VMI's Felix Kitur is set to begin competition at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, set to begin Wednesday at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The junior's first 800-meter race is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. start, East Coast time, Wednesday night, while the final of the 800-meters is set for Friday evening at 8:40 Eastern.
Fans can follow along with the action in a number of ways. First, VMI's Assistant Track/Head Cross Country Coach Paul Spangler will chronicle portions of the trip on the VMICrossCountry Twitter account, linked above. Live results will be available at flashresults.com, and finally, fans can watch the event free of charge at NCAA.com, with a pair of two-hour time slots as exceptions. One of those slots will include the men's 800-meter final, as CBS College Sports picks up the coverage from 8-10 p.m. Eastern Friday evening. The more traditional CBS network will then broadcast from 1-3 p.m. Saturday afternoon. Links for the NCAA's video streaming will be posted on VMIKeydets.com when they are made available.
Kitur qualified for this meet, his second career appearance at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, by finishing second in his heat at last month's NCAA East Regional Preliminary meet in Greensboro, N.C. Already this outdoor season, he has earned his third career Big South 800-meter title and posted his second runner-up finish at the IC4A Championships. He also spent much of the year in the top-10 on the national performance list, and will enter this meet with a best time of 1:47.62, posted in the qualifying rounds at the IC4A meet.
The junior out of
Eldoret, Kenya also qualified for this meet in 2008, when he finished
ninth overall, just missing both the final and All-American honors. In order to earn those honors this year, he will have to either finish in the top two in his heat or post one of the two next fastest times in order to make the final.
Capsules on each of the 24 runners entered in the 800-meters, divided by heat, appear below. It should be noted that the seed mark listed on the start lists is from the NCAA Regional Preliminary meets, and is not necessarily the athlete's best time of 2010. Both the regional mark and the best mark of the season are noted in the capsules below.
800-Meter Capsules -
Top two advance from each heat, plus the next two fastest times. Fans should note that the heats were revised since this article was originally published, and the corrected versions are listed below.
Heat Three
Felix Kitur, Jr., VMI - (top time of 2010) 1:47.62, (seed time) 1:47.94
Ryan Waite, So., BYU - (top time of 2010) 1:46.83, (seed time) Same
Had been hovering in the mid-1:47's until the West Regional, when he zipped to his top time of the year...it was the fourth-fastest time overall, and placed him second to Irvine's Charles Jock in his heat...Waite won the Mountain West title handily last month...ran a 1:47.54 at Stanford in early May...transferred from Oregon, so he will be returning to his former home track.
Chris Labosky, Sr., Yale - 1:47.74, Same
A
three-time Academic All-District honoree, Labosky had a 1:51.48
personal best coming into the year, but dropped that enough to become a
legitimate player on the national scene. Ranked 21st on the Division I
descending order list coming into the East Region prelims, Labosky ran
a 1:47.74 in the final heat in Greensboro and made the national meet on
time...finished fifth at the IC4A Championships...was second at the Ivy
League Championships.
Chris Gowell, Sr., Baylor - 1:47.38, Same
Perhaps
the forgotten man in this event, Gowell was a 2009 All-American both
indoors and outdoors at this distance...he earned the honor outdoors by
posting a career-best 1:46.88 in the NCAA final to finish fourth...this
year, his best time came at the West Regional Prelims, where he posted
a 1:47.38...was third in his heat behind Jock and Waite...second to
Irwin of Missouri at the Big 12 Championships...was fifth at the Notre
Dame Alex Wilson Invitational, a race that included Primm of UCLA and
Rucks of Wisconsin, both in this field...was second in the 1,000-meters
at the Big 12 Indoor Championships...picked to finish third by
letsrun.com.
Aaron Dixon, Jr., Missouri - 1:47.39, Same
The cinderella
story of this race, and one of the bigger ones of these Championships
as a whole, Dixon entered the West Regional prelims with the
108th-fastest time on the country's decending order list...he then
clocked in at 1:48.20 in the first round, before improving to 1:47.39
in the finals to move on to Eugene...this will be Dixon's first
appearance in a national meet...he finished sixth at the Big 12
Championships this year...he has competed at Hayward Field this season,
finishing second in this race at the Oregon Pepsi Invitational.
Ryan Foster, Jr., Penn St. - 1:47.78, 1:47.99
Finished just behind Kitur twice in Greensboro, thanks to two strong
finishing kicks...was eighth at the outdoor championships last year,
and third indoors this season...anchored Penn State's 4X800-meter relay
to a third-place finish at the Penn Relays...has not contested an 800
since the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational at Stanford, where he ran
his seasonal-best time...was the Big 10 Champion for this event indoors.
Casimir Loxsom, Fr., Penn St. - 1:46.74, 1:47.73
Big 10 Freshman of
the Year and 800-meter champion...USTFCCCA Mid-Atlantic Track Athlete
of the Year...was in the same heat with Kitur at the preliminary round,
edging the VMI junior for the win...posted his top time of the year at
Stanford's Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational, winning in a field that
included just two collegiate athletes among the top eight
finishers...had the eighth-fastest 800-meter time in the country for a
high schooler last year, making him a highly touted recruit...was a
disappointing 15th at the NCAA indoor championships.
