Shalane Flanagan cruises to the US 3000m title in Boston (© Kirby Lee)
Boston, USAThere’s no place like home for Shalane Flanagan. Returning to the Reggie Lewis Center, the site of her national record in the 3000m last month, the Marblehead, Mass. native won her first indoor national title with an unchallenged 8:56.74 at the AT&T USA Track & Field Indoor Championships on Saturday (24).
Unpressed, first national title for Flanagan
The time did not approach her American record of 8:33.25 set at the Reebok Boston Indoor Games on the same track but was a satisfying effort for the 25-year-old, who missed the 2006 because of career-threatening foot surgery.
“I enjoy always coming home and performing and I hopefully feel that I gave somewhat of a solid performance,” Flanagan said. “I feel a little lucky to be here racing. Last year, I wasn’t. Each race is a treasure.”
Flanagan, a three-time NCAA champion for the University of North Carolina, was born with an extra bone in her left foot that was tearing a tendon when she ran. It was removed last April.
"After surgery I would look at my foot and it was so mangled-looking that I thought, 'How am I even going to walk, let alone run on this foot?'"Flanagan said earlier this year. "I thought maybe I'd never be able to run indoor or cross country again, just because of the torque and the beating it gets. I feel really, really lucky that it went as well as it did."
Flanagan, the daughter of Cheryl Treworgy who ran a marathon world best in 1971, had no intentions of making another record run like she did in her when she smashed the American standard of 8:39.14 and ran more than 20 seconds under her previous best.
“Last time I was here was an incredible, incredible evening and I knew we wouldn’t be getting the same type of performance but it is always nice to feel the support from the fans and my family,” Flanagan said.
Flanagan altered from her typical aggressive race tactics and the one in which she pressed World Indoor 3000m record-holder Meseret Defar of Ethiopia at the Boston Indoor Games.
She ran a conservative first five laps around the 200m banked oval before turning the race into a time trial and running strongly to the finish with a 66-second final 400m and 31-second last 200m.
“I usually just go from the gun and take it out,” Flanagan said. “I wanted to try a different plan and sit for a 1000 meters and see what I have, especially the last 400 and 200 meters and do some cut downs. I wanted to see how fast I could run off a little slower pace than I usually race."
Conservative Plans for 2007
Flanagan, who finished second in the USATF National Cross Country Championships on 10 Feb., has decided to bypass the World Championships in Mombasa, Kenya next month to focus on training for the IAAF World Athletics Championships in August.
I feel that given the last year and a half of getting healthy I don’t want to contract malaria or some unknown disease,” Flanagan said. ”I have opted to stay home and train hard and hopefully perform well later this summer. I am sure (Kenya) is a gorgeous, gorgeous country but I think that I would love to go and visit and have fun instead of trying to perform under maybe not such conducive circumstances."
Newcomers and Veterans Post Wins
Flanagan was among a mixture of first-time and veteran winners on the opening day of the two-day meeting that concludes Sunday.
Aarik Wilson won his first title in the Triple Jump, bounding 17.28m to move into seventh on the all-time U.S. list.
Tim Seaman won his 10th consecutive title in the 5000m Race Walk in 19:24.38 to equal Henry Laskau’s streak between 1948-57. It was Seaman's 32nd overall national title at any distance indoors, outdoors or on the roads.
On the infield, Jeff Hartwig in the Pole Vault (5.80m) returned to the winner’s circle for the first time since 1999. Amy Acuff won the women’s High Jump (1.92m) for second time in four years.
Jill Camarena and A.G. Kruger extended their win streaks to three in the women’s Shot Put (18.46m) and Weight Throw (24.05m), respectively. In the women’s Long jJump, Akiba McKinney won for the second year in a row with a 6.55m leap.
Shayne Culpepper, 33, the 2004 and 2005 Indoor 3000m champion, won her first Mile title in 4:34.82, after giving birth to her second child in June 2006. Matt Tegenkamp won the 3000m in 7:46.08 for his first U.S. title.
Hartwig Better Than Ever
The 2007 season will be quite a swan song for Hartwig if the American 0utdoor record holder indeed decides to retire after the season.
Hartwig, who will turn 40 in September, continued his remarkable season with a season best 5.80m to move into tie for the U.S. yearly lead with Brad Walker, who did not compete in Boston. Russ Buller and Darren Neidermeyer were second and third, both at 5.60m.
It was the second national indoor title for Hartwig, the first coming in 1999. Hartwig opened the season at the Pole Vault Summit in Reno where he won for the first time since winning from 1997-2000.
Harris Outduels Williams in HJ
Tora Harris won his second indoor title in three years at 2.29m after a jump-off with Jesse Williams. Jamie Nieto was third at 2.23m.
Both Harris and Williams, who had third-attempt clearances at 2.29m and missed three times at 2.32m, said their focus was on the outdoor season and said conditioning was a factor on Saturday. The height was lowered in three increments in the jump-off to 2.23m where Harris emerged the winner.
“It’s all about making the (U.S.) team (for Osaka), I didn’t train for a long indoor season,” Harris said. “I had used all my good jumps at 2.29m. Once I got to 2.32m, I was done.’’
For Williams, Saturday’s competition was the beginning in his first full season on the professional circuit. The 2005 and 2006 NCAA Indoor and Outdoor champion had to bypass the indoor circuit while attending classes at the University of Southern California to complete his degree in June.
“I gave it my all but today but by (June), I will have all my training together,” Williams said. “I will have had a lot of meets. Everything will be there. Next year when I am out of school, I think it will be an easier transition."
McKinney wins women’s Long Jump again
McKinney, who defeated Helsinki World Champion Tianna Madison in the 2006 USATF indoors, has been among the most consistent American jumpers over the last three seasons but hopes to make another jump with a World Championships berth.
She finished third in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials but did not compete in Athens because she had not met the “A” standard.
In 2005, McKinney finished fourth in the USATF championships to miss a spot on the U.S. team for Helsinki by one place. Then last year, McKinney was again denied a major championships berth for the Moscow Indoor Championships because of a lack of a qualifying mark.
In addition to working with 1984 Olympic Games Triple Jump medalist Al Joyner, McKinney has recently enlisted the aid of Rahn Sheffield.
McKinney believes the balance of the technical expertise of Joyner and the conditioning of Sheffield will lead to big things. She had less than a week of practice in the Long Jump before Saturday.
“I really wasn’t expecting to do anything,” McKinney said. “I was more prepared to come out and run a good 200 or 400 because that’s the way my training has been going so I was surprised. I am looking for big things this year.’’
Bramlett Highlights Qualifying Rounds
Ron Bramlett posted a U.S.-leading mark of 7.51 in the 60m Hurdle heats to advance to today’s semifinals.
Olympic 4 x 400m Gold medalist Darold Williamson led the men’s 400m qualifying at 46.98. Monica Hargrove, a 4 x 400m Moscow World Championships Silver Medalist and an assistant coach at Georgetown University, was the fastest in the women’s 400m at 52.35.
Mark Jelks and Ivory Williams led the men's 60m at 6.62 and U.S. women’s 60m leader Carmelita Jeter was tops in the women's 60 at 7.23.
Kirby Lee for the IAAF
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