Oakbourne Relays Compiled Splits

I apologize in advance if I switched anyones' names around incorrectly. Let me know if there are any corrections or omissions.

Name		Team	Split 1	Split 2	Total	Rank
Nate	Henderson	JP McCaskey	4:49	4:49	9:38	1
Nick	Dahl	GFS	4:51	4:55	9:46	2
Rusty	Kujdych	Neshaminy	5:03	4:59	10:02	3
Ryan	Barton	DT West	5:08	4:57	10:05	4
Brandon	Hontz	WC Rustin	5:00	5:11	10:11	5
Spencer	Smucker	WC Henderson	5:04	5:08	10:12	6
Shaun	Bullock	DT West	5:04	5:09	10:13	7
Austin	Maxwell	Kennett	5:11	5:05	10:16	8
Jake	O'Neill	DT West	5:06	5:12	10:18	9
Jake	Underwood	Wilson (3)	5:04	5:15	10:19	10
	Vierling	Emmaus	5:07	5:13	10:20	11
Evan	Royko	Wilson (3)	5:12	5:16	10:28	12
	Shultz	Conestoga	5:13	5:17	10:30	13
	Goldberg	GFS	5:06	5:25	10:31	14
Drew	Alansky	DT West	5:18	5:14	10:32	15
	Wagner	Unionville	5:19	5:13	10:32	16
	Padraig	DMA	5:14	5:20	10:34	17
	Schoener	Wilson (3)	5:16	5:18	10:34	18
Patrick	Blair	DT West	5:12	5:23	10:35	19
	Dusseau	Avon Grove	5:11	5:24	10:35	20
Evan	Kaiser	DT West	5:20	5:18	10:38	21
	Martinez	DMA	5:16	5:22	10:38	22
	Biederman	Unionville	5:18	5:20	10:38	23
	Brown	Kennett	5:10	5:29	10:39	24
	Codd	DT West	5:16	5:24	10:40	25

Olympics: Men's 400m Preview

Men’s 400m

Heats 8:05 PM Friday, August 12^th

Semi-Final 7:30 PM Saturday, August 13^th

Final 9:00 PM Sunday, August 14^th

World Record: Michael Johnson (USA) 43.18, 1999

Best Mark Past 10 Years: Jeremy Wariner (USA) 43.45, 2007

Olympic Record: Michael Johnson (USA) 43.44, 1996

A Standard: 45.40

2012 Olympic Medalists

Kirani James (Grenada) 43.94, Luguelin Santos (Dominican Republic) 44.46, Lalonde Gordon (Trinidad and Tobago) 44.52

2015 World Championship Medalists

Wayde Van Niekerk (South Africa) 43.48, LaShawn Merritt (USA) 43.65, Kirani James (Grenada) 43.78

2016 World Leaders

LaShawn Merritt (USA) 43.97, Kirani James (Grenada) 44.08, Wayde Van Niekerk (South Africa) 44.12

Team USA

Lashawn Merritt, 30 (43.65/43.97), Gil Roberts, 27 (44.53/44.67), David Verburg, 25 (44.41/44.82)

In 2012, Grenada’s Kirani James who emerged as a breakthrough star in the 400, winning the Olympic Gold and breaking into the 43 second club. Before Kirani broke through, that 43 second club was owned and operated by Americans. In other words, Kirani was the first man outside the USA to break 44. Now, 4 years later, the list has ballooned to 5: Rusheen McDonald (Jamaica), Youseef Al-Masrahi (KSA), Isaac Makwala (Botswana), Wayde Van Niekerk (South Africa) and the aforementioned Kirani. The 2012 Olympics marked a changing of the guard in the Men’s 400 when no Americans finished in the medals. There won’t be another USA sweep (like there was in 2008) any time soon.

But US fans still have at least one super star to root for in the quarter. That would be 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist Lashawn Merritt who is the fastest man in the world this year with the globe’s only sub 44 clocking. Merritt has also cracked a sub 22 second 200m to place himself among the world leaders in that event. He’s also the silver medalist from last year’s World Championships where, at 29, he ran a personal best 43.65 at the lightening quick Beijing track. There he defeated rival Kirani James who finished with a bronze despite running 43.78.

Although James was the first rival to the USA throne, it appears Wayde Van Niekerk is version 2.0. The South African dropped an unreal 43.48 to win the 2015 World Title, catapulting himself up the world’s all time list. He’s run 44.12 for 400 this season and has shown fantastic form in his victories to date. He’s run sub 10, sub 20, and 31.03 for 300 and that 43.48 within the last 14 months.

Also in the mix will be Olympic silver medalist Luguelin Santos who has run 44.11. The contingents from the Bahamas and Trinidad and Tobago will also surely have medal contenders including 2012 bronze medalist Lalonde Gordon or newcomer Machel Cedenio (44.34 season best).

