USA Junior Track & Field Championships

(Columbus, OH, June 20-22, 2008) The final day of the USA Junior Track & Field Championships saw a number of outstanding performances.  Ohio’s Jessica Beard won her third 400 meters (52.23) USA Junior Track & Field Championship.  Ohio’s Ryan Fleck and Erik Kynard captured the first two places in the high jump.   California’s Jordan Hasey who won the 3200 meter California’s State Track and Field Championships in 9:52.13 three week earlier sprinted to her second USA Junior Track 1500 meters Championships as she won in 4:18.44 while Ohio’s Stephanie Morgan finished third in 4:21.52.

The Greater Columbus Sports Commission, The Ohio State University and USA Track & Field’s Ohio Association hosted the event in partnership with USA Track & Field, the Indianapolis-based organization that is the governing body for track & field in the United States.  

Check out the USA Junior Track & Field Championships results -http://www.usatf.org/events/2008/USAJuniorOutdoorTFChampionships/schedule.asp 

More on the USA Junior Track & Field Championships - http://www.columbus08.com

and http://www.runohio.com 

RUNOHIO photos at - http://www.runohio.com/show/galleries 

From USATF Press Releases 

Sunday, June 22

Beard and Henning three-peat on final day of 2008 USA Junior Champs  

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Two-time U.S. Junior champion's Jessica Beard and Walter Henning won their third consecutive national title's in the women's 400 meters and men's hammer throw, respectively, and Henning broke the American Junior record Sunday at the 2008 USA Junior Track & Field Championships. 

The Championships take place June 20-22 at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at Ohio State University. The top two finishers in each event will compete in Poland, provided that they have met the qualifying standard. 

In his first and only legal throw of the competition, 2006 World Junior finalist Walter Henning (South Huntington, N.Y.) broke his own American Junior and meet record in winning his consecutive national title with a heave of 73.87 meters/242 feet, 4 inches. His previous record of 73.59m/241-5 was set at this meet last year. 2007 World Youth fourth-place finisher Conor McCullough (Canoga Park, Calif.) was the runner-up with 71.16m/233-5.  

A 2006 World Junior 4x400m gold medalist and the 2007 Pan Am Junior bronze medalist, Beard (Euclid, Ohio) won her third consecutive women's 400m title, crossing the line in 52.23 seconds. Lanie Whittaker (Miami, Fla.) was the runner-up in a personal best 53.25.  

Three-time Louisiana state champion Rachel Laurent (Houma, La.) won the women's pole vault in a meet record 4.22m/13-10. Clearing the meet record on her second attempt, Laurent then passed to 4.31/14-1.25 in an attempt to break the American Junior record and had three good attempts but failed to clear the height. The previous meet record of 4.21m/13-9.75 was set in 2001 by Amy Linnen. 2008 Nike Outdoor National champion Leslie Brost (Watertown, S.D.) had quite the weekend, winning the Nike Outdoor title on Friday at 4.04m/13-3 and the came to Columbus where she finished second in a personal best 4.10m/13-5.25. 

Local favorites Ryan Fleck (Napolean, Ohio) and Erik Kynard (Toledo, Ohio) went 1-2 in the men's high jump. Fleck won his first national title with his clearance of 2.17m/7-1.5 and Kynard was the runner-up at 2.14m/7-0.25. Alitta Boyd (Union City, Calif.) won the women's triple jump on her last jump with a mark of 13.13m/43-1w and Kansas State's Tiara Walpool (Richardson, Texas) was second with 12.99m/42-7.5. 

The 2007 U.S. Junior champion, Jordan Hasay (Arroyo Grande, Calif.) repeated her performance from last year and won the women's 1,500m, outkicking Oregon's Alex Kosinksi (Eugene, Ore.) down the final stretch to win in 4:18.44. Kosinski was second in 4:19.22. With an unofficial 55-second last lap, Evan Jager (Algonquin, Ill.) won the men's 1,500m in 3:47.43. Arizona State's Nectaly Barbosa (Prosser, Wash.) was the runner-up in 3:49.44. 

