 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 | 2009 Prefontaine Classic
Hayward Field, University of Oregon, Eugene OR
Sunday June 7, 2009
DyeStat onsite with Dave Devine and Robert Rosenberg
|
| | Greer hits 1:49.15 for 8th in loaded Pre 800
| Official site
800 Results
Full Results
TV: Live on NBC:
11am - 1pm PST
PHOTOS
78 action pix by Robert Rosenberg
Preview
Start Lists
Schedule
Prior Years on DyeStat
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
| |
|  | Elijah Greer trails 2004 Olympic gold medalist Yuriy Borzakovskiy of Russia, eventually finishing 8th in 1:49.15.
Photos by Robert Rosenberg
|
Greer 'lacked energy' after the fast opening lap
Story by Dave Devine
Photos by Robert Rosenberg - Gallery
Last summer, during one of the most captivating races in recent memory at the University of Oregon’s venerable Hayward Field, Elijah Greer was right in the thick of things, cheering with a delirious grandstand as Eugene residents Nick Symmonds, Andrew Wheating and Christian Smith swept the top three places—and the Olympic berths—in the Men’s 800 meter Olympic Trials final. A self-described “fan in the stands” that night, the Lake Oswego OR senior was impressed with Symmonds’ devastating kick and Smith’s last-gasp, diving pass of favored Khadevis Robinson for the final slot on the team.
“I was in the stands,” Greer said recently. “It was definitely a cool race. “
On Sunday, Greer moved from the stands to the starting line against three of the top four from that Trials race, plus a roster of international Olympians, as a late entry in the Men’s 800 at the 2009 Prefontaine Classic. The Oregon recruit is no stranger to Hayward Field—he’s been starring there as an Oregon prep the last three years—but this was easily the deepest field he’d ever faced. The prospect of lining up against American pros like Symmonds, Smith and Robinson was daunting enough (Trials runner-up Wheating has the NCAA Championships this week), but leading the Prefontaine entries was 2007 World champ and 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Alfred Yego of Kenya, 2008 Olympic silver medalist Ahmad Ismail of Sudan, and 2004 Olympic champ Yuriy Borzakovskiy of Russia.
 Greer wasn’t expected to contend for the win, but instead entered with a different goal in mind: Michael Granville’s 1996 US high school 800 record of 1:46.45. His personal best of 1:47.68 from last summer’s USATF Junior Nationals had been sufficient to claim Granville’s junior class record, but Greer would need to shave more than a second from that time to challenge the record—and would still be fighting to hang onto the back end of the illustrious field. Add in the fact that New Jersey prep star Robby Andrews had thrown down a cross-country gauntlet four days earlier, clocking 1:48.66 at the New Jersey Meet of Champions to seize the US#1 800 ranking Greer had previously held, and there was no shortage of motivation.
Motivation, however, is insufficient to lift the legs when a world class field surges away in the closing 200 meters of a sharply-paced final, which is what Greer found himself in the middle of Sunday. After an initial 200 meters in which Greer felt comfortable, he struggled to find his rhythm between 300 and 350 meters, and had to fight to maintain contact the rest of the way. He ended up running 1:49.15 for eighth place, while Symmonds (above) won the race in 1:45.86, topping meet record-holder Alfred Yego’s 1:46.21.
“From 350 to 400 I knew it wasn’t smooth enough,” Greer said afterward. “It wasn’t good enough. It was like my energy dropped off and it got progressively worse. I was feeling like I was having some transition issues.”
His opening 400 was 53.45, but even then Greer realized a 1:46 might not be in the cards.
“I know that if I’m not feeling good, those guys are going to gap me.”
Greer gamely held on through the second trip down the backstretch, and even narrowed the gap as the field approached the final turn, but his customary explosive closing furlong was absent as the leaders, fronted by Symmonds, accelerated away and Greer fought to hold form down the homestretch.
 Appearing in the post-race interview tent sporting an Oregon State Meet t-shirt and a Lake Oswego hooded sweatshirt, while all around him were athletes in slick, brightly-colored Nike kits, Greer bravely faced the press of media in the midst of his obvious disappointment. Looking squarely into the cameras, he quietly assessed his race and patiently took questions with a maturity belying his years.
“It’s definitely not a time I could consider a great performance, but it was a great day and I was certainly glad I was out there...I haven’t felt great for the past week and half. I ran a 600 time trial in 1:18, but I didn’t feel that great running it. I was hoping that by the time Pre Classic came around I’d feel better. I’m just hoping to get that mojo back and start feeling good again.”