The USA’s Gil Roberts and David Verburg will hope to break through and make their first global final. It’s going to be an uphill battle, but both have season bests in the 44s (44.67 for Roberts, 44.82 for Verburg). Verburg has been on a few US teams already, mainly gaining experience through the 4x4 relay. He finished 4^th in the 2014 World Indoor Final and then made it to the semi-finals in Beijing a year ago (and was 3^rd in his heat). It’s not crazy to imagine Verburg as a finalist if things break right for him, but he will need a mark in the low 44s. Roberts made his only outdoor individual championship performance back in 2009 at Berlin, but failed to qualify from the prelims. Looking at his first round heat, he’s got decent odds at advancing to semis.

I know Bolt runs around the same time, but I think this 400 final will be a better race. It’s going to be awesome to watch Merritt, Wayde and Kirani go head to head once again, perhaps with a newcomer emerging as a medal threat outside of the big three. I’m a big Kirani fan, but Wayde and especially Merritt seem to be operating on another plane. I’ve got Lashawn winning this and, if the track is as fast as it was in Beijing, don’t be surprised if he is within earshot of the world record.

Merritt, 2. Van Niekerk, 3. James

Olympics: Women's Heptathlon

Women’s Heptathlon

Event One: 100m 8:35 AM Friday, August 12^th

Event Two: High Jump 9:50 AM Friday, August 12^th

Event Three: Shot Put 7:35 PM Friday, August 12^th

Event Four: 200m 9:04 PM Friday, August 12^th

Event Five: Long Jump 10:45 AM Saturday, August 13^th

Event Six (Section A): Javelin Throw 7:00 PM Saturday, August 13^th

Event Six (Section B): Javelin Throw 8:15 PM Saturday, August 13^th

Event Seven: 800m 9:53 PM Saturday, August 13^th

World Record: Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA) 7291 Points, 1988

Best Mark Past 10 Years: Carolina Kluft (Sweden) 7032 Points, 2007

Olympic Record: Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA) 7291 Points, 1988

A Standard: 6200

2012 Olympic Medalists

Jessica Ennis-Hill (Great Britain) 6955, Lilli Schwarzkopf (Germany) 6649, Tatyana Chernova (Russia) 6628

2015 World Championship Medalists

Jessica Ennis-Hill (Great Britain) 6669, Brianne Theisen Eaton (Canada) 6554, Laura Ikaniece-Admidna (Latvia) 6516

2016 World Leaders

Brianne Theisen Eaton (Canada) 6765, Jessica Ennis-Hill (Great Britain) 6733, Anouk Vetter (Netherlands) 6626

Team USA

Barbara Nwaba, 27 (6500/6494) Heather Miller-Koch, 29 (6423/6423) Kendell Williams, 21 (6402/6402)

In case you haven’t picked up on this, I’m a distance runner and my main focus is on those races. I don’t really understand the multis all that much. But I think they are the coolest events around and I will be doing everything I can to follow all 17 multi events in Rio (10 for the Dec, 7 for the Hep).

The queen of the heptathlon has been Jessica Ennis-Hill of Great Britain. She is the defending world and Olympic champion, setting a British record four years ago with a fantastic 6955 (top 5 all time). She was able to win the title a year ago, even after time away for her first child. But in recent years, while Hill has continued to dominate, Brianne Theisen Eaton has relentlessly pursued the throne. Eaton (wife of decathlon world record holder Ashton) was 2^nd in 2013 and 2015 at worlds. Indoors she was a silver medalist in the Pentathlon at the 2014 championships. Then, in Portland, it looked like she would end with silver once again before a fantastic final 800 got her the gold. Perhaps that was the breakthrough she needed to finally conquer the rest of the world in the Hep.

Among the other contenders are world bronze medalist Laura Ikaniece-Admidna of Latvia and Anouk Vetter of the Netherlands. Both woman have gotten scores above 6600 within the qualifying window. The top sleeper pick (if you can call her that) is Katrina Johnson-Thompson of Great Britain. First, she has a fantastic name. Second, she has a PR of 6682 in 2014 and would have been a medal contender for sure in Beijing but ended up with a dread no mark in the Long Jump (easily one of her best events, she’s jumped a world class 6.92m). Johnson-Thompson is just 23 years old.

The USA squad each has produced over 6400 points in the Hep this season, including collegiate stand out Kendell Williams of Georgia. Barbara Nwaba is the most experienced of the US contingent. She produced her personal best last year at the US championships but suffered a spill in Beijing for Worlds that cost her valuable points and pushed her way down the rankings. She will hope to avenge that this season and maybe break into the top 5-10 spots. Miller-Koch was a surprise to me, busting onto the squad at the Olympic Trials with a big PR. She will need to find a way to recapture that magic to contend for a top spot in this event. For Williams, this could be a great learning opportunity. She is one of the future stars of this event for team USA.

