Two discus throwers are aiming for American records Saturday at the Wine Country Games in Santa Rosa, California, according to a Petaluma paper. Cameron Bolles is going for the M50 AR of 62.74 (205-10) by a gent named Al Oerter in 1989, and Ralph Fruguglietti is shooting for the M60 AR of 59.52 (195-3) by Joe Keshmiri in 1998. The WRs are 68.40 (224-5) by M50 Klaus Weiffenbach and 66.36 (217-8) by M60 Klaus Liedtke. Ten years ago, Ralph won at Riccione worlds and came back with a golden yarn that I first reported as a “ghost story.”
Me didn’t jump this year at Caltech (saving myself for my all-out 100-meter jog), but I got some nice 400mm shots Saturday of some superstars, including John Dobroth, Jim Goodreau, Otis Burrell, Charlie Rader, Annelies Steekelenburg, Kathy Bergen and comebacking Jason Meisler (a former 7-2 guy at UCLA, now a lawyer). Charlie, a one-time M45 record-holder, turns 70 next year. He straddled 1.45 (4-9). At 72, Jim flopped 1.40 (4-7). And at 76, retired Judge John straddled 1.30 (4-3 1/4). The oldest jumper was Pasadena’s own Don Leis, who cleared 0.95 (3-1 1/4). Also making an appearance was a bearded Nolan Shaheed, also of Pasadena, who at 68 ran the 800 in 2:31.54 and the 1500 in 5:14.19. Meet results are here. Avert your eyes from the M60 50 and 100. Selected photos — raw, uncropped images — can be found here. No charge, but please credit Ken Stone / masterstrack.com.
Former world-class jumper Otis Burrell, now 73, showed great form at Caltech.
Clint in 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Americas Masters Games in Vancouver, British Columbia. Photo by Rob Jerome
The Hartford Courant has a crackerjack story on M40 distancer Clint Santoro, who won the 5K (in 17:40.91) and steeple at the Auckland World Masters Games. He also competed at the Americas Masters Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, in September. “The steeplechase was special,” the Arizona resident said. “That was the hardest fought victory I ever had. … It’s the one event you can run and feel like after seven laps, you ran a marathon.” Going into the fourth lap, he was 10 seconds back, in fourth place. “The first three laps, there was traffic — it felt like there were 20 guys in the race, arms are flying all around, and the other guys pulled away. I finally broke free of the crowd.” The story says he made up time. He passed the second and third place runners over a hurdle and was within striking distance of the leader by the last lap. “He stepped on the hurdle and dropped off the back. He stepped on it, and I flew over it and I never looked back. I ran like there was a hive of white-faced hornets chasing me.” Clint won in 11:09.09. Loved the story.
Jenn was supersick at Rio, but she’s recovering well for London worlds.
Olympic champ Jenn Suhr turned 35 in February, and I didn’t get the memo. But a story in her local Buffalo News reminded meto check her 2017 outdoor best. And yowza! Jenn jumped 4.83 meters (15-10) in Austin, Texas, on April 15, shattering Stacy Dragila’s listed age-group WR of 4.55 (14-11) from 2009. Sorry for not noticing, Jenn! One hopes USATF will take note and make sure her season best gets submitted for W35 record. Her hubby and coach Rick Suhr says: “Isinbayeva never jumped over 4.90 after age 30. No one else has jumped 4.90, which is basically 16 feet, at 30. Jenn is 35, and I think she’s done it more times after the age of 30. So to me, it’s more impressive. It shows the consistency and ability to be there every year. Just being able to deal with the mental part of the game is difficult.”
Philo Saunders leads 1500 pack at 2016 Adelaide Track Classic. Photo via Getty Images
Philo Saunders of Australia has announced a big goal. How big? He wants to take down Bernard Lagat’s M40 world record in the 1500. So how does a guy with an all-time PR of 3:41.22 in 2005 knock off Kip’s 3:41.87? Beats me. But according to a post on runnerstribe.com, Philo is training in Flagstaff for a June WR attempt. “Philo plies his trade as a senior physiologist at the Australian Institute of Sportand as a coach,” the story says. “With his coaching leading him to team positions at Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth Games and both IAAF and IPC World Championships. …. Regardless of performances, times and records, Philo’s longevity and enthusiasm for the sport stands out among athletes. His constant love of running appears in his motivation. ‘I keep running because I love it… The way it makes you feel. The satisfaction of doing a session better than anything you’ve done before. The fitness you feel carries you through life. The energy it gives you. And just bettering your best. Doing something you might not have thought possible.’” Well, good on you, Philo. Would love to see you come within 10 seconds of the WR.
