USA Track & Field Olympic Trials Results: Day 4
12 more spots on the USA track & field Olympic were secured Monday at Heyward Field.
Here’s a look at the results and Rio qualifiers:
Men’s Pole Vault
Seven finalists cleared the 5.60-meter (18’4 1/2″) mark, but the next height (5.65 meters) quickly separated the field, as Logan Cunningham, Mark Hollis, Dylan Bell and Jacob Blankenship all missed on each of their three attempts.
However, that didn’t mark the end for Cunningham. Sam Kendricks and Cale Simmons were the only ones to clear 5.65 meters (18’6 1/2″), while Tray Oates passed on that height and missed at 5.70, opening the door for Cunningham.
Kendricks, a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, went on to clear 5.91 meters (19’4 3/4″) not only to take first, but to also set a new meet record:
After clearing 5.92 meters in Beijing in May, Kendricks now owns the second- and third-best marks in the world this year and will enter Rio as the United States’ best chance at winning the first Olympic pole vault medal since 2004.
Going to Rio: Sam Kendricks, Cale Simmons, Logan Cunningham
Men’s Javelin Throw
Curtis Thompson broke the meet record with a throw of 82.88 meters (271’11”), only for Cyrus Hostetler to immediately one-up him with a throw of 83.24 meters (273’1″):
That said, javelin has never been one of the United States’ strong sports. They haven’t won an Olympic medal in the event since 1972, and Hostetler’s meet-record-breaking throw was just the 25th best in the world this year.
Nevertheless, becoming an Olympian is still undoubtedly special, and Hostetler will be joined by Sam Crouser and Sean Furey, who finished fourth and 11th but are the only other two with the 83.0-meter qualifying standard.
Going to Rio: Cyrus Hostetler, Sam Crouser, Sean Furey
Women’s 800m
Kate Grace had just the sixth-best time during semifinals but saved her best for the right moment, as she turned in a PR of 1:59.10 to take home the women’s half-mile race.
Here are the complete results:
Kate Grace: 1:59.10
Ajee Wilson: 1:59.51
Chrishuna Williams: 1:59.59
Molly Ludlow: 1:59.63
Raevyn Rogers: 2:00.59
Phoebe Wright: 2:02.55
Brenda Martinez: 2:06.63
Alysia Montano: 3:06.77 (injury)
Going to Rio: Kate Grace, Ajee Wilson, Chrishuna Williams
Men’s 800m
In similar fashion to the women’s winner, Clayton Murphy had the sixth-best time in the semis only to set a PR (1:44.76) en route to clinching a spot in Rio.
The 21-year-old Murphy was followed by Boris Berian and Charles Jock. Here are the final times:
Clayton Murphy: 1:44.76
Boris Berian: 1:44.92
Charles Jock: 1:45.48
Craig Engels: 1:46.03
Erik Sowinski: 1:46.44
Isaiah Harris: 1:46.47
Harun Abda: 1:47.05
Brandon Johnson: 1:47.41
Casimir Loxsom: 1:49.18
Going to Rio: Clayton Murphy, Boris Berian, Charles Jock
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