Sacramento Running News

Simpson wins in 4:04.96! (Photo courtesy of painani.org)

Quiet has settled on Hornet Stadium. The fans are gone. The races and jumps are over. Now the post-event analysis can commence.

All in all, I think the event was a tremendous success. USATF is reporting final attendance numbers of 32,700, which doesn’t include the crowds that showed up for the shot put at the State Capitol. This far exceeded the promised minimum 22,500 that Event Director John Mansoor had promised to USATF in pitching Sacramento as host for the event.

The race of the weekend would have to be the women’s 400 meters, where Francena McCorory  edged out Sanya Richards-Ross in the last 100 meters and won in 49.48, which is the 5th fastest time by an American.

Or maybe it was the Women’s 1500, where we got to watch a super talented women’s field duke it out, Morgan Uceny fall down again, and Jenny Simpson win decisively, but not easily, over the surging Mary Cain and the tenacious Katie Mackey.

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Huddle wins! (Photo courtesy of Painani.org)

It was another exciting day at the USA Outdoor Nationals!

As with yesterday, about half the fans left at the conclusion of the sprints and deprived themselves of seeing the most exciting race of the day.

It was the women again, this time in the 5,000 meters, who had the crowd on it’s feet with a fast, exciting, and close race. Molly Huddle led the race from the beginning and tried to shake all contenders, especially Shannon Rowbury and Marielle Hall, by accelerating through the miles and closing with a final 4:34 1600 meters.

The only person on Huddle’s heels by the final 200 was Shannon Rowbury, who shouldered past and started driving for the win. Huddle would have none of it and dug deep to pass a weaving Rowbury and take the win by 0.25 seconds.

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“When I was still in contact with 100 to go, I knew I could do it. When I really need to do it, an emotional moment for me, very important, I can pull it out.” Awesome photo courtesy of Painani.org.

By John Schumacher

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The USA Track and Field National Championships went off with a shot yesterday, with an unusual hosting of the shot put on the west side of the State Capitol building.

It was a brilliant idea and brought large, enthusiastic crowds to this often overlooked field event.

Michelle Carter and Joseph Kovacs came out on top, with Kovacs wowing the crowd with a world leading throw of 22.03 meters.

The remainder of the championship events move to California State University Sacramento starting today, and a schedule can be found here.

Complete results of yesterdays competition can be found here.

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