Tag: Olympic trials

Raevyn Rogers, Matthew Centrowitz, and Cole Hocker join group of Ducks heading to Tokyo Olympics

Three more Ducks clinched their spot on the U.S. Olympic team headed to Tokyo this summer with incredible races on Sunday night.

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The list of athletes with ties to the Oregon Ducks heading to the Tokyo Olympics grew on Sunday night.

With the final day of the Olympic Trials coming to a close, a trio of Eugene legends secured their spot on the team, with Raevyn Rogers, Cole Hocker, and Matthew Centrowitz all giving fans a show at the new Hayward Field.

The night started out for the Ducks with Rogers gritting it down the back stretch of the 800m final, finishing second behind 19-year-old phenom, Athing Mu, who ran a world-leading 1:56.07. Rogers time of 1:57.66 was good enough to guarantee her a spot on her second Olympic team.

The biggest fireworks of the night came in the men’s 1,500m final, when Centrowitz and Hocker battled down the stretch and provided a thrilling ending. Centrowitz led going into the final 200 meters, but Hocker mounted a huge kick and crossed the line in 3:35.28 to take first place and win the final. Centrowitz crossed in 3:36.34 to take second place and earn a trip to defend his title at the Olympics.

Technically, Hocker does not have the Olympic standard time of 3:35.00, but his world ranking is high enough to qualify him for the games in Tokyo.

Unfortunately, the Olympic dreams for long-jumper Demarcus Simpson, Colby Alexander, Sam Prakel, and Kyree King ended on Sunday night, as they failed to finish in the top 3 of their respective events.

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BREAKING: Olympic Trials postpones events until Sunday night due to heat

The Olympic Trials have been postponed events for the afternoon due to heat in the area. Events are set to resume at 8:40 p.m.

The U.S. Olympic Trials have been postponed on Sunday afternoon due to heat in Eugene.

According to sources, the events will start at 8:30 p.m., with running events starting at 9:00 p.m.

The heat in Eugene is what caused the delay, with temperatures exceeding 105 degrees at the moment in Tracktown, USA.

The temperature is not expected to get much better later in the night, which is still projected to be 99 degrees at 9 p.m. However, that is at least manageable for athletes.

The men’s 5,000m final was rescheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Sunday in order to beat the heat. The two athletes with Oregon Duck ties were unable to make it to the U.S. Olympic Team, with Cooper Teare placing 4th, and Eric Jenkins coming in 10th.

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Two-sport star Isaiah Sategna to choose between Oregon and USC

Two-sport athlete Isaiah Sategna will choose between the Ducks and Trojans after decommitting from Texas A&M.

The United States Olympic trials at the new Hayward Field couldn’t have come at a better time for the Oregon Ducks football team.

After de-committing from Texas A&M, two-sport star Isaiah Sategna has made it clear that he will either become a Duck or Trojan soon enough.

At 5-foot 10 and 170 pounds, the Fayetteville, Ark. native is a four-star recruit in the Class of 2022 as a wide receiver and one of the best high school sprinters in the country.

Sategna’s father is an assistant coach for the Arkansas track team, so choosing Oregon wouldn’t be that big of a shock. Hayward Field has been the star of the Olympic trials this past week and running on that track would be any prep runner’s dream.

“The track stood out to me because I’m going to run track and football in college,” he said after a visit to Eugene. “I would say that’s probably the best track in the world right now.”

As a receiver, Sategna isn’t just receiving footballs, but college scholarship offers as well. He has nearly 30 offers including most of the SEC. But with his recent tweet, he’s headed out to the Pacific. Oregon can only hope it’s to the Pacific Northwest and not to Pacific Palisades.

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Thursday at Hayward Field: Oregon legend Raevyn Rogers takes the track, and men’s 1,500m kicks off

Raevyn Rogers, Matthew Centrowitz, Jenna Prandini, Eric Jenkins. The list goes on for Oregon T&F legends getting set to take the track at the Olympic Trials on Thursday night.

We’ve now had two days off, and are ready to get back into the competition.

After off days on Tuesday and Wednesday, the U.S. Olympic Trials kick off in a big way on Thursday night, with a few main events that we’ve been waiting for all week.

More than just the events that are taking place, a handful of Oregon legends will be taking the stage, with athletes like Raevyn Rogers, Matthew Centrowitz, Eric Jenkins, and Jenna Prandini getting set for competition.

So who should you be looking out for, and which races should you have your eye on? We’ve got you covered:

Women’s Long Jump Qualifier (5:45 p.m.)

