PreRaceJitters’ Podcast #37, Lauren Centrowitz PRJ’s Collegiate Female Breakout AOY

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At the beginning of the season Stanford’s Lauren Centrowitz had a 4:16.13 pr at 1,500 meters and ended up shaving six seconds off her time, running 4:10.4 by seasons end, along with earning All-American honors for the ninth time.

But the real story here is consistency both on and off the track.

In 2009, Lauren Centrowitz placed third in the 3,000-meter run at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships in 9 minutes, 14.35 seconds.  She also ran a leg on Stanford’s distance medley that placed fourth at nationals with a school-record time of 10:58.49.

Outdoors Centrowitz outran all predictions, finishing third in the 1,500 at the 2009 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Off the track, during her collegiate career the Arnold, Maryland native was named to Pac-10 All-Academic team and is pursuing her graduate studies in the fall.

In this special podcast, Centrowitz discusses her post-collegiate plans of running with 1500m runners Lindsey Gallo and Julie Culley, who are also training with her father, Matt Centrowitz and the Pacers Racing Team.

PreRaceJitters’ Off the Track with John W. Davis Podcast # 38 featuring Joe Battaglia

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For the 5th Episode of ” PreRaceJitters’ Off The Track with John W. Davis”, I collaborated with a highly respected Track and Field Journalist.

My guest, none of than Universal Sports Senior Producer, Joe Battaglia.

You probably know Joe as the lead reporter of Universal Sports’ Track and Field section.

I know Joe as a respected colleague, who I wanted to team up with, to breakdown T&F.

So, we decided to record an audio version of Joe’s weekly Inside Track interview/recap/preview article.

Here’s our podcast rundown:

1. Bolt v. Gay
2. The American Distance Scene
3. Marathon Match ups
4. The State of the Long Jump
5. Is Jelimo Back?
6. Who’s the Best Hurdler in The World?

Off the Track with John W. Davis. My Style… Their Stories… For Your Ears Only!

Don’t forget, Off The Track with John W. Davis is a PreRaceJitters.com exclusive.

Universal Sports Live TV & Webcast of the London Grand Prix

Tomorrow, the Aviva London Grand Prix begins.  Usain Bolt, Asafa Powell and Tyson Gay take to the track at the Crystal Palace for Aviva London Grand Prix.  Universal Sports has live coverage of this 2-day Super Grand Prix.  Below is event coverage webcast and TV coverage.

Aviva London Grand Prix
London, GBR

UniversalSports.com
Friday, July 24
12:45pm – 4:00pm ET (LIVE)

Saturday, July 25
Universal Sports.com
9:00am – 1:00pm ET (LIVE)

Universal Sports TV
(www.UniversalSports.tv)
Friday, July 24
3:00pm – 5:30pm ET

Saturday, July 25
3:00pm – 6:00pm ET

Lolo Jones Back On Top of the World

For Immediate Release:
USA Track & Field

Jones runs world-leading mark in 100 hurdles.

Lolo Jones proved to the world that she is back to form, running a world-leading 12.47 seconds in winning the women’s 100-meter hurdles Monday at the 25th Vardinoyannia International Track & Field meeting in Rethymno, Greece.

It was a 1-2 finish for the Americans as 2008 Olympic Games fourth-place finisher Damu Cherry took second in 12.53.

The women’s 100 meters was an American clean 1-2-3 sweep by Carmelita Jeter, Allyson Felix, and Stephanie Durst. The 2007 World Outdoor bonze medalist, Jeter ran 10.97 seconds to run away with first place. A two-time Olympic 200m silver medalist and World Outdoor champion, Felix followed in 11.08 and Durst finished with a time of 11.14.

The men’s 100m was won by 2004 World Junior champion Ivory Williams as he was the only one to dip under 10 seconds in the race. Williams ran a personal best 9.93, followed by Mark Jelks, the runner-up in 10.04.

2009 USA Outdoor champion Lashinda Demus continued her hot streak, winning the women’s 400m hurdles in 54.29, as 2008 Olympic Trials champion Tiffany Ross-Williams was second in 54.60. 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Bershawn Jackson won heat two of the men’s 400mH in 48.55.

2008 Olympians Brian Johnson and Miguel Pate finished third and fourth respectively in the men’s long jump. Johnson’s best leap was 8.04 meters/26 feet 4.5 inches and Pate’s was 7.83m/25-8.25.

2009 USA Indoor runner-up Dexter Faulk again took the runner-up position in the men’s 110m hurdles, finishing in 13.18 on the heals of world record holder Dayron Robles (CUB) who won in 13.17.

Also on the track, 2008 Olympic 400m bronze medalist David Neville won his heat of the men’s 200m in 20.89, while 2008 Olympic 400m gold medalist Lashawn Merritt took third in his heat of the men’s 200m in 20.29. 2004 Olympian LaShaunte’a Moore finished as the runner-up in the women’s 200m, running 22.66. First place was snagged in a world-leading 22.32 seconds by McKenzie Ferguson (BAH).

For more information and complete results from 25th Vardinoyannia International Track & Field meeting, visit www.iaaf.org.

