Day 9 of the Olympic Trials was extraordinary in numerous ways. With 22,847 in attendance, it was a Hayward Field record. In the men’s 5,000 meters, 41-year-old legend Bernard Lagat proved age is just a number with his last-minute win. And as a finale, in the men’s 110 hurdles Oregon Duck Devon Allen became the first current UO student in eight years to make an Olympic team, his winning time the second-fastest in the world this year. Read our pieces on individual events and athletes below.
It was a big day for Arizona at Hayward, as 41-year-old resident Bernard Lagat won the men’s 5K with his trademark kick to make his fifth Olympic team. After failing to finish the 10K final earlier in the week, Lagat was on a mission to make his last race at Hayward Field one to remember. The veteran runner had previously announced that this will be his last year as a professional track athlete. Kylee O’Connor has the story for the Arizona Republic.
Romaine Soh covered the men’s 200-meter final, which included two high schoolers. Noah Lyles’ fourth-place time of 20.09 set a new national high school record and Michael Norman ran a PR. Justin Gatlin won the event in 19.75 seconds.
Oregon Duck Devon Allen won the men’s 110 hurdles wearing green and yellow in front of his home crowd. His race included one extra hurdle: the stands. Allen’s Hayward leap to embrace his friends and family made for a picture-perfect Olympic moment. His win was the biggest 110 hurdles margin in trials history. Hannah Bonnie has the story.
The best of Mississippi continued their Olympic bids, with Tori Bowie advancing to the final of the 200 with a semifinal-winning time of 22.27 seconds. In the heptathlon, Mississippi State senior Erica Bougard finished the first day of competition in fifth place. In a story by Emma Decker for the Clarion-Ledger, Bougard said she needs to win the long jump and stay competitive in the 800 in order to have a chance at Rio. Both Bougard and Bowie return Sunday to compete for the podium.
Isaac Gibson covered the men’s triple jump for DyeStat and wrote about how Will Claye redeemed himself after a disappointing performance in the long jump. Claye won the triple with a jump of 57 feet, 11 inches to make his second Olympic team, 10 1/4 inches ahead of second-place Christian Taylor, a fellow Florida alum.
Texas A&M senior Maggie Malone won the women’s javelin with a throw of 199 feet, 7 inches. Keeler McJunkin followed the competition for DyeStat as Malone beat her childhood idol, Kara Winger, with the three farthest throws of the finals. Winger, the American record holder, finished third.
And Kylee O’Connor pulled a double, writing a piece about javelin thrower Christine Rickert, who surprised herself by even qualifying for the trials yet was still a little disappointed in her 12th-place finish.
