USATF News & Notes

January 20th, 2005

USA Race Walking Grand Prix set to begin with 30 km Championship >

> The 2005 USA Race Walking Grand Prix consisting of 13 events will > begin Sunday with the USA 30 km Championships in Chula Vista, > California. >

> The USA 30 km Race Walk Championships will feature several of > America's top race walkers and returning Athens Olympians. > International walkers from Colombia, Ecuador, and Mexico have also > been invited to compete. The race will be held on the same course used > for the 2004 U.S. 30 km Championships, and last year's U.S. Olympic > Team Trials - Men's 50 km Race Walk. The race will include National > Championship awards for Open and Masters walkers at the 30 km > distance. Competitors may also race 10 km or 20 km (non-championship > races) and be given official finish times. >

> The 2004 Men's Grand Prix Champion, three-time Olympian Curt Clausen, > is entered in the 18.6-mile race, despite beginning his first year of > law school at the University of Wisconsin. Two-time Olympian Philip > Dunn, who is also doubling as the Race Director, is a co-favorite for > the 30 km title. Athletes expected to battle for the other medals are > David Doherty, Mark Green, Dave McGovern and Bill Vayo. >

> The women's race looks to be a three way battle. Erin Taylor, the 2004 > 40 km Champion, and Dorit Attias, the 2004 50 km Champion, have the > endurance, while Heidi Hauch might have the upper hand because of the > shorter distance. All three are patient and experienced athletes who > don't make tactical errors, so this contest should go down to the > wire. >

> The Grand Prix, in its second year, will quickly shift indoors for two > events over the next two weeks before heading to Florida for the USA > 50 km Championship on February 13. Full details on the USA Race > Walking Grand Prix are online at www.usatf.org. >

> Track athletes win NCAA Inspiration Awards >

> The NCAA has recognized two track and field athletes, Widener > University's Macharia Yuot and Oklahoma's Michelle Thomas, as winners > of the organization's 2005 Inspiration Awards presented January 9 at > the 2005 NCAA Convention in Dallas. >

> The NCAA Inspiration Award, which is part of the NCAA Honors Program, > is presented to individuals annually who are currently associated with > intercollegiate athletics or who are former varsity letter winners at > an NCAA institution. Award criteria demand that the nominee must be > someone who, when confronted with a life-altering situation, used > perseverance, dedication, and determination to overcome the event, so > he or she now serves as a role model to give hope and inspiration to > others in similar situations. >

> Widener University junior and All-American track and field athlete > Macharia Yuot spent most of his childhood as a member of the "Lost > Boys of the Sudan." When he was nine years old, he fled his home in > Sudan, Africa, as a refugee from a two-decade-long religious civil war > between the Muslims in the northern part of the country and the > Christians in the south. Trekking nearly 1,000 miles on foot, with > limited food and drink, Yuot and the surviving Lost Boys arrived in > Ethiopia in 1991 only to be chased from that country not long after > their arrival. Once again finding themselves homeless, the Lost Boys > ate wild berries to survive. They eventually found their way to Kenya, > where they lived in refugee camps. During his time in Kenya, Yuot > received an education and studied Arabic, Swahili and English. He also > played soccer. >

> In 2000, Yuot and 3,600 other Lost Boys were relocated to the United > States in one of the most ambitious relocation programs since Vietnam. > Yuot was relocated to Pennsylvania. With the help of the Lutheran > Church, he enrolled in West Philadelphia Catholic High School as a > junior. At West Catholic, he played soccer and landed a spot on the > track and field team where he caught the attention of the Widener > University coaching staff. After a close friend was accepted to > Widener, Yuot himself took a close look at the university and decided > to apply. >

> Yuot recently became the first Widener University student-athlete to > receive All-American honors in cross country, indoor track and field > and outdoor track and field. He was a runner-up at the 2003 NCAA > Division III Cross Country championships, and won the Middle Atlantic > Conference championship in cross country in both 2003 and 2004. He > also won the Middle Atlantic Conference championship in the 1,500 > meters indoors and the 5,000 meters and steeplechase events outdoors > during the 2004 season. >

> Fellow Inspiration Award winner Michelle Thomas of the University of > Oklahoma faced many challenges during her senior year. Thomas and her > twin sister stepped in when their two young nieces, ages five and > seven, needed a home. The nieces' mother had been sentenced to prison. > Their grandmother, Thomas' mother, was battling cancer and could not > care for the children. >

> Thomas, the first NCAA Inspiration Award winner in school history, > probably would have welcomed just a single event in her final year of > competition as a middle distance runner at OU. >