The 2007 Mississippi state 200 and 400 champion, O'Neal Wilder (Carthage, Miss.) won the men's 400m in 45.62 and Baylor's Marcus Boyd (Fort Worth, Texas) took second in 46.02. Texas A&M's Bryan Miller (College Station, Texas) was third in 46.32. 

BYU's Curtis Carr (Nashville, Ind.) dominated the men's 3,000m steeplechase, winning in 8:55.64. Nebraska's Mikel Thomas (Clovis, Calif.) was second in 8:58.67 and UCLA's Dylan Knight (Riverside, Calif.) was third in 9:03.37. 2008 World Cross Country team member Lauren Chetelat (Davis, Calif.) won the women's 3,000m, running 9:29.45 and Kathleen McCafferty (Summit, N.J.) was second in 9:42.82.  

Oklahoma state champion Geoffrey Tabor (Ardmore, Okla.) won the men's discus throw with a toss of 59.57m/195-5 and Karl Gehrke (Moorpark, Calif.) was the runner-up with 57.94m/190-1. In the women's shot put, Chinwe Okoro stole the show in the competition with her winning throw of 16.16m/53-0.25. 2007 World Youth finalist Becky O'Brien (Cumberland, Maine) was the runner-up with 15.89m/52-1.75 and 2005 World Youth and 2006 World Junior team member Kamorean Hayes was third with 15.62m/51-3. 

The 2007 World Youth 400m hurdles bronze medalist, Ryann Krais won the women's heptathlon with 5,217 points with marks of 14.03 (100h), 1.65m/5-5 (hj), 9.48m/31-1.25 (sp), 25.28 (200), 5.71m/18-8.75 (lj), 32.42m/106-4 (jt) and 2:21.19 (800). Texas state 100m hurdles champion Jessica Flax (Pearland, Texas) was second with 5,108 points.  

The men's and women's 200m races were run into strong headwinds as each race saw winds over 2.0mps. Baylor standout Tiffany Townsend (Killeen, Texas) won the women's 200m in 23.60 and four-time champion at the 2007 USATF National Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships Victoria Jordan (Forth Worth, Texas), who placed second in the women's 100m on Friday, was again the runner-up in 23.73. On the men's side, Friday's runner-up in the 100, Antonio Sales (Chapel Hill, N.C.), won the men's 200m in 20.94 and Curtis Mitchell (Chula Vista, Calif.) took second in 21.03. This year's men's 100m champion, Terrell Wilks (New Haven, Conn.), was third in 21.08. 

The winners of the men's and women's 10,000m RW each were members of Team USA for the 2008 IAAF World Race Walking Cup. 2007 Nike Outdoor Nationals 1 mile RW champion Matthew Forgues (Boothbay, Maine) won the men's 10,000m RW in 49:01.41 and Tyler Sorenson (Lafayette, Calif.) was second in 49:06.17. On the women's side, Miranda Mellvile (Rush, N.Y.) was the winner in 49:01.41 and Hope Christie (Somers, Wisc.) was second in 55:11.66. 

For more information and complete results, visit www.usatf.org.  

ATHLETE QUOTES 

Walter Henning, Men's Hammer Throw winner  

I'm really excited about going to World Juniors. I have a real good seed mark going in there from the beginning of May. Hopefully I can get healed up a little bit and be competitive. 

If I didn't hurt myself I feel like I could have gone a little farther. I've had good practices the last couple of days and have been throwing far in practice back in Baton Rouge. 

I strained my left quad on the first throw today. I had the same injury in January of my senior year, about a year and a half ago. I think it will be all right in a couple of weeks. 

It popped right at the entry of my throw, so I had to struggle through four more turns to get through it. It felt good considering, but on the second throw I tried to see how it would feel and it just felt awkward and went to parts. 

It's not so much about setting a record. The whole goal coming in here was to make the team. So, I just needed two people not to pass me. I was fortunate to come out on top today. 

The U.S. is definitely in a huge drought with the hammer throwers internationally. Hopefully Conor and I will be able to get over there and change that. 

Miranda Melville, women's 10k Race walk winner  

We just stayed relaxed. My teammate pushed me and stayed up with me, so we were just relaxed out there.  

It was pretty hot there at the end. It felt goof and everyone did a great job out there.  