About USA Track & Field

USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world’s oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.

For more information on USATF, visit www.usatf.org

Universal Sports to broadcast

Universal Sports has live coverage of the IAAF Golden League Meeting Areva from Paris. Usain Bolt, Sanya Richards, and Jeremy Wariner lead a group of elite athletes to Paris.

UniversalSports.com
Event Title: IAAF Golden League Meeting Areva
Date: Friday, July 17
Time: 2:00pm – 4:00pm ET (LIVE)
Where: UniversalSports.com

Universal Sports TV
Event Title: IAAF Golden League Meeting Areva
Date: Friday, July 17
Time: 5:00pm – 7:00pm ET (delayed)
Where: Universal Sport TV

Tyson Gay’s 9.77 AR, Rearranging the Game

I never thought Tyson Gay was done. No way.

Tying his own American Record in 9.77 seconds, ahead of long time foe Asafa Powell in Rome is a precursor for Berlin. Only the blind and foolish thought that some how Gay was going to disappear silently into the night after his Beijing experience.

Tyson Gay is responsible for one of the all-time return seasons in the sport’s history. His pride and coaching are too strong. Gay ran a personal best 19.58 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix and followed up with a 9.77 second return performance in Rome.

Don’t think for a second that Usain Bolt isn’t watching his every move on the track and a tad nervous about the looming match up. There’s no telling who will win a show down but you can bet your house that Gay will run his best in the race.

Watch out! Sanya Richards is unstoppable on the Golden League circuit, keeping her unbeaten streak on the circuit alive while making history running 50 second 400 meters for the 36th time. With Allyson Felix (50.94) in the race, Richards churned out 49.4, cruising to victory and last week Richards beat rival Christine Ohuruogu by nearly two seconds and in the process is establishing herself as the favorite for Berlin.

She broke the 4:00 minute barrier. It was so not much if, but when Christin Wurth-Thomas deliver the 3:59.98 race. She finished second in the race against an impressive field.

Kerron Clement is not so quietly piecing together one of his best season’s to date. Today’s 48.09 is another step towards getting to the next level of 400 meter hurdle consistency for the Olympic silver medalist.

Gay, Phillips, Richards, Harper, Clement & Vessey conquer in Rome

Press Release Courtesy of USA Track & Field.

Tyson Gay, Dwight Phillips, Sanya Richards, Dawn Harper, Kerron Clement and Maggie Vessey all were winners in their respective events Friday at the 2009 Golden Gala, AF Golden League meet in Rome, Italy.

Reigning world 100m and 200m champion Tyson Gay surged to the front of the pack midway through the race before crossing the finish line first in the men’s 100 meters in 9.77 seconds. Gay’s performance is the fastest time in the world this year and equals his American record originally set in the quarterfinals at last year’s Olympic Trials.

Former world record holder Asafa Powell of Jamaica was the runner-up in 9.88 seconds, with reigning USA Outdoor champion Michael Rodgers finishing sixth in 10.03.

2004 Olympic gold medalist and two-time World Outdoor champion Dwight Phillips, who posted the longest jump in the world since Mike Powell set the world record in 1991 with his leap of 8.74 meters/28 feet 8.25 inches in winning the Nike Prefontaine Classic on June 7, won easily today on his first attempt when he sailed to 8.61m/28-3. 2008 Olympic gold medalist Irving Saladino of Panama was the runner-up with a best of 8.27m/27-1.75.

2008 Olympic bronze medalist Sanya Richards stayed alive in the Golden League competition with her victory in the women’s 400 meters, finishing in 49.46 seconds. 2008 Olympic silver medalist Shericka Williams from Jamaica was the runner-up in 50.31, with two-time Olympic silver medalist and two-time defending World Outdoor 200m champion Allyson Felix finishing fifth in 50.94.

2008 Olympic 100m hurdles gold medalist Dawn Harper was victorious in her specialty, stopping the clocks in 12.55 seconds. Harper’s nearest pursuer was runner-up and 2008 Olympic Games fifth-place finisher Delloreen Ennis-London of Jamaica, who finished in 12.67, with fellow Jamaican and Olympic finalist Brigitte Foster-Hylton third in 12.68.

Reigning World Outdoor champion and 2008 Olympic Games silver medalist Kerron Clement won the men’s 400m hurdles in 48.09 seconds. Jamaica’s Isa Phillips was second in 48.11, with L.J. van Zyl of South Africa, who finished fifth at the Beijing Olympics, third in 48.37.

USA Outdoor Championships fourth-place finisher Maggie Vessey won the women’s 800 meters in a dramatic finish in 2:00.13, which bettered her previous career best time of 2:00.18 from her win at the 2009 Nike Prefontaine Classic.  The 2005 NCAA Outdoor runner-up while at Cal Poly SLO, Vessey finished just ahead of Italy’s Elisa Cusma Piccione, who finished in 2:00.14. Spain’s Mayte Martinez was third in 2:00.21, with reigning U.S. champion Hazel Clark finishing seventh in 2:01.41.

