The second day of the Portland Track Festival had a little bit of everything, from some impressive up-and-coming runners to an Olympian returning to the track for the first time after giving birth.
Shannon Rowbury returned to the track after the birth of her daughter, Sienna, about a year ago, and she looked calm and confident as she won the 5,000 meters in 15 minutes, 38.75 seconds. Brooklynn Loiselle has an update on the race, and stay tuned for a bonus story that will provide more depth on how Rowbury is balancing motherhood and life as a professional athlete for the Nike Oregon Project.
Brooklynn also covered the men’s 800 meters, which was won by Josh Kerr, who really has his eyes on the 1,500.
Craig Engels, Rowbury’s teammate, won the 1,500 meters in a personal record 3:35.52, a half second off the Olympic qualifying standard. Brett Taylor has that story — and the lowdown on whether Engels really was napping in his RV parked on the track apron.
Brett also wrote a second piece on Canadian runner Lindsey Butterworth, who won her fourth 800-meter race of the year and also ran a 2:02 for the fourth time this season.
The meet ended with the men’s 5,000 meters, which Riley Masters won thanks to a big move with 800 meters to go that no one followed. Nate Mann hung out while Masters autographed posters and T-shirts for young fans, and he also wrote about the women’s 1,500 meters, in which Konstanze Klosterhalfen and Nikki Hiltz went 1-2.
And about those up and comers? Keep your eye on Allie Janke, a rising junior at North Central High in Spokane, Washington, who broke her own meet record in the girls elite mile by four seconds, running 4:47.96 on a warm afternoon. Alex Castle has the story of her path from a 5-year-old girl who hated the sport to a high schooler who loves it.