Matthew Forgues, Men's race walk winner  

I got really crappy sleep and worked until midnight the night before I came out. I felt kind of rough.  

I did enough to win. I did what I had to do. 

O'Neil Wilder, men's 400 winner  

I really didn't get out, I feel like I could've gotten out stronger. I'm a good wind runner so I came through strong on the last 100. 

It's a very big honor to represent your country. Not too many people can say that. I'm just thankful. 

Jordan Hasay, women's 1500m winner  

It was a good race. It seemed to go pretty quickly since I've been running longer distances lately. It was a good effort. I wanted to come out and win and defend my title from last year. 

I knew I'd be competing against a good group of runners. I just needed to stay calm and patient and down to the last 100 I pulled it off. 

At worlds I'm a little more competitive in the 1500.  

Antonio Sales, Men's 200 winner  

This is exciting, it's my first time to come here and the goal was to make the team. I didn't have a good outdoor season on the NCAA level, so I wanted to run here and finish my season strong with a win. 

The whole goal was to get on the team and gain experience that will help me compete in the NCAA next season, especially against the caliber of sprinters in the SEC. 

Wilks and I are good friends and we talked about this race a lot. I would prefer to have been on the lane inside of him, but the luck of the draw I was inside of him. So, I knew I had to run the turn hard and then finish strong. 

The wind was something crazy. So to run 20-point in this kind of weather, with a negative wind (2.2), is very impressive. It was rough out there because of the wind. I had to maintain my technique like my coach and I talked about before my race. I trield to pump it and lift home and then I got it. The wind was coming pretty hard in the homestretch, especially the last 30 meters. 

Tiffany Townsend, women's 200m winner  

My whole goal was to just get out and hold on. I still feel like I didn't get out or execute in the curve. Overall it was a win and I'll take that. I wish I would've run faster but a win is a win. 

Geoffrey Tabor, Men's Discus winner  

Coming into this competition I have been throwing the heavier discus pretty far. Looking at the other marks coming in I knew I could have a shot at winning. But there were a lot of other great throwers here who could beat me. 

Throughout the competition I was sitting in fifth or sixth. I was a little tight and I just relaxed on my last throw and got me feet down. I was able to win on my very last throw. It was effortless and that's how it should feel. 

When I was pulling it on my last throw I said 'I won', I knew it. The disc throwers out there will know what I'm talking about. When you get that pull and you get that block it just flies out there. Of course when I saw it, I said 'yeah, that's a good one.' 

Rachel Laurent, Women's Pole Vault winner  

It's a great way to end my senior year. I've been looking forward to this since last year and I've been working really hard to get it. It would have even been better if I could have set a PR and broke the national record. But I'm still really excited and I don't think it has quite hit me yet. 

The first goal was to make the team and I didn't care about anything else except that. The second goal was to get the record. 

I'm looking forward to competing in an international meet and jump with other girls from all over the place. It will be great to get that experience. I hope I can jump 14-1.5 there, that would be awesome. 

Ryan Fleck, Men's High Jump winner  

Last year I qualified for the team, but didn't have a passport. So that was a chip on my shoulder and I wanted to make it this year. 

Coming into this meet I've cleared 7-0 for five straight weeks. Anything under that would have been a disappointment. In studying the field I knew if I cleared 7-0 then I would have a good chance of making it out. So we were setting ourselves up for that height. It came through for me and my coach. 

Today's competition wasn't a good one for me. My form was pretty shaky. I have a summer job and haven't been able to practice that much. So, I got it done, but in a hard way. It's still good, but a bit ugly. 

Chinwe Okoro, women's shot put winner  

My throws went well, I kind of surprised myself. I wasn't expecting to reach mid 50s. I was happy.  

I was second in the discus so I really tried to get out there.  

It's very exciting to represent my country.  

Curtis Carr, Men's Steeplechase winner  

I'm super pleased to run with the field I did and come out on top.  

The whole season I was focused on this meet. My tapering worked, my workouts worked.  

I went when I thought there were 2 laps to go, but there were three.  

I'm really pleased to represent the U.S. 

Ryann Krais, Heptathlon winner  

There were some low points over the two days, especially yesterday. That was not exactly what I would call my A game. With the competition I really had to pick it up today. I thank God for them that they were there and pushing me so hard. 