Andrew Wheating, Sr., Oregon - 1:46.44, Same
Wheating is, very
simply, one of the best athletes to collegiate track and field
today...he was a 2008 Olympian, a spot he earned with a late kick in
the Olympic Trials held in Hayward Field...he was also the 2008 and
2009 NCAA Champion at this distance, as well as being a multiple-time
Pac-10 Champion...he is the only competitor in this field to be on the
watch list for the Bowerman, collegiate track and field's top
award...has also made himself into a contender for the 1,500-meter
crown, and will try to double (earn titles) in both races in his final
NCAA outdoor season...first native of Vermont to run a four-minute
mile...this season, he's run across a roadblock in the form of UVA's
Andrews, who beat him with a late kick at both the NCAA Indoor
Championships and the Penn Relays, when they faced off in the
4X800-meter relay...despite that, Wheating is the pick of both Track
& Field News and letsrun.com to win this event.
Heat Two
Luke Rucks, Jr., Wisconsin - 1:49.84
Able
to advance to this meet as the final qualifier, ranking 24th of the 24
entrants...was 10th at the Big 10 Championships...finished third at the
Drake Relays, in a field that included fellow national qualifier Fred
Samoei of Alabama...was fifth in the Olympic Development Section at the
Mt. Sac Relays, a race won by Charles Jock of Irvine...was 10th at the
Notre Dame Alex Wilson Invitational...member of the Big 10-winning DMR
squad during the indoor season...also was an NCAA provisional qualifier
during the indoor year.
Elijah Greer, Fr., Oregon - 1:48.09, 1:49.51
Greer had a season-best time of 1:48.09 at late April's Oregon Relays, a race at which he finished third (behind teammates Wheating and Thompson)...was also a part of Oregon's runner-up finish in the 4X800-meter relay at the Penn Relays, a race in which Wheating was beaten by a Robby Andrews lean at the finish line...was second to Wheating at the Pac-10 Championships...earned his spot here by winning an extremely tactical heat at the West Region Preliminary meet, posting a time of 1:49.51 to edge Martin of UC Santa Barbara.
Richard Jones, Jr., LSU - 1:46.42, Same
2010
SEC Outdoor Champion, thanks to a 1:46.81 time...that was his best
effort of the year until the East Preliminary Round, when he ran a
1:46.42 for the second-best time...fifth at NCAA Outdoor Championships
last year...fourth at the NCAA Indoor Championships this
season...posted a sub-1:47 time at the LSU Alumni Gold meet...Jones is
a two-time All-American...projected to finish third by Track &
Field News.
Aaron Evans, So., Georgia - 1:46.26, Same
Posted
the top time at the East Preliminary meet, a 1:46.26, which was also
the top time in the country this year...Second to Jones at SEC
Championships in his first year in the conference (transferred from
Memphis)...third at the 2010 Florida Relays...won the 800 title in the
university/open division at the Mount Sac Relays...was seventh at the
indoor SEC Championships...projected to finish in that same spot by
Track & Field News.
Ryan Martin, Jr., UC Santa Barbara - 1:48.35, 1:49.66
Posted his top time of the year at the Oxy Invitational, where he was the #2 collegiate finisher behind Primm of UCLA, who ran a 1:46.63...was second to Jock of Irvine at the Big West Championships...finished just behind Greer in the slowest of the three heats at the West Regional...won the 800-meters at the UC San Diego Triton Invitational, held April 23 and 24...finished just behind Evans of Georgia in the open section of the 800 at the Mt. Sac Relays...was third behind Jock and Primm at the Cal/Nevada Collegiate Championships.
Scott Crawford, Sr., UCLA - 1:47.78, Same
Served notice of his senior year improvement by posting his top time at the West Region prelims, bettering his previous season-best by almost exactly one second...that previous best (1:48.77) had come at the Oxy Invitational, the same race that featured Martin and Primm posting high-level times...was a disappointing seventh at the Pac-10 Championships, but rebounded to make the national meet just 12 days later...anchored UCLA to a fourth-place finish in the DMR at March's Texas Relays...also saw considerable action in the 1,500, including a second-place effort at the Cal/Nevada Collegiate Championships.
Michael Rutt, Jr., Connecticut - 1:46.63, Same
Eclipsed his previous seasonal best by nearly two seconds in the finals at the East Regional Preliminaries, clocking in at 1:46.63...was third between Kitur and his teammate Gagnon at the IC4A Championships, a result that led UConn to the team championship at that meet...also ran on the victorious 4X800-meter relay team at that meet...second to Gagnon at the Big East Championships...fourth at last year's NCAA Indoor Championships, and won the 800-meter Big East title...part of a 4X800-meter relay team last season that set a world best time.
