Daily Daegu: Bernard Lagat's quest for Gold starts today

Farah will look to spin Silver in to Gold in the 5000
(TrackandFieldPhoto)

Day 6 at Daegu kicks off tonight at 9:05pm Eastern with the Men's 5000 semis. The top 5 out of each heat qualify for the final in addition to the top 5 times after that. Galen Rupp and Bernard Lagat are in heat 1, with Kenya's Isiah Koech and Thomas Longosiwa, Ethiopia's Dejen Gebremeskel, Australia's Buster Mottram and Collis Birmingham, plus host of other excellent athletes. Kenenisa Bekele was supposed to be in heat 1, but apparently is not running. Andrew Bumbalough, who replaced teaammate Chris Solinsky on the team, is in heat 2 with Ethiopia's Imane Merga, Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge, Ireland's Allistar Cragg (via Mammoth TC), Australia's Ben St. Lawrence and some guy named Mo Farah, who will be looking for redemption. Rupp and Lagat should get through to the finals, but Bumby's gonna have his hands full. It will be a great experience for him at minimum for what's to come. No pressure is good.

The Women's 800 meter prelims go off at 10:40pm. Maggie Vessey goes off in heat 1 (with favorite Jenny Meadows). Alysia Montano goes off in heat 3 (with Janeth Jepkosgei). And finally, Alice Schmidt goes off in heat 4 (with Caster Semenya). All three should have a pretty easy time getting through to the semis, with Montano facing the hardest competition (4 other competitors sub 2:00 this year in her heat).

After an American night's rest and an afternoon's rest in Daegu, the night (Daegu)/morning (America) session will get going at 6:55am with the Men's 1500 Semis. Frenchman Mehdi Baala's protest was successful and he has been advanced to the first heat of the semis and will join Matt Centrowitz, Silas Kiplagat, Amine Laalou, Yusuf Kamel and others in a top 5 go automatically situation. The next 2 times will advance to the finals as well. Leo Manzano is in the second heat, with Asbel Kiprop, Nick Willis, Daniel Komen, Deresse Mekonnen and Irishman Ciaran O'Lionaird. Expect a tough, but doable run for Centro and expect Manzano to cruise through to the final.

Staying one step ahead of Kenya
(TrackAndFieldPhoto)

Next up is the Men's Steeple final at 7:25am. No Americans involved. It will be exciting to see Kenya's Brimin Kipruto coming off a .01 second miss of the World Record, against countryman Ezekiel Kemboi, and the two Frenchmen,  Bob Tahri (Mehdi Baala's training partner) and Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad (Mehdi Baala's sparring partner).

Finally, the Women's 1500 final goes off at 7:55am. Can the Americans get a medal, or possibly two? I would think so. Morgan Uceny has been incredible all year and has looked flawless in the prelims. Jenny Simpson has showed some bite in the prelims and has a furious kick from time to time. Their hands will be full with all the usual suspects involved, but Shannon Rowbury got the bronze in 2009, so they have a great chance to make it happen.

Follow along on Universal Sports and UniversalSports.com and check the results on the IAAF's Daegu page.

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Daily Daegu: Jenny B fights in the 1500, but should she come back to the Steeple?

Simpson threw down multiple moves to
make the final (TrackAndFieldPhoto)

Day 4 was the last busy day before the Day 5 off day (save the Women's 20k Race Walk). The action got started early with the Women's 5000 semi-finals. Amy Hastings ran strong enough out of Heat 1 to get a time qualifier, while Lauren Fleshman left nothing to chance by throwing down a major move with 250 to go to secure a big enough cushion to coast into the finals with an auto qualfier. Hard to believe she was just 8th at USA's. American Record holder, Molly Huddle, wasn't so lucky as she put up a good fight, but her injury and subsequent loss of training ultimately kept her out of the final. She'll be back next year.

The Men's 1500 heats were almost as exciting with Daniel Komen taking a huge lead in heat 1 to secure his entry to the semis, while U of O's Matt Centrowitz securing the final automatic qualifier in that heat. The second heat brought some drama as Frenchman, Mehdi Baala, tripped and went down with 100 to go. The French are protesting, but as of now, he hasn't been passed to the semis. Andrew Wheating's year full of injury ended in this heat, as he just didn't have a kick left. Like Huddle, he'll be ready to dance next year. Amine Laalou won heat 3 with Leo Manzano getting in off time and former Florida State Seminole, Irishman Ciaran O'Lionaird, channelling the power of the mullet and bursting into the final automatic qualifying slot of the heat. What a few months O'Lionaird has had. Going from a poor showing at NCAA's, to an excellent 6 second PR of 3:34 in the 1500, signing a professional contract with Nike and making the World semis in an event that may not even be his best.