I'm hoping to pull my act together for the World Juniors and have a result like I did two weeks ago with my 5522 at the Great Southwest meet. My goal was to be at 5534, so hopefully I can get to that range again. 

I'm going to run the 400 hurdles at the Olympic Trials. I know I don't have a chance of making the team, but I'm looking forward to the experience. I hope I can be in that situation again in a few years really going for making the team then. 

Evan Jager, Men's 1500 winner  

With the guys ahead of me I thought I could put a kick on them in the last lap. So I pulled up along side of the leaders on the first curve of the final lap. Then I put my move on with 300 to go. I held on for the last 150 and kicked it in. 

Getting into the end of the season, after I made it to the NCAAs, I was on a pretty big high from that. The next goal I just wanted make sure I got to junior nationals and make the world team. Now I want to run my best at Worlds and see how I compete against guys throughout the world. 

Laurynne Chetelat, Women's 3000 winner  

It felt pretty relaxed. My first goal was to win, the second goal was getting the qualifying time for World Juniors. I achieved both, so I'm happy.

Saturday, June 21 

Anderson sets meet record on Day 2 at 2008 USA Junior Champs  

COLUMBUS, Ohio - A nearly two-hour rain delay did not deter competition as Jeshua Anderson set a meet record in winning the men's 400-meter hurdles Saturday at the 2008 USA Junior Track & Field Championships. 

The Championships take place June 20-22 at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at Ohio State University. The top two finishers in each event will compete in Poland, provided that they have met the qualifying standard. 

In the men's 400m hurdles, 2007 World Youth champion William Wynne (Kennesaw, Ga.) shot out of the blocks and into the lead but was passed on the final straightaway by 2007 Pan Am Junior champion Johnny Dutch (Clayton, N.C.) and eventual winner and 2008 NCAA champion Jeshua Anderson (Mission Hills, Calif.). Anderson crossed the line in 49.28 to break the 24 year-old meet record of 49.45 set in 1984 by Belfred Clark. Dutch was second in 49.74 and Wynne third in 50.42. 

Oregon state champion Elijah Greer (Lake Oswego, Ore.) sat in the pack for the first 600m of the men's 800m final before taking off with 200 to go and out-kicking the field to take the win in 1:47.68, the second fastest time by an American junior so far this year and just of 12-time National champion Mark Everett's 19-year-old meet record of 1:47.55. Minnesota state champion Zachary Mellon (Buffalo, Minn.) took second in 1:48.64 and 2008 MEAC champion Donte Holmes (Hyattsville, Md.) was third in 1:48.66. 

Miami's Takecia Jameson (Upper Marlboro, Md.) dominated the women's 400m hurdles and finished over two seconds ahead of her nearest competitor, winning the race in 58.66. California state champion Kori Carter (Claremont, Fla.) was the runner-up in 1:00.69. 

It was a close finish in the women's 800 as the top three competitors finished within one second of each other. Cydney Ross (St. Louis, Mo.) won the race, crossing the finish line in 2:07.12 just ahead of 2007 National Scholastic Indoor champion Sarah McCurdy (Bay Shore, N.Y.) who was the runner-up in 2:07.75. Camilla Dencer (Northridge, Calif.) took third in 2:07.88. 

Shanay Briscoe (Houston, Texas) won the women's high jump, tying the stadium record with her clearance of 1.80m/5-10.75. 2008 Texas state champion Brigetta Barrett (Duncansville, Texas) was second with 1.77m/5-9.75 and Florida state champion Maya Pressley (Coconut Creek, Fla.) was third at the same height. 

2007 Nike Outdoor National champion Shakia Forbes (Bethel, Va.) edged out 2007 Pan Am Junior champion Jamesha Youngblood (Hercules, Calif.) to win the women's long jump, leaping 6.35m/20-10 to Youngblood's 6.34m/20-9.75. California state runner-up Karynn Dunn took third with 6.25m/20-6.25. 

Princeton's Eric Plummer (Plainfield, N.J.) won the men's shot put with a heave of 19.06m/62-6.5 and was closely followed by 2007 Junior Olympic champion Daniel Block (Hanover Park, Ill.) who was the runner-up with 18.93m/62-1.25.  

