Melvin Lister leaps 17.78m - US Trials (© Getty Images)
The sprints and short track races in which American athletes have always excelled moved backstage for a moment on Day 7 (Sat 17 July) of the US Olympic Trials in favour of a most unlikely event, the Men’s Triple Jump. But it wasn’t the “how” or “what” that was significant, so much as the “who”.
Lister’s triple jumps 17.78! Another three over 17.37 or better!
It was the deepest Triple Jump competition ever on American soil, and ranked among the best ever in the international sphere.
The winner of the 2000 Trials in the Long Jump, Melvin Lister, had not triple jumped competitively in the three years following the Sydney Games, up through 2003. His PB at the beginning of 2004 stood at 16.96 which came in his 2000 NCAA championships win.
Lister’s entry qualification for the Trials was based on a meager 16.45 at last April’s Mt SAC Relays. And his seventh-place finish in the Long Jump final last Saturday had been a disappointment. Normally, these are not the ingredients of self-confidence on which great performances are built.
Qualfiying on Thursday with a PB 17.08, Lister opened the competition with another PB of 17.21 to take the lead at the end of the first round. Defending US champion Kenta Bell then took over with a 17.39 in round two, which stayed atop the standings, but was challenged by the 17.38 of Sydney finalist Walter Davis in the third round.
Bell immediately extended his lead to 17.58 as the competition reached a halfway mark.
Tim Rusan moved into third ahead of Lister with a 17.37 on his fourth jump, as Lister responded with another PB of 17.34 which had no effect on the overall standings but perhaps raised his confidence level measurably.
A last round doesn’t get much better than that!
Lister, hovering in an Olympic-less fourth, then flew down the runway and posted a world-leading 17.78, which held up as the winner. It was also an Olympic Trials record.
Next up on the runway was Davis, who improved his position from third to second with a PB 17.63, while Bell made a valiant effort to improve his third-place spot with a final attempt of 17.57w. Three consecutive sixth-round jumps of 17.78, 17.63 and 17.57. It doesn’t get much more exciting than that.
With this performance, Lister - who works fulltime at an electronics mart installing stereo equipment and has no shoe contract - moves to the number-five position on the all-time US list, and Davis moves into a tie with Bell in the sixth position.
“I knew that I had lost the Long Jump,” said the 26-year-old Lister later. “This meant I had nothing to lose in the triple jump. I just wanted respect.”
Davis, who could be doubling in Athens in both jumps, was brief but to-the-point. “Now I am a man,” he said. “Four years ago, I was just getting my feet wet.”
The self-coached Bell contributed mightily to the competition depth with his third-place 17.58. Only three times in history has a jump of that magnitude ranked third or lower in a competition. But Bell was upbeat afterwards, admitting that “I was just outperformed today. I have worked at the Olympic Training Center for the past two years, and they’ve been great in helping me and permitted me to train fulltime and not have to deal with all of the stresses of life.”
Clay ‘on a mission’ takes Pappas in high level fight
On a day when the mercury moved to 36C during the mid-afternoon, the Decathlon competition was almost as unexpected, although the “who” was somewhat better known in this case.
It’s tempting to label Bryan Clay’s victory over Tom Pappas as an “upset”, and although such a view would give Pappas his due respect, it might underestimate the capabilities of the man who gave Roman Sebrle a strong challenge last winter at the World Indoor Championships.
Clearly, Clay and Pappas were in a higher league than the other competitors here today, but Clay gave the indication of being on a mission more so than Pappas, who had already earned recognition after his second-place finish in Götzis seven weeks ago.
Clay came out strongly with the competition’s best time in the 100 metres, a 10.48 despite being in the only heat with a headwind. He held his advantage over Pappas until the High Jump when the Paris champion slipped into a small lead which he held through the 400 and 110 Hurdles at the start of day two.
PB triple secures win
That was the point at which Clay went on a PB tear, scoring career bests in the Discus, Pole Vault and Javelin, before being able to relax with a very pedestrian 5:06.18 which left plenty of energy with which to celebrate his Trials win. His final point total of 8660 added 178 to his previous PB of 8482.
Knowing that he has to do this all over again in Athens in a month’s time - and once he recognized his adversary’s lofty goals - Pappas perhaps was content to keep the pressure off himself and coast into second with a “safe” 8517 score. Six times Pappas has scored more, but never has there been a bigger prize on the line than there was today.
The primary excitement at the end involved the chase for the final Olympic spot. Paul Terek, only 89 points ahead of a superb 1500m runner Phil McMullen, managed a PB 4:24.28 in the event—to McMullen’s 4:15.18—to hold on to third and avoid seeing his Olympic ticket slip away at the last moment.
Hennagan just holds off Richards – women’s 400m
Only one track final was contested today, but it was one of the best-ever Women’s 400 Metres contests involving Americans. And twice, the starter had to call the runners out of their blocks because of the crowd reaction during the final round of the triple jump.
Once underway, Monique Henngan, whose last visit to Sacramento four years ago earned a Sydney team nomination, blazed to a 49.56 win and another Olympic nod.
With Sanya Richards on the inside and Hennagan on the outside, this pair moved quickly to the front and carried that advantage well into the backstretch. Off the final curve, Hennagan had a small lead over Richards, with Crystal Cox having solved the problems of her lane-two assignment to move into third with eighty meters remaining.
Hennagan held off a furious finish by Richards for the win, making her the fourth-fastest American ever, with Richards’ 49.89 establishing her second US junior record of the Trials. Hennagan’s time is also the second-fastest in the world this season, with Richards in fifth.
Off the run-in, DeeDee Trotter outran Cox to take the third team spot, 50.28 to 50.52, both personal bests. For Cox, it was a personal-best improvement by more than a second.
Hennagan gushed as she was interviewed from the infield afterwards, “I always save my best for Sacramento,” she told the receptive crowd. “Some people are just happy to be here, but you can’t go in with that attitude. You never know if you will get another chance.”
Greer secures Javelin crown again
Breaux Greer won his fifth consecutive US title in the Men’s Javelin with his leadoff 82.39, an Olympic Trials record. Greer adds an Athens team nomination to his Sydney participation, where he reached the finals four years ago.
The top US finisher in the NCAA championships last month, Brian Chaput finished second with a PB 79.81, with Leigh Smith taking third at 76.38. Chaput and Smith both currently lack the A-standard needed to join Greer in Athens, however.
Tom Pukstys, who like Greer has five US titles - and a career including six World Championships and two Olympic Games outings - finished fourth with 75.37.
20km walk
Late in the first half of the course in the Men’s 20-Kilometer
Walk, US record holder Tim Seaman and John Nunn separated themselves from the lead pack and set up a two-man duel for the Trials title.
Just after the 11K mark, Seaman broke away and successfully defended his Olympic Trials title with a 1:25:40 clocking, as Nunn easily held second with 1:26:23.
Kevin Eastler, last year’s US champion and second at the 2000 Trials, finished third in 1:28:49. For Seaman, today’s win represented his fourth national title.
All three walkers have the Athens A-standard.
NOTE -
For an additional report on qualification rounds of other events click here
Ed Gordon for the IAAF