Lauren Fleshman, riding dirty (TrackAndFieldPhoto)

The Women's 1500 semis were competitive as multiple time American Champ, Shannon Rowbury, came in next to last, while Morgan Uceny cruised in second, securing an auto-qualifier. Jenny B. Simpson had to fight like crazy, but had that one last move when it counted, to bolt into the lead and finish a comfortable second, making the final.

The Men's 800 went pretty much to plan with David Rudisha toying with the field and Yuriy Borzakovskiy nearly stealing the Silver from Abubaker Kaki with his well honed tactics. Nick Symmonds gave it quite a ride, but didn't have enough left down the home stretch to sneak onto the podium. His 5th place finish isn't what he wanted, but certainly a solid showing and more fuel for the London fire that he'll begin building this fall.

The Women's Steeplechase was fast with Russia's Yuliya Zaripova taking the win in 9:07.03 and Tunisa's Habiba Ghribi taking the silver in 9:11.97. What you probably didn't realize is Jenny B. Simpson's 9:12.50 in the 2009 World Championships would have netted her the bronze today. Unless she comes in top 5 in the 1500, she should give serious thought into returning to the Steeple for London. Her protege, Colorado's Emma Coburn, had a tough race, but finished a strong season as the NCAA Champion, USA Champion and a finals qualifier at Worlds. Not too shabby! (Also, Anna Peirce's 9:22 PR would have been good enough for 5th and she's not at Worlds).

Finally, the Men's 400 went from being possibly LaShawn Merritt's return to glory, to the youth gone wild show, with Grenada's Kirani James sneaking past Merritt in the final meters (a la Mo Farah in the 10,000) to take the Gold. The only tougher loss for Merritt would be one where the IOC outlaws him form competing in London next year. We'll know the answer to that by the end of September.

With Day 5 being a quiet day, I'll preview Day 6 tomorrow!

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Daily Daegu: Is Day 4 Nick Symmonds time to shine?

Symmonds has been hot in Daegu so far
(TrackAndFieldPhoto)

Day 3 at Daegu ended in a flourish, with Americans Carmelita Jeter and Jason Richardson both claiming gold medals. Jeter continued to dominate in the 100, while Richardson has seemingly come out of nowhere in the past month in the 110 hurdles. While he was helped by Dayron Robles' DQ and pushing on Silver Medalist Liu Xiang, Richardson ran his best at the right time and was rewarded for it. Allyson Felix's doubled was thwarted by Amantle Montsho, but a Silver at the World Championships is nothing to sneeze at. Jillian Camarena-Williams also took home Bronze in the Shot Put. A great day for American sprinters, hurdlers and throwers!

But that's not what I generally cover here. The only distance event of Day 3 was the Men's Steeplechase and our boys didn't look so good. As I said on twitter yesterday, "the American Steeple contingent could use a Fam injection on the men's side and some Simpson/Pierce on the women's." Emma Coburn is the only American in either final and she looked great. But hopefully we can get stronger before London next year.

Day 4 brings on lots of distance fun as the Women's 5000 heats start up at 9:20 eastern tonight with Amy Hastings, the injured Molly Huddle and the white hot Lauren Fleshman gunning for the finals. After that, we'll get to see the Men line up in the 1500 prelims. Coming off a big win in London, Leo Manzano will be ready to go, with collegian Matt Centrowitz and Andrew Wheating bringing their Oregon flair to the line.

The American morning session of Day 4 kicks off at 7:35am eastern with the Women's 1500 semis, where all 3 ladies are still alive. At 8:00am, Nick Symmonds will take aim at the medal stand in a stacked 800. David Rudisha is a heavy favorite for Gold and Abubaker Kaki the same for Silver, but the bronze is wide open and Symmonds appears ready to bring it home. Watch out for a dual between Symmonds and 2004 Olympic Champion, Yuriy Borzakovskiy, for that last spot on the podium. Next, at 8:20am, Emma Coburn will finish her excellent season in the Women's Steeplechase final. Closing the night will be the next leg of the LaShawn Merritt redemption tour. After two excellent performances in the rounds, he looks to be the favorite to bring home the Gold in the Men's 400.

A very exciting night and day ahead after an exciting morning for us Americans!

You can watch on television and online via Universal Sports. Results are on the IAAF's Daegu site.