2007 Nike Indoor National champion Austin Davis (Durham, N.C.), now at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, won the men's triple jump on his second attempt with a hop, skip and jump of 16.06m/52-8.25. 2007 World Youth champion Christian Taylor (Atlanta, Ga.) took second with his second attempt mark of 16.05m/52-8. 

BYU's Chase Dalton made a second-day charge to win the decathlon with 7,202 points. Over the course of two days, Dalton won the shot put (13.94m/45-9), discus (45.01m/147-8) and javelin (60.31m/197-10). Weston Leutz (Bismarck, N.D.) was second with 7,123 points. 

Also on the track, two-time Florida state champion Teona Rodgers (Tampa, Fla.), now a freshman at Florida State, surged over the final two hurdles to take the win in the women's 100m hurdles in 13.60. Vashti Thomas (San Jose, Calif.), who was fifth at last year's meet, was the runner-up in 13.62 and Ohio State's Letecia Wright (Baltimore, Md.) was third in 13.70.  

A 15-time state champion while in high school, Arkansas' Catherine White (Roanoke, Va.) won the women's 10,000m in 16:32.03 and Princeton's Ashley Higginson took the runner-up position in 16:33.83. Southern Illinois' Daniel Dunbar (O'Fallon, Ill.) won the men's 10,000m in 30:34.09 and Donald Cabral (Glastonbury, Conn.) was the runner-up in 30:50.28. 

For more information and complete results, visit www.usatf.org.  

ATHLETE QUOTES  

Eric Plummer, men's shot put winner  

I was nervous. I've been waiting for this day for a year and a half. You always hope for this day to come. I didn't really realize it until last night. I'm happy its over.  

Last year we missed this championship with a (Princeton) team trip. To get here and make the world team it is unbelievable, it's amazing. 

Shakia Forbes, women's long jump winner  

The wind was pretty decent today. Usually I don't get a good wind, but today was different, it was good.  

I felt good the past two times that I've competed here. This is my last year, so it feels good to compete well.  

It feels great to represent my country. It gives me a great sense of pride. 

Cydney Ross, women's 800m winner  

Besides the weather, it was a really good day. I had started my warmup, so then I took a nap and just waited. I missed getting into my warmup a little, but it worked out.  

I ran my PR so I feel pretty good. It's just really cool to compete at this level, it's just really exciting. 

Jeshua Anderson, Men's 400 hurdles winner  

This race was kind of hard, since I had a couple days off following the NCAA meet. I just wanted to finish in the top two here and make that trip to Poland. 

It's a blessing and I thank God that I made it. I wasn't able to go last year, since I missed my flight. Just to make it this year is a good thing for me. 

I have the Olympic Trials next week, so hopefully I'll do good enough there and try to make the Olympic team. 

I ran this meet to get some more work in. There were a couple of things I messed up on during my NCAA race. I knew I would have great competition out here, so I wanted to fix some mistakes here and at the Olympic Trials. 

Teona Rodgers, womens 100H winner  

In my prelims I felt really good. I've never competed in the rain so I went on the track and was extra careful. I knew I needed to go out and run and do it for Florida State.  

I didn't get a chance to go around in high school and travel so now I get the chance to experience it. Its great. 

Austin Davis, men's TJ winner  

I feel good, I feel really blessed. I feel blessed to make the team. 

Catherine White, Women's 5,000 meters winner  

I have pretty good leg speed, so I kept that in the back of my mind with the pack grouped up with three laps to go. I knew I could sit back and let it go, or give it all I have and leave it out there. So I thought why not win it. 

I'm pretty excited, it should be a fun trip. It's always cool to represent your country, so I'm real excited. 

The delay was a plus in terms of weather conditions. It was a couple of hours later, with the sun already down and the rain cleared everything off. Plus there was no wind. So we were pretty lucky and fortunate to have such good race conditions. 

Shanay Briscoe, women's HJ winner  

I was ready two hours before but with the rain and everything, I just tried to stay up. I was good whenever I came out.  

I didn't jump my best, but I did okay 

I'm excited about making the team. I've never been to Poland so it'll be great.  