> Last fall, each morning, Thomas got up and got the children to day > care before she went to early morning cross country practice. She kept > that schedule throughout the fall semester and finished with a 3.56 > grade point average in her major of microbiology with a minor in > chemistry. She also earned Academic All-Big 12 honors in cross country > for her performance. >

> Thomas, her sister and the two nieces settled into life. She returned > to school and practices in January in preparation for the 2004 indoor > season. Life was beginning to return to normal when tragedy struck > again. Returning from workouts, Thomas and her teammates noticed an OU > police officer talking to their coach. Shortly after, the coach > approached Thomas with the news that her oldest sister had been > murdered. The fact that the murder occurred on Martin Luther King, Jr. > Day, a day set aside to honor the memory of the man who preached > nonviolence, only added to the pain. >

> Money was tight and ultimately the expense of paying for her older > sister's burial fell to Thomas and her twin sister. Utilizing money > they had saved for school expenses, they paid the expenses for the > services. >

> Still, Thomas continued to go to class, train for competition and > provide a stable home for her young nieces. Following the funeral, she > returned to school and the team, now facing the challenge of paying > college-related expenses. Soon after her return to Norman, she was > called to the athletic director's office and informed that an academic > scholarship had been awarded to her. >

> Thomas, a Bill Gates Scholar, competed in the Big 12 Indoor > Championships, running on OU's distance medley relay that scored at > the conference meet with a fifth place finish. She competed throughout > the outdoor season and continued to succeed in the classroom, earning > Academic All-Big 12 first team honors for the third time in her Sooner > career. >

> Her nieces returned to live with their mother after she was released > from prison. However, in November, after a series of setbacks, Thomas > went to McAlester and moved her sister and the two nieces back to > Norman. She got her nieces re-enrolled in Norman Public Schools and > has encouraged their mother to return to school. Scheduled to graduate > in May with her bachelor's degree in microbiology with a minor in > chemistry, Thomas says that she did what she needed to do. A lifetime > of helping may be in store for Thomas who is interested in pursuing a > career in medical research. >

> Stork Report >

> 2003 World Indoor men's 400m gold medalist Tyree Washington became a > father on Thursday, January 13, when his wife Chara gave birth to a > baby girl in San Diego. Baby Tyra was born at 2:04 p.m., and entered > the world at 5 lbs., 11 ounces. Mom, baby, brother Malik and Dad are > all doing fine. >

> In addition, 2004 World Indoor men's long jump gold medalist Savante' > Stringfellow became a father on Monday when his wife Leah gave birth > to their son Kennedy. Everyone is doing fine. >

> This Day in Track and Field - January 20 >

> Compiled by Walter Murphy ( [email protected] ) of Eastern Track > and X-Country X-Press >

> 1968 -- Bob Beamon gave a preview of things to come later in the year > when he set a world indoor record of 27-1 in the long jump in Kansas > City. >

> 1976 -- Clifton Perry (Menchville,Va.) ran 1:10.0 at the Navy > Invitational to set the still-standing high school record for 600 > yards. Since the event is rarely contested these days, Perry's mark > may last forever. >

> 1979 -- Renaldo Nehemiah set a world record of 6.89 for the > relatively new 55-meter hurdles at the U.S. Olympic Invitational at > NY's Madison Square Garden. The mark also smashed the 60-yard > (slightly shorter than 55m) best of 6.95 which Nehemiah and Greg > Foster had run in a dead heat the night before in Philadelphia. A > second record at the Olympic Invitational came in the men's 1000 > meters, where Don Paige set a new American mark of 2:20.3. >

> 1980 -- President Jimmy Carter announced that the U.S. would boycott > the Moscow Olympics if the Soviet Union didn't pull its troops from > Afghanistan. >

> 2001 -- Running in an open mile at the New Balance Games at New > York's famed Armory, Alan Webb (South Lakes,Va, H.S.) ran 3:59.86 to > become the first high school runner to break 4 minutes indoors. Webb > broke Thom Hunt's 25-year old H.S. record of 4:02.7 and became the > first prep to run a sub 4-minute mile since Marty Liquori ran 3:59.8 > at the 1967 U.S. Outdoor Championships. (Webb also got credit for the > 1500-meter record, with his split of 3:43.27). >

> South Lakes coach Scott Raczko, wary of too much pre-meet hype, had > asked race organizer Ian Brooks to keep Webb's entry quiet, but a few > "insiders" got wind of the race and were lucky enough to be present > for the historic race. >

> For more on Webb's race, visit the link to the write-up in Eastern > Track - http://www.armorytrack.com/in01/webb35986.htm

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