Elsewhere, 2008 USA Outdoor Championships women’s 1,500m runner-up Christin Wurth-Thomas finished second in her specialty and cracked the four-minute barrier for the first time in her career with her finish in 3:59.98. Wurth-Thomas bettered her previous personal best of 4:01.72 from her fifth-place finish June 7 at the Nike Prefontaine Classic.

Also setting a personal best was 2008 NCAA 1,500m runner-up and 2009 USA Outdoor Championships third-place finisher Dorian Ulrey, who finished 12th today in 3:35.23. With his performance Ulrey bettered the 2009 World Outdoor Championships “A” qualifying standard of 3:36.20 and he’ll now join Bernard Lagat, Leonel Manzano and Lopez Lomong as the Team USA men’s 1,500m contingent that will compete in Berlin.

For more information on the 2009 Golden Gala, including complete results, visit: www.iaaf.org.

PreRaceJitters’ Podcast #37, Ahmad Rashad Men’s College Breakout Athlete of the Year

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The 5 foot, 10 inch sprinter swept through the NCAAs earning runner up honors in the 100 meters in 10.10.  The race not only culminated in a personal best for Ahmad Rashad.

The Flint, Michigan native has fought through injuries to become one of the top American collegiate sprinters. For the aforementioned reasons and more, Rashad has been selected as the first men’s PreRaceJitters’ “Breakout Athlete of the Year Award.”

The results were fantastic stuff with the Flint, Michigan - serving notice that not only Rashad can more than run with the big dawgs, but a bigger indictment of more things to come in the future.

Raevyn Rodgers named USATF Athlete of the Week

Press Release Courtesy of USA Track & Field.

INDIANAPOLIS - Raevyn Rogers has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week following her record-setting performance at the 2009 USA Youth Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Rynearson Stadium on the campus of Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, Mich.

In her first time competing at the USA Youth Championships, Rogers, a 12-year old member of the Wings Track Club in Houston, shattered the previous Youth Girls’ national 800m record of 2:09 flat with her clocking of 2:06.90. Rogers also looked impressive in winning the Youth Girls’ 400m national title in 53.36 seconds.

Now in its eighth year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on the USATF website. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.

2009 USATF Athlete of the Week Winners: January 6, Mason Finley; January 13, Amber Campbell; January 20, Josh Cox; January 27, German Fernandez; February 3, Ashton Eaton; February 10, Shalane Flanagan; February 17, Galen Rupp; February 25, Dexter Faulk; March 3, Terrence Trammell; March 10, Diana Pickler; March 17, Galen Rupp; March 25, Sumi Onodera-Leonard; April 1, German Fernandez; April 7, Cyrus Hostetler; April 14, Curtis Beach; April 21, Kara Goucher; April 28, Mason Finley; May 5, Chris Derrick; May 12, Natalie Willer; May 19, Will Claye; May 27, Nadine O’Connor; June 2, Tyson Gay; June 9, Dwight Phillips; June 17, Galen Rupp; June 24, Kami Semick; June 30, Dawn Harper; July 8, Raevyn Rogers.

BEST MARKS WEEK ENDING JULY 5

MEN

400 - 45.74 Jamaal Torrance (Nike) - Oslo, NOR 7/3
800 - 1:48.19 Rob Myers (Reebok) - Oordegem, BEL 7/4
3000 - 7:45.89 Bolota Asmerom (OTC Elite) - Sotteville, FRA 7/5
110H - 13.36 David Payne (Nike) - Sotteville, FRA 7/5
400H - 49.97 Justin Gaymon (Georgia) - Madrid, ESP 7/4
HJ - 2.21/7-3 Jamie Nieto (Nike) - Cork, IRL 7/4
PV - 5.70/18-8.25 Darren Niedermeyer (unat) - Champaign, IL 7/3
SP - 19.35/63-6 Russ Winger (unat) - Sotteville, FRA 7/5
DT - 60.30/197-10 Ian bWaltz (Nike) - Madrid, ESP 7/4
JT - 75.60/248-0 Chris Hill (Nike) - Oslo, NOR 7/3

WOMEN

100 - 11.40 Gloria Asumnu (adidas) - Madrid, ESP 7/4
200 - 23.38 Ashton Purvis (California HS) - Ypsilanti, MI 7/1
400 - 49.23 Sanya Richards (Nike) - Oslo, NOR 7/3 World leader
800 - 2:00.16 Christin Wurth-Thomas (Nike) - Madrid, ESP 7/4
100H - 12.68 Damu Cherry (Nike) - Oslo, NOR 7/3
HJ - 1.98/6-6 Chaunte Howard (Nike) - Oslo, NOR 7/3
PV - 4.46/14-7.5 Lacy Janson (Nike) - Madrid, ESP 7/4
TJ - 13.63/44-8.75 Shakeema Welsch (unat) - Metz, FRA 7/3
SP - 17.85/58-6.75 Liz Wanless (NYAC) - Moscow, RUS 7/1
HT - 67.59/221-9 Erin Gilreath (NYAC) - Madrid, ESP 7/4

About USA Track & Field

USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track and field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world’s oldest organized sports, some of the most-watched events of Olympic broadcasts, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States.

Usain Bolt run 19.59 at Lausanne Super Grand Prix

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