  • Jasmin Todd (Flight 2)
  • Rhesa Foster (Flight 2)
  • Alysah Hickey (Flight 1)

Men’s 1,500m First Round (6:04 p.m.)

  • Matthew Centrowitz (Heat 2)
  • Colby Alexander (Heat 1)
  • John Gregoreck (Heat 3)
  • Cole Hocker (Heat 2)
  • Sam Prakel (Heat 3)
  • Jack Yearian (Heat 2)

Women’s 200m First Round (6:31 p.m.)

  • Jenna Prandini (Heat 3)

Women’s 800m First Round (7:00 p.m.)

  • Raevyn Rogers (Heat 5)
  • Sabrina Southerland (Heat 4)
  • Brooke Feldmeier (Heat 1)

Men’s 400m Hurdles First Round (7:32 p.m.)

  • Johnathan Harvey

Men’s 5,000m First Round (8:04 p.m.)

  • Eric Jenkins (Heat 1)
  • Cooper Teare (Heat 1)
  • Cole Hocker (Heat 2)

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Oregon’s Jackson Mestler advances to final in 3,000m steeplechase

Oregon Ducks star and Eugene native, Jackson Mestler, took his Hayward Field experience and used it to help him advance to the 3000m steeplechase final.

Jackson Mestler knew what it was like to be at the Olympic Trials long before he ran in his first heat of the 3,000m steeplechase on Monday afternoon.

As a Eugene native, going to Sheldon High School, Mestler has attended the Trials for most of his life, and he volunteered in 2016 as a high school student.

On Monday afternoon, he finished fifth in his heat of the steeplechase, advancing to the final with a chance to make it to the Tokyo Olympics.

Mestler ran 8:33.09 in his heat, getting through to the final in an automatic qualifying bid. He will now run in the final on Friday afternoon with hopes of realizing a dream.

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Olympic Trials Wrap-up: Phyllis Francis, English Gardner, Jenna Prandini advance while other Ducks fall

It was great to be back at the Olympic Trials on Friday, but former Oregon athletes stumbled, with only three sprinters advancing to the semi-finals.

Day one of the Olympic Trials certainly did not disappoint.

The highlights of the afternoon at Hayward Field saw Oregon native Ryan Crouser setting the world record in the shot-put, throwing it 76-8.25, and breaking the old mark by an incredible 8 inches. We also got to watch a tightly contested 10,000-meter race to close out the night, which unfortunately saw both of the Oregon Ducks competing fall by the wayside.

All in all, it wasn’t a stellar day for Duck alums, with only three of the 10 competing athletes advancing to the semi-finals. Oregon legend Phyllis Francis got through the 400m qualifying round with a 51.34, while both English Gardner and Jenna Prandini advance in the 100m dash, coming in at 11.17 and 11.22, respectively.

Here is how the flock of Ducks faired on Friday:

  • Phyllis Francis 400m // 10th place // 51.34 // Advanced
  • English Gardner 100m // 13th place // 11.17 // Advanced
  • Jenna Prandini 100m // 18th place // 11.22 // Advanced
  • Marcus Chambers 400m // 23rd place // 46.30 // Did not advance 
  • Galen Rupp 10,000m // 6th place // 27:49.53 // Did not advance
  • Eric Jenkins 10,000m // Did not finish (Injury)
  • Alli Cash 1,500m and 5K // Did not Race (Unknown)
  • Hannah Cunliffe 100m // 16th place // 11.21 // Did not advance
  • Kiana Phelps Discus Q // 21st place // 175-6 // Did not advance
  • Dominique Ruotolo triple jump  // 13th place // 42-11 // Did not advance

For the three Ducks that did advance out of their qualifiers on Friday, they will take the track again on Saturday in the semi-finals and work to stay alive. Prandini and Gardner will line up in the starting blocks at 6:03 p.m. in the 100m semi-finals, while Francis will line up in the 400m semi-finals at 7:20 p.m.

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WATCH: Seahawks WR DK Metcalf run 100-meter dash at USATF Golden Games

Watch as Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf runs the 100-meter dash at USATF Golden Games. He finishes last in his heat.

It’s widely known that Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf is one of the quickest players in the National Football League and he finally got his shot to compete against some of the fastest runners in the world.

On Sunday afternoon, Metcalf took to the track at the USATF Golden Games to compete in the 100-meter dash. He finished the sprint in 10.36 seconds, ninth place in his heat. He needed a 10.05 or better to qualify for the Olympic Trials next month.