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Daily Daegu: Bolt false starts, Eaton finishes fast

Channeling teammate Andrew Wheating
(TrackAndFieldPhoto)

Day 2 at Daegu had many highlights, but one lowlight; Usain Bolt false starting in the 100. What a letdown! Something tells me he'll be sitting in the blocks in the 200 until the field is 5 meters up. Ashton Eaton's 60 second final 400 in the 1500 of the Decathlon was impressive. He wanted Silver and he got it. His strong 4:18.94 was enough to jump Cuba's Leonel Suárez on the medal stand to get one step closer to repeat Gold Medalist, Trey Hardee. Walter Dix was also second best in the 100, behind Jamaica's Yohan Blake.

On the distance front, an Ethiopian man won the 10,000, but not the one you'd think. Ibrahim Jeilan came out of nowhere and kicked down Mo Farah in the last 40 meters to take the gold. It was pretty gut-wrenching to watch Farah get passed at the end, but he'll be in contention for the win in the 5000 in a few days. Kenenisa Bekele stepped off the track with 10 laps to go, citing lack of fitness, but happy he gave it a shot. Galen Rupp hung in there until about two laps to go and proceeded to take seventh overall. A nice showing, but not what he was hoping for. He lapped Matt Tegenkamp and Scott Bauhs in the process, which tells you all you need to know about how their day went.

In the prelims, all three American Women advanced in the 1500, with Morgan Uceny, Shannon Rowbury and Jenny Simpson all getting automatic qualifies to the semis. Nick Symmonds looked great in the 800 and will be the only American in the final as Khadevis Robinson failed to advance.

Day 3 kicks off this evening with the Men's Steeplechase prelims. Dan Huling, Billy Nelson and Ben Bruce will have their hands full, but hopefully can find their way into Thursday's final. That's the only distance race of the day, but there will be finals in the Women's 400, Men's 110 Hurdles and Women's 100 to close the day.

You can watch on television and online via Universal Sports. Results are on the IAAF's Daegu site.

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Daily Daegu: Kenyan Women dominate and is Kenenisa Bekele back?

Will Kenny B hoist the flag in Daegu?

The first day at Daegu was the won by the Kenyan Women. Edna Kiplagat led the sweep in the Women's Marathon and Vivian Cheruyiot led another sweep (including a the 4th spot) in the Women's 10,000. Tera Moody led the Americans in the Marathon with a 17th place finish in 2:32:04. Shalane Flanagan led much of the 10,000, but ended up 7th in 31:25.57 (with a strong 9th by Jen Rhines). Oregon Track Club got their first ever World Championship medal with Sally Kipyego taking the silver in the 10,000 in 30:50.04, just over a second off the win.

Day 2 brings on the first Men's distance final. It's been awhile since we've seen the king of distance running, Kenenisa Bekele. And until he's on the line Sunday morning at 6:30am eastern (7:30pm Daegu), I won't be 100% convinced he's actually running. Kenny B hasn't toed the line since January 2010, when he finished fourth in a cross country race in Edinburgh. Whether he shows up or not, he and the field will have their hands full with the star of 2011, Mr. Mo Farah. As strong as Farah has looked all season, it's going to be hard to pick against him, although it will be very fascinating to see what kind of shape Bekele shows up in.

Beyond the two superstars, in America, we'll be cheering for Galen Rupp, as he's got a legitimate shot at a podium finish. Standing in his way will be the bruising Ethiopian, Imane Merga, the up and down Sileshi Sihine, as well as Eritrea's Half Marathon World Record Holder, Zersenay Tadese. This isn't even speaking of the always strong Kenyan contingent. Rupp will have his hands full, but if he runs to his capability, he should be in the mix with a mile to go. Also in the mix for America is the 10k newcomer, Matt Tegenkamp, and Mammoth Track Club's Scotty Bauhs.

Day 2 also brings on the semifinal heats for the Men's 800, as Khadevis Robinson and Nick Symmonds qualified out of the opening round. The Women's 1500 heats start as well with Morgan Uceny, Jenny Simpson and Shannon Rowbury taking the stage. Finally, day 2 brings on the 100 meter final. Not a distance race, but always exciting to see Usain Bolt go against the world!

As usual, Universal Sports will have coverage on television and online. Full results are on the IAAF Daegu page here.

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Daily Daegu: Women's Marathon starts the party tonight

2 different Dreams in Daegu

We're finally here. After plenty of talk and speculation, the dance starts tonight (at 8pm for us east coasters) as the 2011 Women's World Championship Marathon kicks things off in Daegu. First things first, if you want to watch the Women's Marathon and the rest of the championships live, get access for $14.99 from Universal Sports. They have a deal now where if you enter the code "trackc2l" you get full Daegu access, plus the 2011 Diamond League package. That package includes on-demand replays of all the previous meets, plus live coverage of Zurich on September 8th (aka the Olympics in a day) and Brussels on September 16th. You can also get my coverage/opinions/predictions every day here on the Daily Daegu and via twitter.