Brian Gagnon, Sr., Connecticut - 1:46.99, Same
The USTFCCCA Northeast Track Athlete of the Year, Gagnon beat Kitur at the IC4A's for his second career IC4A title...advanced to this meet 2010 Big East Champion in the 800...Indoors last season, Gagnon was part of the 4x800-meter relay team that set a world best time in 2009, coming in with a time of 7:20.07...that was was the fastest 4x800-meter time in the world in 2009, the fastest collegiate time since 1993 and was the seventh-fastest run by an American team.
HEAT ONE
Travis Thompson, Jr., Oregon - 1:47.60, Same
Broke
the 1:48 mark for just the second time at the West Prelims, where he
clocked in at 1:47.60...previous personal best was 1:47.94 at the
Oregon Relays, where he finished second behind teammate Wheating...was
fifth at the Pac-10 Championships, a final from which five of the top
eight have qualified for this meet...was third at March's Oregon Pepsi
Invitational...was a part of the NCAA Champion DMR team at this year's
NCAA Indoor Championships.
Cory Primm, Jr., UCLA - 1:46.63, 1:47.03
Held
the top time in the country for the final weeks of the year, a 1:46.63
clocking from the Oxy Invitational...was second in his heat at the West
Prelims, just behind Andrew Wheating...fourth at the Pac-10
Championships...finished second at the Cal/Nevada Collegiate
Championships, just behind Jock from Irvine...was third at the 2009
Pac-10 Championships...before this season, Primm's previous personal
best came at the 2008 Pac-10 Championships...has finished behind
Wheating not only at this year's NCAA regionals, but at three
consecutive conference championships.
Charles Jock, So., UC Irvine - 1:46.67, Same
Ran a 1:46.93 at
the Big West Championships, assuring his place among the contenders in
this race...backed it up at the West Region Preliminary meet with a
1:46.67, the second-fastest time at the qualifying meet...captured the
800-meter Olympic Development crown at the Mount Sac Relays...also won
the title at the Cal/Nevada Collegiate Championship, edging UCLA's Cory
Primm, who posted the top time in the country during this year's
"regular season", and UC Santa Barbara's Ryan Martin, who also
qualified for the national meet.
Blake Irwin, So., Missouri - 1:47.53, Same
Irwin posted his season-best time at the NCAA West Prelims, as he
placed third in his heat behind Wheating and Primm...the sophomore was
the Big 12 Champion at this distance, edging out Baylor's Chris Gowell,
who is also in this field...was the champion at the Arkansas Twilight
meet...won the open section of the 800 at the Missouri Relays...was
third in the Big 12 during the indoor season...also won the 800 at the
adidas classic during the indoor campaign.
Fred Samoei, Jr., Alabama - 1:46.98, Same
Nearly led his heat at the Preliminary meet wire-to-wire, before being
overcome by a kick from Robby Andrews of UVA...Junior college transfer
who was a four-time All-American at the JC level...All-South Region in
cross country this past season, helping Alabama to its best NCAA finish
ever (3rd)...was third at the SEC championships behind Jones and Evans,
in one of the best 800-meter races in the country thus far in
2010...won the 800-meters at the Drake Relays...was second at the 2010 Florida Relays.
Sadiki White, Fr., LSU - 1:47.57, Same
White joins
Andrews, Loxsom and Greer to create an impressive tandem of freshmen in
this race, all of which could score...White broke the 1:48 mark for the
first time at the East Region Prelims, where he ran a 1:47.57...had an
off-day at the SEC Championships, finishing ninth...part of the winning
4X800-meter relay team at the Texas Relays...was second to teammate
Richard Jones at the Miami Hurricane Alumni Invitational...placed
second, again behind Jones, at the SEC Indoor Championships.
Lance Roller, So., Virginia - 1:47.43, Same
Was part of the Kitur/Andrews race at the Liberty Twilight Meet,
finishing third...advanced to the NCAA Championships with a 1:47.43
clocking at the Preliminary meet...ACC outdoor champion, where he beat
teammate Andrews for the title...ran his seed time at the same track
the preliminary round takes place on, as he logged the 1:47.85 clocking
at the North Carolina A&T Invitational, held May 16...was the top
collegiate 800-meter finisher at the Colonial Relays...was second to
Andrews at the NYRR Saturday Night at the Armory III event...was second
(to Andrews) at the ACC Indoor Championships.
Robby Andrews, Fr., Virginia - 1:46.87, Same
This season's NCAA
Indoor Champion...edged Kitur by just .05 at April's
Liberty Twilight Meet...has not contested an 800 since then...anchored
UVA to their Penn Relays title in the 4X800-meter relay, a race where
he outleaned Andrew Wheating of Oregon for the second time in six
weeks...that also occurred at the indoor championships, where Andrews
beat the 2008 Olympian by just .01...used his stunningly strong
finishing kick to win both heats at the East Preliminaries, despite
being in last place after one lap during both races...top time at that
meet was a 1:46.87...was second at the ACC Championships, losing out to
teammate Lance Roller in the first defeat of Andrews' young
career...was the indoor ACC Champion and also won the NYRR Saturday
Night at the Armory III event at this distance...will be one of the
co-favorites, along with Wheating, to win the title in Eugene.