“To test my speed up against world-class athletes like this . . . just having the opportunity to run against these guys was just a blessing,” Metcalf said after the race.

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How to watch Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf try to earn a spot at the Olympic Trials

Guess will find out now fast he really is.

You know DK Metcalf is NFL fast. His downfield speed allowed him to become pretty much the perfect wide receiver for Russell Wilson last season, as he caught 83 passes for 1,303 yards.

Now Metcalf wants to test himself against the fastest sprinters the United States has to offer and has opted to run in the USATF Golden Games today in hopes of qualifying for the Olympic Trials in June.

Our Charles Curtis has already produced an exhaustive look at what we think we know about how fast Metcalf can actually be.

Track athletes, as USA TODAY’s Tom Schad reported, are excited to face Metcalf and presumably dispel the notion, once and for all, that any football player truly has “track speed.”

It’s not that they don’t believe Metcalf is a world-class athlete; they just know he hasn’t been practicing the specific skills needed to win this race as much, or as long, as they have. Here he is working on his start:

I’m the furthest thing from a track expert, but you can see here that, from this position, Metcalf appears to lack that elite burst you’d get from the best of the best.

Still, it’s going to be thrilling to watch him give it a try, right? Metcalf is scheduled to run in the 100m prelims, which start at 3:32 ET.

NBC has coverage of the event, so you have a few streaming options:

Metcalf didn’t run track in college and it’s not entirely clear how much training he’s done for this race, so he’s clearly an underdog. According to NBC, a 10.44 was good enough to advance to the finals in a similar recent meet. Metcalf, based on his 4.33 40-yard dash at the combine, could come close to that.

If Metcalf does make it, that race is scheduled for 5:03 and would be broadcast on NBC, and could be streamed via the following:

Metcalf needs a 10.05 to automatically qualify for the trials, but NBC says anything under a 10.20 would likely be good enough.

Hitting either of those marks would be amazing for Metcalf. And even if he doesn’t, he’s still very, very fast.

(You didn’t honestly think you’d get through this post without seeing this highlight, right?)

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DK Metcalf to test his speed in the 100 meter at USATF meet on Sunday

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf is entered in the 100-meter dash at the USATF Golden Games and Distance Open this Sunday.

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf is now set to compete in a whole different sport. Metcalf is entered in Sunday’s 100-meter dash at the USATF Golden Games and Distance Open at Mt. SAC.

It all started last fall when he “RSVP’d” to the USATF Twitter account.

According to the folks over at OlympicTalk at NBC Sports:

If Metcalf wants to qualify for the Olympic Trials 100m, he likely must break 10.2 seconds (with legal tailwind of no more than two meters per second).

A 10.05 automatically qualifies for Trials. Fifteen American men have 10.05 right now (who are expected to enter the Trials 100m), according to World Athletics. The field will likely be filled with the next fastest men to get around 32 entries overall.

In 2016, a 10.16 earned a place at Trials.

While Metcalf did compete in hurdles in high school, he wasn’t a true sprinter nor did he participate in track and field in college. There is no denying he is one of the fastest players in the NFL, but the true Olympic hopefuls might just put him to the test.

Tune in to NBC at 1:00 p.m. PT on Sunday to watch Metcalf turn on the speed.

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Notre Dame Receives Commitment From Swimmer Reese Lugbill

The Notre Dame women’s swimming team has received another verbal commitment for the class of 2025.

The Notre Dame women’s swimming team has received another verbal commitment for the class of 2025. This one comes from Reese Lugbill of Mason, Ohio. The Irish will have plenty of bodies in the future as they now have 10 women’s swimmers for the aforementioned class.

Lugbill’s announcement is as follows:

“I am beyond excited to announce my verbal commitment to continue my academic and athletic careers at the University of Notre Dame!! Thank you to my family, coaches, and teammates who helped me get to this point! Can’t wait! Go Irish☘️”

Lugbill was an Olympic Trials qualifier in the 200-meter breaststroke. As a club swimmer for Mason Manta Rays, she finished in the top eight at the Southern Premier Invitational four times and was a finalist in the 400 individual medley at Juniors East. She also was 17th in the 200 breaststroke at Junior Nationals last summer.

For Mason High School, she has been a finalist for the Ohio State Championship six times. As a sophomore, she had her best finishes in her respective events: third in the 200 individual medley and fourth in the 100 breaststroke. She also was recognized as an NISCA and USA Swimming Scholastic All-American.