Maria Dalzot training with the Matterhorn ahead of the World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships in Zermatt, Switzerland
Maybe not quite as exciting as last weekend with the national championships but there was still plenty of activity – a full slate of international track meets and some high level road races. Plus, the Pan-am Games rosters were announced and as we will see, several ABers got picked.
Portland, Paris, Budapest, Cork, and Lignano
One of these is not like the others. The Portland Summer Twilight meet featured a short program of mostly middle distance events. ABer Riley Masters took second (3:36.49) in the 1500 to Robby Andrews, who wasted little time in getting his WC qualifying time with a 3:35.82. Good news for Robby but it does mean ABer Kyle Merber will not be on the WC team this year.
The rest of the notable track action was across the pond. First up was the Diamond League meet in Paris. No Diamond League points for the ABers this time but there were several notable performances. Molly Ludlow and Chanelle Price both lowered their 800 PRs again; Molly joined the very exclusive sub 1:59 club with a 1:58.68 for 4th while Chanelle was 5th in 1:59.10. Cassandra Tate ran a 54.52, just missing out on a DL point with her 4th place in the 400H. Likewise, consistent Jeff Porter missed a DL point by .03 in the 110H with his 13.37. Though 9th overall in the steeple (that included Evan Jager’s AR 8:00.45), Donn Cabral posted his second fastest time ever with an 8:17.20. In her first Diamond League meet, Sandi Morris vaulted 14-10 for sixth.
First Diamond League meet was definitely a learning experience.We ain't in Kansas anymore Toto! Crowd of 42k people pic.twitter.com/xl4mgFD4lC
— Sandi Morris (@SandiCheeks15) July 6, 2015
Tuesday was a busy night with meets in Lignano (Italy), Budapest and Cork. Manteo Mitchell was the only ABer in Lignano; his 45.82 400 was good for second. Budapest was a little more crowded. Hurdlers Queen Harrison (12.72) and Cassandra Tate (55:06) grabbed seconds in their respective events. The time was a little slower (13.45), but Jeff Porter was right there in 4th again. ESPN Body Issue “It Girl” Amanda Bingson was over 70 meters again in the hammer (232-1) taking 5th overall.
But the most popular destination for ABers looked to be Cork, Ireland. Heather Kampf took the 800 in 2:03.13. Jeff See (7:51.76) and Riley Masters (4:01.33 – hey wait, weren’t you just in Portland? Bet that required a few connecting flights) got 2nds in the 3000 and mile respectively. And the women’s 3k looked to be a PR fest for ABers; the honor roll:
- Rachel Schneider – 2nd 9:05.08
- Heather Wilson – 5th 9:10.21
- Jamie Cheever – 8th 9:12.49
- Sarah Pease – 14th 9:24.41
Kyle Merber (4:01.43 for 4th in the mile) and Jon Peterson (8:00.07 for 7th in the 3k) rounded out the deep AB contingent in Ireland.
Thanks to @CorkCitySports for putting on such a fantastic event! Happy to 3-peat in Irish weather tonight! pic.twitter.com/36TfTyYB3r
— Heather Kampf (@HeatherRaeKampf) July 7, 2015
Hot Stormy ‘Lanta
July 4th was the 46th running of one of the more storied road races in the country – the Peachtree 10k Road Race. Okay, that’s underselling it – Peachtree is the world’s largest 10k with about 60,000 participants. The weather this year wasn’t necessarily what you would order up for an event like that, what with thunderstorms, heavy rain and all, but that’s nothing road racers aren’t used to. Tyler Pennel continued his break out season, narrowly missing the win with his 28:45, just 2 seconds behind Kenyan Daniel Salel. Nicole DiMercurio managed a PR (track or road) with her 34:02, no mean feat given those conditions.
Half a world away, on the east coast of Australia, Sara Hall got a PR with her 1:10:48 in the ASICS Half Marathon. She was the 2nd women, 25th overall!
Pan-American Games Team Named
The 2015 Pan-American games is a multi-sport event that includes countries from Central, North and South America. The games will be held at various venues in and around Toronto, Ontario starting July 10th. The track and field, oops, the Athletics events go from Saturday July 18th through Sunday July 26th.
Twelve ABers are on the list, including:
| Amber Campbell – Hammer | Heather Miller-Koch – Heptathlon |
| Kori Carter – 400H & 4×400 | Kara Winger – Javelin |
| Sarah Cummings – Marathon | Riley Dolezal – Javelin |
| Queen Harrison – 110H | Garrett Heath – 5k |
| Ashley Higginson – Steeple | Kibwè Johnson – Hammer |
| Miranda Melville – 20k Walk | Kyle Merber – 1500 |
ESPN will be covering the games.
Conquering the Alps
While many AB athletes were blazing up the track, Maria Dalzot was in Zermatt, Switzerland. Along with Team USA in her first World Championships race, Maria brought home a team bronze medal in the World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships, placing 18th individually.
Bronze medalists at the World Long Distance Mountain Running Championships! #teamusazermatt #4thofJuly #goUSA @usmrt pic.twitter.com/bchBybxkkm
— Maria Dalzot (@mariadalzotRD) July 4, 2015
Europe and more Europe
The busy summer schedule continues. By the time you read this, the Lausanne Diamond League meet (7/9) results will be in the books. There’s also action in Spain, Belgium, Poland, Russia, Alberta and Trinidad. Okay, those last two aren’t Europe but you get the idea – the international season is in full swing.
