Jennifer Toomey strides away in the 800m preliminaries in the 2004 USATF Indoors (© Kirby Lee)
The USA Track & Field Indoor Championships got underway at the Reggie Lewis Track & Athletic Center at Roxbury Community College on Friday (Feb 27) with the preliminary rounds of the men’s and women’s 800m, the men’s 60m Hurdles, and there was also the finals of the two weight throw competitions.
Johnson progresses to Hurdles semi-finals
Of the headlining stars on show yesterday, reigning World 60m Hurdles champion Allen Johnson qualified for Saturday’s semi-final stage as the sixth fastest athlete with 7.71 seconds, which he clocked when coming second to Larry Wade (7.63) in the third of four heats.
Duane Ross was the top qualifier in the first round of the 60m Hurdles with 7.53 (fourth heat), Dawane Wallace clocked 7.65 to win the first, and Ron Bramlett was the 7.66 victor in the second heat.
Weight throw
Erin Gilreath and James Parker won their first national titles in the weight throw finals. Gilreath defeated defending champion Anna Mahon, 23.48 to 23.14, in the women’s 20-pound weight throw. Parker turned in an effort of 23.18 to win the men’s 35-pound competition.
800m qualifiers
Jesse O’Connell (1:48.74) and Derek Peterson (1:49.04) were the fastest 800m men’s qualifiers for Saturday’s final.
In the women’s 800m qualification round Hazel Clark was the quickest, winning the second of the four heats in 2:04.81. Chantee Earl was the next quickest with 2:05.20 in the opening race of the premliminary round, with Jennifer Toomey the next quickest with a 2:05.29 clocking to win the final race. The third heat was won by Nicole Teter (2:06.24).
Toomey’s double bid
Jennifer Toomey will also run in the 1500 final on Sunday and is aiming at a 800m-1500m double at these championships, a feat which has never been achieved by any woman in the same year in the history of these championships.
A top two finish in the 800 or 1500m will land Toomey a berth to the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Budapest, Hungary (5-7 March). Toomey is using the USATF meet and World Indoor championships as a dress rehearsal for a 800-1500 double at this summer’s U.S. Olympic Trials in Sacramento, where she will be required to the run five to six races during a 10-day span.
New coach
Toomey switched to a new coach,Tom McDermott, last autumn, and grimaces when she recalls one of her first workouts under his direction.
Toomey had hooked up with McDermott in September after Bob Sevene, her coach for the past seven years, moved cross country from Massachusetts to California. The adjustment from the conservative Sevene to the quality high-mileage philosophy of McDermott took some time for Toomey to get used to.
“I remember this point in the fall when I broke down and started crying because I thought I couldn’t do this anymore,” Toomey said.
She has stuck with McDermott, her husband Michael’s former high school cross country coach. There were some trying times with McDermott is an engineer who came out of a more than 10-year coaching hiatus to work with Toomey, and has prescribed runs as long as 12 miles the day before early season indoor meets.
“My husband and I were trying to brainstorm to find a coach,” Toomey said. “He always talked so fondly of (McDermott) that I asked him to coach me. This guy is brilliant. I just knew we would get along. Right away, I knew this was it.”
American record
It’s been a productive relationship during the 2004 indoor circuit with the 32-year-old setting an American record in the 1000m of 2:34.19 in Birmingham on Feb. 20
Talking about he hopes for this weekend, Toomey said “With the 1500, I am just going to see how hard I can run and see what happens. I don’t really have too much experience. It’s all just practice. I haven’t really had much time to think about the 1500 because I have been focusing on the 800. I think that I have just tapped the surface of what I want to do.’’
In the 800 final, Toomey will have to contend with 2000 Olympic finalist Hazel Clark, who turned in the top qualifying mark of 2:04.81 on Friday, and American indoor record holder and 2002 and 2003 champion Nicole Teter.
Growing popularity
Toomey attracted quite a following on Friday at the Reggie Lewis Center where she regularly trains two to three times a week during the winter. Toomey, who lives in nearby Salem, Mass., was approached for autographs in the rest-room as she prepared for her 800 heat.
“It is just very strange,” Toomey said. “I am just Jen Toomey. It’s not a big deal. It’s all so exciting. It is shocking for me because I have never seen myself in this position before. Everything is kind of rolling for me. One thing comes after another. I have a lot of momentum this far.”
Toomey attributes a large part of her breakthrough to McDermott’s training programme, which has increased her mile from 35-40 miles per week to 75-85. The quality of Toomey’s workouts have picked up as well.
“Everything is very intense,” Toomey said. “(Sevene) was really conservative. (McDermott) is looking at the worlds. He said `If you can’t raise your level to a new level, you are not going to be able to compete against them. So what is the point?’ I thought I should try it and see how it works out.’’’
Saturday’s highlights…
The men’s and women’s 60m and 60m Hurdle finals, men’s 1500m, men’s Pole Vault and women’s 3000m championships will all be contested on Day Two of the championships.
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