place finish was the last to automatically qualify for the final. Jennifer Simpson finished heat two of the semi-finals in 4:08.20 and also was the last in her heat to automatically qualify with a fifth place finish. Kerri Gallagher and Lauren Johnson failed to make the final. Genzebe Dibaba, who recently broke the 1,500m world record, is the clear favorite to win Tuesday’s final, but it will be interesting to see Rowbury and Simpson run for medals and the American record, which Rowbury owns at 3:56.29. Competition Schedule: Finals on August 25 at 8:35am.
Jeneva Stevens: Shot Put Jeneva Stevens threw 18.05 during the opening round of the shot put to qualify for the event’s final. She was hoping to better her ninth place finish from 2013’s World Championships, but settled for 10th in the final after throwing 17.84. Michelle Carter was the first American to make the podium after throwing 19.76 for bronze.
Half of the 10 athletes we're following have yet to compete. Those athletes are:
Matthew Centrowitz: 1500m Mathew Centrowitz earned his second NYRR Wanamaker Mile title this year with an impressive 3:51.35. Centrowitz took bronze in 2011 and silver in 2013’s World Championships, but if he wants to continue his progression toward gold he’ll have to top a field that includes Kenya’s Asbel Kiprop, who is the 2013 world champion and recently became the third fastest 1,500m runner of all time. Competition schedule: Heats on August 26 at 10:35pm, semi-finals on August 28 at 7:55am and finals on August 30 at 7:15am.
Omar Craddock: Triple Jump The flashy, yet humble Omar Craddock showed The Armory some showmanship this past winter. This will be his second World Championships experience. He failed to make the event’s final during 2013, but has been on a roll this year, winning both USATF Indoor and Outdoor Championships. Craddock’s biggest competition will come from fellow former Florida Gators Will Claye, Christian Taylor and Marquis Dendy, as well as Cuba’s Pedro Pablo Pichardo. Having both jumped over 18 meters this year, Taylor and Pichardo are expected to steal the show on the runway, but don’t overlook Craddock who jumped 17.53m at USAs. Competition schedule: Qualification on August 26 at 10:00pm and finals on August 27 at 7:10am.
Sharika Nelvis: 100 Hurdles This is Sharika Nelvis’ first year as a professional track and field athlete and she’s certainly making the most of it. She won the 60m hurdles at the NYRR Millrose Games, placed third in the 100m hurdles at USATF Championships and currently owns the event’s fastest time with 12.34. The two other fastest short hurdlers in Beijing are fellow American’s Dawn Harper Nelson and Kendra Harrison. Competition schedule: Heats on August 26 at 11:15pm, semi-finals on August 28 at 7:25pm and finals on August 28 at 9:35am.
Phyllis Francis: 400m Phyllis Francis owns the American indoor 400m record and won this year’s NYRR Millrose Games. Though Sanya Richards-Ross and Francena McCorory, two of the event’s fiercest competitors, didn’t make the individual team for USA, Francis will still have to contend with the likes of eight-time world champion Allyson Felix, defending champion Christine Ohuruogu and world leader Shaunae Miller. Competition schedule: Heats on August 23 at 10:45pm, semi-finals on August 25 at 7:05am and finals on August 27 at 8:40am.
Brenda Martinez: 800m If you’ve visited The Armory during the last few years, you would’ve likely noticed the huge banner featuring Brenda Martine near the homestretch. She’s won plenty of races here, but made history when she took third at 2013’s World Championships, becoming the first American woman to ever medal in the event with a blazing 1:57.91. She’ll probably need to run near that or faster to medal in Beijing with a field comprised of seven ladies who have run under 1:59, three of which under 1:58. Competition schedule: Heats on August 25 at 10:25pm, semi-finals on August 27 at 8:05am and finals on August 29 at 7:15am.
Find live results here: Find viewing information here: http://worldchampionships.runnerspace.com/eprofile.php?event_id=744&do=news&news_id=362146 By Justin Gaymon // Photos by John Nepolitan and Victah Sailer More news |