For the fifth year in a row, the German multi-event festival in the Berlin suburb of Stendal has produced a masters world record. This time it’s an M55 deca WR for Guatemalan Olympian Angel Estuardo Diaz Granillo, who scored 8031 points, reports Stendaler Hanse Cup maven Dieter Massin and hometown media. ( The listed WR is American Bill Murray’s 7773 from 2009 Lahti worlds. But the listed European record is 8487 by Germany’s Rolf Geese in 1999.) Dieter, the former Eurovets president, and German blogger Axel Hermanns are upset with WMA record czar Sandy Pashkin. (Results will be here eventually.)
M70 Rolf Geese (left) congratulated new WR man Angel Diaz at Stendal meet.
Olympic champ and former world record holder Sebastian Newbold Coe ran a road mile in 6 minutes flat Sunday at age 60. Not bad. But the real shocker was — again — Anthony Whiteman. Fresh off his series of M45 WRs in the 800, he put on his roadie shoes and clocked 4:08 in his section (but 4:07.4 by one report). Elite results show Tony was only 4 seconds behind race-winner Nick Goolab, 27. Within hours of finishing the Westminster Mile in front of Buckingham Palace, Tony was tweeting and Facebooking a question: Is there an official Road Mile M45 World Best time? Well, no. (Otherwise, downhill races would host all the WRs.) But the best response was by Neill W. Clark: “Given your times, Anthony, I think the record is whatever the hell you feel like running for a mile on an open road.” The listed M45 track record is Tony Young’s 4:16.09 from 2008. (John Trautmann has an indoor time of 4:12.33, and Young has an oversized indoor track time of 4:13.25). It’s only a matter of time before Whiteman goes sub-4:10 on the track.
Thanks to @AthleticsWeekly my official time was 4.07.4 for 8th place!@WestminsterMile chuffed with that!💪
— anthony whiteman (@Whitemansub4_40) May 28, 2017
Pretty sure I cracked the top 10 in the Elite @WestminsterMile 4.08 shows more progress this year. No official records 4 masters road miles.
— anthony whiteman (@Whitemansub4_40) May 28, 2017
Two months ago, Lenore Lambert of New South Wales (in Auzzieland) ran a W45 national record in the 400 hurdles, clocking 63.85 at her masters nationals. Saturday in Cairns, Queensland, she’s shooting for the listed WR of 62.85 by Germany’s Barbara Gähling in 2010. So says this article in the Cairns Post. Lenore will compete at Barlow Park in the Great Barrier Reef Masters Games. “It is kind of the only box left to tick, this world record,” Lambert told the paper. “There is only one thing left to do — can I do it? I do not want to die having not tried it.” Attagirl! Her best 400 flat this year is 59.73, so she has the speed endurance. Kissy points to the first person to post her mark.
Missouri’s Myrle Mensey with her prize for upping her 3-year-old W65 hammer AR.
Organizers of last Saturday’s Sierra Gold masters meet northeast of Sacramento dished out $2,500 to four record-setters, as the local paper reported. They included M65 Doug Torbert in the shot (getting credit for a WR even though he has a better mark earlier this year). He took home a grand. American record setters collecting $500 each were W65 Kathy Martin in the mile (just missing the WR), W65 Myrle Mensey in the hammer and W60 Carol Finsrud in the discus. “It was pretty exciting to win the $1,000,” Doug writes. “Their criteria for the award was to celebrate the achievement of any athlete who broke the existing (listed) world or American record. It definitely made it special to be able to share the moment with other athletes and those in attendance.” He says he got the check almost immediately, but “I haven’t really thought about how I’ll spend it — I think I’ll save it so I go can go back to next year’s meet. Evening sky, surrounded by tall pines — it definitely was a beautiful setting for a track meet.”
Tracy also helps run 50K race walks near his Santee home.
M60 marathon business legend Tracy Sundlun was laid off by San Diego-based Competitor Group Inc. last July — days before leaving for Rio and his gig as U.S. men’s track team manager. I wrote about his firing. Now he shares a scarier story — that his old employer, CGI, which he built into an international powerhouse, has denied him severance pay and won’t reimburse all his business expenses. They won’t even return all his personal office items. Why? Tracy says CGI blames my November 2016 Times of San Diego story as containing “disparaging” remarks in violation of his separation agreement. Tracy tells me that ain’t so. (So I’m not feeling guilty.) But Tracy is taking on his old company by sharing a bunch of documents on his case.See my latest story. So that explains why I’ve been quiet past couple days. (I have a lot of info on records set and payments made at Sierra Gold meet. Stay tuned.)
Ken has followed track as an athlete, writer and web-master since the late 1960s, and saw most sessions of track and field at the 1984 Los Angeles and 1996 Atlanta Olympics. He also attended the 1988, 1992, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 Trials, the last three as a blogger and Patch correspondent. [More...]