Greer’s coach, Bob Williams, spent some time huddling with his charge after the race, and believed it may have been a case of Greer running tired and trying to summon energy he simply lacked on this day.
“We’re going to not do anything for a little bit,” Williams said. “Get him back to where he needs to be.”
In the wake of Sunday’s effort, and an apparent need to regroup in advance of the USATF Junior Nationals, Williams indicated that a decision about the June 13th Portland Track Festival Mile, featuring recent California 1600 champ Mac Fleet, Alaska star Trevor Dunbar, and New Jersey’s Robby Andrews, will have to wait at least a day or two.
“I’m not sure,” Williams said. “We’ll see how he feels.”
| | | Results
Flash Results, Inc.
2009 Prefontaine Classic Grand Prix - 6/7/2009
Eugene, OR
Event 15 Men 800 Meter Run
===============================================================
Position 9 is lane 5B and position 10 is lane 8B
World: W 1:41.11 1997 Wilson Kipketer, Denmark
American: A 1:42.60 1985 Johnny Gray
Hayward: H 1:44.01 2008 Alfred Yego, Kenya
Prefontaine: P 1:44.01 2008 Alfred Kirwa Yego, Kenya
All-Comer: @ 1:42.58 7/31/1996 Vebjorn Rodal, Norway
Name Year Team Finals
===============================================================
Finals
1 Nick Symmonds USA 1:45.86
2 Alfred Yego Kenya 1:46.21
3 Christian Smith USA 1:46.36
4 Gary Reed Canada 1:46.37
5 Khadevis Robinson USA 1:46.64
6 Yuriy Borzakovskiy Russia 1:47.05
7 Ahmad Ismail Sudan 1:47.83
8 Elijah Greer USA 1:49.15
-- Matt Scherer USA DNF
-- Boaz Lalang Kenya DNF
| | | Greer will chase Michael Granville's 1996 high school record at Pre
At the beginning of this week, organizers of the Prefontaine Classic announced that Lake Oswego OR senior and 800-meter junior class record-holder Elijah Greer was being added to the Sunday fast heat of the Mens 800. Every year, the Pre Classic considers a handful of high schoolers for the high profile meet, but this year the fields are so outstanding and deep, there was speculation no preps would make the cut. Greer's coach, Bob Williams, made a strong case to meet director Tom Jordan that Elijah is ready to break Michael Granville's 1996 national 800 record of 1:46.45, based on recent workouts which included a 1:18.3 600m time trial. Even with his PR of 1:47.68, Greer--who we profiled in a lengthy piece earlier this spring-- will be hard-pressed to keep up with a field which almost exclusively features Olympic-caliber athletes, but it will be exciting to watch him hang on and challenge the record. Certainly, the Hayward Field crowd will be behind his effort.
US ALL-TIME HS 800
1:46.45 Michael Granville CA 1996
1:46.58 George Kersh MS 1987
1:47.29 Kersh 1987
1:47.31 Pete Richardson CA 1981
1:47.68 Elijah Greer OR 2008
1:47.74 Alan Webb VA 2001
800 METERS START LIST
Nick Symmonds
Khadevis Robinson
Gary Reed (Canada)
Alfred Yego (Kenya)
Yuriy Borzakovskiy (Russia)
Ahmad Ismail (Sudan)
Boaz Lalang (Kenya)
Christian Smith
Elijah Greer (Ore HS)
Matt Scherer--pace
| | | Time Schedule
9:30 Memorable Moments from Pre Classics Past
10:00 Prefontaine Classic Preview Program, with live interviews
10:45 National Anthem
10:50 Pole Vault (M)
10:52 Long Jump (M) West
10:55 Discus Throw (W)
10:58 Hammer Throw (W)
11:04 400 Hurdles (M) [Live TV]
11:10 1500 Meters (W)
11:18 Steeplechase (M)
11:21 High Jump (M) East
11:31 Long Jump (W) East
11:33 100 Meters Section I (M)
11:36 Shot Put (M) West
11:39 100 Hurdles (W)
11:45 3000 Meters (M)
11:58 400 Meters (W)
12:04 800 Meters (M)
12:11 100 Meters (W)
12:18 100 Meters Section II (M)
12:24 800 Meters (W)
12:30 2000 Meters (W)
12:41 300 Meters (M)
12:49 Bowerman Mile (M)
12:57 Presentation of Maria Mutola Outstanding Athlete Award
| | | |
DyeStat NW |
|
|
|
|
|
|