2010 New York City Marathon winner, Kenya's Edna Kiplagat, leads the way in the Marathon this evening with many top names missing, as there isn't any appearance fee money at the World Championships. It is an excellent place to earn some for the future though! What will be exciting is the team title that will likely come down to Kenya vs. Ethiopia (shocking I know). The Kenyan stars are Kiplagat, Sharon Cheprop, Priscah Jeptoo and Caroline Rotich. The Ethiopian stars are Aselefech Mergia, Bezunesh Bekele, Atsede Baysa, Aberu Kebede and 2008 Boston Winner Dire Tune. My money's on Kenya, but I would be surprised if Ethiopia won in a landslide either. The American team is comprised of five women looking to cut their teeth a little more on the international level. Leading the team is the master, Colleen De Reuck. Tera Moody ('09) and Zoila Gomez ('07,'09) also bring experience, with Kathy Newberry and Zap Fitness' Alisa McKaig rounding out the team (I write this a few miles from Zap en route to the USATF 10k Trail Championships). A podium finish may be a stretch for my fellow Americans, but I'm pulling for you ladies!

Tomorrow morning at 8am eastern, Shalane Flanagan leads the charge for a medal in the Women's 10,000. Making the podium will be tough, but definitely not impossible. Kenyan Sally Kipyego, who trains with the Oregon Track Club, has the best time in the world this year at 30:38 and has gotten the better of Flanagan of late, but will likely be a must beat for Flanagan to get on the stand. Vivian Cheruiyot and Meseret Defar will be duking it out up front with defending champion, Kenya's Linet Masai, in the mix as well. Finally, Ethiopia's Meselech Melkamu will be pushing the pace in the Flanagan/Kipyego and possibly Masai. If Flanagan can run like she did at World Cross and bide her time until the last 2k, she should be in the position she needs to be to bring home some hardware. It will also be interesting to see how the recently injured Kara Goucher and 5-time World Championship team member, Jen Rhines, do. If either crack the top 7 or 8, it should be deemed a success.

Again, the festivities begin at 8pm eastern tonight on Universal Sports. IAAF World Championship central is here with startlists, etc. And finally, the Let's Run prediction contest is here.

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Hobby Jogging: "Sitting on a sidewalk in Boone"

First stop, Moses Cone Park

This week marks the second annual weeklong trip to the mountains of Boone, NC to get in some good training, good food and some well earned R&R in cooler temperatures (and higher altitude). I made the trip last May for the first time since coming during the summers of '94, '95 and '96  and running with Doc Deni and the Psychos at Appalachian State Distance Camp. If you haven't been to Boone before, I highly recommend it. Lots of great places to run, lots of great places to eat and lots of cheap places to stay. My choice this week was the same as last year, the "Running America" approved, Super 8 on Highway 105. $50 a night (with the right coupons), free WiFi, mini-fridge and microwave in room and free continental breakfast. Oh, and it's equidistant from the trails and the campus. Highly recommended if you like to travel on the cheap as I do. They even gave me the same room.

5 miles up will be Fire Tower

Last year, I was lucky enough to have my friend, and recent 2:39 marathoner, Scott Williams, show me some good trails and good dining spots. This year, I brought my good friend from Greenville, NC, Tyler Pake, along to join the fun. Our first run today started at Bass Lake in Moses Cone Park, where we entered "The Maze" and then tacked on a few extra for a nice 6.5 miles to get the week started. Tomorrow morning, we'll head out for an easy 5 at Price Lake before the fun starts. That fun will be joining Scott tomorrow afternoon for the tough Fire Tower run. This run starts at the bottom of Bass Lake and is 5 miles up and 5 miles down. It's a pretty good incline and we'll pass the possibly haunted Cone Manor about half way up. Coming down will be the reward. Well, the first reward. The second reward will take place on King Street afterwards.

The only cat worth having

That second reward is the famed "Taco Tuesday" at Boone Saloon. $1.25 Tacos and $4.50 pitchers. What more could an "of age" distance runner want? I'll tell you what. Black Cat Burrito. Black Cat was our dinner this evening and I have already warned Tyler, will likely be another meal (or two) this week. If you haven't tried Black Cat, you've never been to Boone. Top three burrito spot in North Carolina (with due respect to Salsa Fresh and Carrburritos).

Wednesday through Friday will bring along a track workout, some more good runs, a likely stop at Coyote Kitchen, and if all goes to plan (and the hamstrings and shins hold up), I'll be running the Continental Divide Trail Race Saturday in Laurel Springs, NC. This race serves as the USATF 10k Trail National Championship, and although I am not in great shape, why not?

Jupiter Coyote said it best:


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