My picks all have two last names. Maybe that’s the secret. Does that mean Heather Miller-Koch is going to be our best USA competitor?

1.      Theisen Eaton, 2. Ennis-Hill, 3. Johnson-Thompson

Olympics: Women's 100m Preview

Women’s 100m

Preliminary Round 10:55 AM Friday, August 12^th

Heats 9:40 PM Friday, August 12^th

Semi-Finals 8:00 PM Saturday, August 13^th

Finals 9:35 PM Saturday, August 13^th

World Record: Florence Griffith-Joyner (USA) 10.49, 1988

Best Mark Past 10 Years: Carmelita Jeter (USA) 10.64, 2009

Olympic Record: Florence Griffith-Joyner (USA) 10.62, 1988

A Standard: 11.32

2012 Olympic Medalists

Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce (Jamaica) 10.75, Carmelita Jeter (USA) 10.78, Veronica Cambell Brown (Jamaica) 10.81

2015 World Championship Medalists

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (Jamaica) 10.76, Dafne Schippers (Netherlands) 10.81, Tori Bowi (USA) 10.86

2016 World Leaders

Elain Thompson (Jamaica) 10.70, English Gardner (USA) 10.74, T-Murielle Ahoure (Ivory Coast), Tianna Bartoletta (USA), Tori Bowie (USA) 10.78

Team USA

English Gardner, 24 (10.74/10.74), Tianna Bartoletta, 30 (10.78/10.78), Tori Bowie, 25 (10.78/10.78)

There’s been plenty of talk about Usain Bolt and his pursuit of a third straight Olympic Gold, but don’t overlook Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce. SAFP is also looking for a third straight gold and she would, technically, grab it before gold if she wins Saturday night’s final. But she will have a lot of ground to make up on the competition. She has only run 10.93 this season and she couldn’t pull out the win in most recent Diamond League appearance either. That win belonged to Marie Josse Ta Lou of the Ivory Coast who ran under 11 seconds for the first time in London. She’s part of an intriguing duo for the Ivory Coast that includes Murielle Ahoure, who has a season best of 10.78 this year and has run under 11 seconds each of the past 5 seasons.

You also have Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands in the hunt for a medal. She has run 10.83 this season and is the defending world silver medalist in this event. She’s actually better at the 200 (she ran a blistering 21.63 last year) but ran 10.81 for 100 last season will only get stronger during the rounds. The experienced Veronica Campbell-Brown is on the performance list as well. She holds a best of 10.76 but that time came in 2011. She’s now 34 years old, but she still managed to run a 10.83 (tied for 6^th in the world this season) in Florida against Ahoure.

But those fast ladies will all be chasing four of the fastest women of all time. Elaine Thompson clocked an amazing 10.70 this season in Kingston on July 1^st. That’s tied for 5^th all time (and one of the women ahead of her is Marion Jones). She ran 10.84 last season as well, but competed in only the 200 for Jamaica at the World Championships (where she ran 21.66 for 2^nd, that’s a faster PR than Allyson Felix). She clearly has that extra strength to run her best marks at the rounds.

Then there are the US women: English Gardner, Tianna Bartoletta and Tori Bowie. At the trials, they each ran under 10.80 in the 100m, joining an elite group of USA women all time. Gardner is the 4^th fastest US woman 100m runner in history and Bartoletta and Bowie were both right behind her. Tianna is the defending world champion in the long jump (she will contest that event in Rio as well) and Bowie is the defending bronze medalist from worlds. So neither of them are slouches in the talent department either.

Gardner was surprisingly bounced in the semis last year, but she was fourth in Moscow at the 2013 championships. She won the Prefontaine DL meet in 10.81 and the Oregon grad looks incredibly sharp and motivated to leave with a medal for the first time. Bowie has also been a beast on the international circuit in 2016. She’s US champ at 200, so she’s got the strength, but she also ran a 10.80 in May at Doha to win the DL there (over Dafne Schippers). Bartoletta tends to focus more on the Long Jump, but she was the 4^th place finisher in London in 2012. I doubt she’s forgot that just yet.

This one is a tough one to call. It really seems like Fraser-Pryce may not have the fitness to compete this year. But it’s hard to count out such an accomplished 100m runner going for history. The thing is, if she is even slightly off her game, there’s too much talent in this event to get a medal without your best stuff. So for that reason, I’ve left her out of my top 3. USA could potentially sweep the medals (these girls are that good), but I’m not completely sold just yet (Eugene produced some fast/long straightaway marks at the Trials). I actually like Bowie the most of the three as a medal threat although she was 3^rd at the trials.

1.      Thompson, 2. Schippers, 3. Bowie