Media Room
Press ReleasesJune 16, 2008
Fine Field Set To Contest Jerome Men's 1,500 Metres
The runners may be of the two-legged variety but the men's 1,500 metres at the upcoming Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track Classic is shaping up to be a veritable horse race.
Two Canadians lead the list of impressive entries that include some considerable international talent in addition to younger runners who may well be stars of the future. At stake for all at the June 21 meet at Swangard Stadium is an important Olympic qualifying standard for the upcoming Summer Games in Beijing, China.
"This should be a very interesting race, a very quick race," notes Dr. Doug Clement, chair of meet organizer Achilles International Track and Field Society. "It's not impossible we could have a meet record in this event."
The Jerome 1,500-metre meet record of 3:35.59 was set 20 years ago by Kenya's Peter Rono, who three months later went on to capture the Olympic gold medal in Seoul, South Korea. The 2008 Olympic A-plus standard is 3:36.00, with the A-standard at 3:36.60 and the B-standard at 3:39.00.
Canadian record-holder Kevin Sullivan (3:31.71) returns to Swangard as he seeks to compete in his third Summer Olympic Games after finishing fifth in the 2000 final at Sydney and ninth in the 2004 semi-final in Athens. Sullivan, 34, recently attained the Olympic A-plus standard with a 3:35.78 effort in finishing third at the Adidas Track Classic in California. Veteran Sullivan of Brantford, Ont., is also coming off a strong 2007 season that saw him set a Canadian 3,000-metre record of 7:40.17 and also finish fifth in 3:34.16 at the prestigious IAAF Golden League meeting in France.
Joining Sullivan on the Jerome start line is 25-year-old compatriot Nathan Brannen of Cambridge, Ont. Brannen appears on track to one day succeed Sullivan for national 1,500-metre supremacy. Indeed, when Sullivan ended his stellar NCAA career at the University of Michigan in the mid 1990s, it was not long before young Brannen began making his own mark at the school with his own NCAA championships.
Brannen, silver medallist at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, has a personal best of 3:34.88 for 1,500 metres and comes to Swangard with a season-best 3:37.69. Four years ago his Olympic aspirations were dashed when an ankle injury kept him off the Canadian Olympic team to the Games in Athens.
New Zealand's Nick Willis, another runner with University of Michigan connections, could ensure a fast-paced race but a recent hamstring problem has forced him to wait until later this week to confirm he will race at Swangard. Willis, who outran Brannen to win the gold medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, enjoyed an outstanding performance at the recent 2008 Prefontaine Classic, where he sliced more than two seconds off his personal best for the mile to finish second in 3:50.66. His PB for 1,500 metres is a 3:32.17 earned in 2006.
Willis, 25, was NCAA indoor mile champion in 2005 while running at Michigan. In 2005 he also made headlines by breaking the New Zealand outdoor 1,500-metre record of 3:32.40 with a 3:32.38 effort. The previous mark, set 30 years earlier, was held by venerable John Walker.
Another southern hemisphere entrant makes the race even more interesting. Melbourne's Mark Fountain, the 2007 Australian 1,500-metre champion and 2006 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist, comes to the Jerome with a personal best 3:33.68.
American Galen Rupp is also a recent, and most interesting, addition to the Jerome 1,500-metre entries. Rupp, 22, is using the Jerome meet as a final prep for his 10,000-metre race at the June 27-July 6 U.S. Olympic Trials at University of Oregon. Rupp, who ran a 27:33.48 PB a year ago, was the U.S. championship runner-up in 2007 and went on to finish 11th in the final at the world track and field championships.
But age 22 Rupp, who is coached by former marathon great Alberto Salazar, appears to still have his best races before him as he stretches out over longer distances. He is the current American junior record holder over 3,000 metres (7:49.16), at 5,000 metres (13.37.91) and his previous 10,000-metre best of 28:15.82 also remains an American junior best.
The 25th annual Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track Classic goes Saturday, June 21 at Burnaby's Swangard Stadium. Tickets and meet information are now available through the meet website at www.harryjerome.com.
For media inquiries contact:
Diane Clement
dclement00@hotmail.com or (604) 261-6220
For athlete information contact:
Marek Jedrezejek
marekj@interchange.ubc.ca or (604) 822-6259
or
Doug Clement
dclement00@hotmail.com
