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 | March 11, 2001 – New York Armory – “fastest indoor track in the world”
Both 200m national records broken
in photo finishes minutes apart
Brendan Christian 21.02
| Angel Perkins 23.59
|  |  | Christian (5) and Glenn McFadden 21.05 stormed to the tape together, both beating the old record.
| Angel Perkins CA (6) takes record from Sanya Richards FL in next lane, with Janice Davis MS right there. |
by John Dye
Since the New York Armory was reclaimed from the homeless in the late 1990s, chairman Dr. Norb Sander's goal was to put the historic venue back on the track map. One method was to build the "fastest indoor track in the world."
They accomplished this by replacing the old wooden track with an elevated, high bank oval surface topped with the famed Mondo finish.
Best evidence of the Armory speed comes in the 200 meters. This is one lap around the oval, with top seeds in lanes 5 and 6 starting at the top of the hill, zooming down the backstretch, up and around the far turn and downhill to the home stretch, skirting the old brick walls with fans cheering from the balcony seating.
Clinching arguments in Dr. Sander's claim were offered Sunday afternoon, March 11, 2001.
First, Angel Perkins CA 23.59 won a photo finish over Sanya Richards FL and Janice Davis MS, breaking Richards' national record set the year before at the same spot.
A few minutes later the boys took the track with Brendan Christian, the latest great sprinter from Texas, in lane 6 and Glenn McFadden CT in lane 5. It was a mighty battle that ended with the runners falling into each other's arms, knowing they just experienced something special. Christian edged McFadden, 21.02 to 21.05. Both runners broke the old national record (21.29 Tony Wheeler, 1993). Christian also won the 60 meter dash.
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2 national records in 80 minutes for Perkins
Cerrito Gahr CA jr Angel Perkins broke national indoor records in both the 400 and 200 in a span of 80 minutes. First, in the 400, Perkins destroyed a good field in a breeze in 53.25, breaking Lashinda Demus' month-old record set at Simplot in February. Perkins beat Stephanie Smith 54.58, Tiffany Abney 55.12, and Shevonne Stoddart 54.72.
In the 200, Perkins also took a lead into the last turn, when she was challenged by Sanya Richards, who set the old record of 23.64 at this meet last year. "I felt Sanya coming up and I knew I had to turn it on." Perkins won in 23.59, with Richards at 23.71 and Janice Davis of Mississippi 23.95.
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2 more national records in same meet
 |  | Samantha Shepard soars to new PV record 13-3.5;
Stacie Manuel 13-1.5 also breaks old record
There were actually three vaults better than the previous record. First, Samantha Shepard MA and Stacie Manuel MN both cleared 13-1.75 4.05 to break the national indoor record (13-1.5 by Shepard earlier this year). Then a jumpoff started to settle first place. Both missed fourth attempts at 4.10, and the bar was lowered to 4.05. Manuel missed on a good attempt, leaving it open to Shepard to win. Now looking dead tired, Shepard twice aborted her approach short of the box. Then, with the judge warning her time was about up, Shepard took off and sailed over the bar to cheers from a loyal throng of pole vault fans who watched every jump from the backstretch balcony at the Armory.
| Long Beach Wilson 3:53.17 smashes all-time SMR record
Lashinda Demus, who set the national 400m record a month earlier at Simplot, put Wilson into the lead with a 53.3 400-meter third leg, and then sophomore Ashley Freeman hammered the field with a 2:09.5 anchor 800 meter leg. Wilson's winning time was 3.5 seconds better than the previous record of William Penn PA in 1997. Wilson pulled A.P. Randolph NY into the 4th fastest SMR in US history, 3:59.42, which was also a New York State record. Even 3rd place Haddonfield NJ 4:03.93, powered by Erin Donohue's 2:09.6 anchor leg coming from 5th place, was 16th all time.
Posing above under the scoreboard, L to R: Lashinda Demus 53.3, Deanna Gooden 25.0, Ashley Freeman 2:09.5, Angel Tate 25.1 |
Link
DyeStat coverage of 2001 NSIC http://www.dyestat.com/rivals/8124404.html
Magic Moments index |
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