Here are some images that caught my eye on July 2, 2016 in Eugene, Oregon during the United States Olympic Trials, the second day of the meet to choose America’s representatives in Rio.
I was not allowed entry.
The main event on Day Two was the women’s 10k. Molly Huddle took the lead on the first lap and never looked back. Three things I like about her: 1. She’s a fellow New York state product, hailing from Elmira, which I routinely pass through on my way to visit my own hometown of LeRoy, NY. 2) She was born the year I graduated from college in nearby Syracuse. 3) Her name is Molly Huddle, which sounds more like an American Girl doll than America’s most dominant middle distance runner.
My main interest in the race was to root for Laura Thweatt, a Colorado runner I had met at the past two USATF Cross Country Club Championships, where she won the race in my current hometown, Bethlehem, PA in 2014. See my article in Runners World about this race, “Cross Country Romance”. You can see Laura challenging for her place on the US Olympic Team with this move to the front of the pack, on Huddle’s shoulder.
Laura was the top American female in the NYC Marathon last year and was looking to make her first Olympic Team.
Unfortunately for her, she couldn’t maintain that position and drifted back into the field. I was proud to be there to see her compete so strongly though– and hope to see her again this year as she continues her excellence in cross country racing. Note to Sebastian Coe: Let’s hurry up and get cross country as an Olympic event in the 2022 Winter Games!
Oregon is home to many big names in running, including this one.
One thought on “Trials, Tribulations and Track and Field”
Glad to see that Molly is still churning it up on the track. I saw her run in the NYS state high school finals I guess over 10 years ago. She ran out front the whole race and won going away. My niece finished third I think and won her division.
Taking Mulligans 
Glad to see that Molly is still churning it up on the track. I saw her run in the NYS state high school finals I guess over 10 years ago. She ran out front the whole race and won going away. My niece finished third I think and won her division.