Daniel Dunbar, men's 10,000 winner  

Obviously I'm pleased. My coach and I talked before the race and my goal was just to go to Poland.  

Friday, June 21 

Sprints and throws highlight day 1 of 2008 USA Junior Champs 

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Jeneba Tarmoh blazed the track in winning the women's 100m and Karlee McQuillen set a meet record in the women's javelin Friday at the 2008 USA Junior Track & Field Championships. 

The Championships take place June 20-22 at the Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium at Ohio State University. The top two finishers in each event will compete in Poland, provided that they have met the qualifying standard. 

2006 World Junior 4x100m gold medalist, Tarmoh (Stockton, Calif.) was out quickly in the women's 100 meters and finished well to dust a talented field and win in 11.21 seconds. 2007 Junior Olympic four-time champion Victoria Jordan (Dallas, Texas) took second in 11.38 and South Carolina's Shayla Mahan (Detroit, Mich.) was third in 11.39. 

Florida's Terrell Wilks (New Haven, Conn.), an NCAA semi-finalist, blazed to the third fastest junior time in the world this year in winning the men's 100m in a personal best 10.19. South Carolina's Antonio Sales (Chapel Hill, N.C.) was the runner-up in 10.33 and Ryan Bailey (Albany, Ore.) was third in 10.34.  

Two-time Nike Outdoor National champion Karlee McQuillen (Johnstown, Penn.) set a meet record in winning the women's javelin throw with 52.24 meters/171 feet, 5 inches. The previous record of 51.83m/170-0 was set in 2002 by Lindsey Johnson. Roxanne Grizzle (Tonganoxie, Kan.) was the runner-up with 51.89m/170-3 and Olympic Trials provisional qualifier Hannah Carson (Mesa, Ariz.) was third with 49.80m/163-5. 

Booker Nunley (Garner, N.C.) shot out of the blocks and led the men's 110m hurdles wire-to-wire to win in 13.40 while Oscar Spurlock (Dallas, Texas) was second in 13.81. Ronald Brookins (Sacramento, Calif.) of Sacramento State took third also in 13.81.  

Rebecca Wade (Dallas, Texas), an NCAA 10,000m finalist, won the women's steeplechase in 10:29.64. This is Wade's first year as a steeplechaser and her sixth race ever. Elizabeth Graney (Harper Woods, Mich.) of William & Mary finished second in 10:34.11. 

2008 California state discus and shot put champion Anastasia Jelmini (Bakersfield, Calif.) dominated the women's discus throw, winning with her toss of 52.75m/173-1. Local favorite Erin Pendelton (Elmore, Ohio) took the runner-up position over Louisville's Chinwe Okoro (Russell, Ky.), both with a best throw of 50.20m/164-8. In the women's hammer throw, Irene Cooper (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), the fifth-place finisher here last year and the overwhelming favorite heading into competition, won the event with a heave of 56.76m/186-3. Louisville thrower D'Ana McCarty (Indianapolis, Ind.) was the runner-up with 55.65m/182-7. 

Texas state champion Marquise Goodwin (Garland, Texas) won the men's long jump with his best leap of 7.62m/25-0 and Fresno State's Gary Lee (San Diego, Calif.) was the runner-up with the same mark. World Youth triple jump champion and long jump bronze medalist Christian Taylor (Atlanta, Ga.) took third with 7.60m/24-11.25. Goodwin and Taylor will make the trip to Poland as part of the U.S. team. 

2008 SEC and NCAA Mideast Regional champion Joseph Berry (Horsham, Penn.) won the men's pole vault with his clearance of 5.30m/17-4.5 and 2008 NCAA champion Maston Wallace (Houston, Texas) was the runner-up at the same height. Akron's Michael Uhle (Powell, Ohio) was third at 5.00m/16-4.75. 

Reigning SEC champion Luke Laird (Gardener, Kan.) won the men's javelin throw on his last throw with 66.95m/219-8. Kansas state champion Matt Byers (Wichita, Kan.) was the runner-up in 66.51m/218-2 and Alabama state champion Kyle Smith was third with 66.34m/217-8. 

2007 Pan American Junior 1,500m champion Matt Centrowitz (Arnold, Md.) easily won the men's 10,000m in 14:44.67 and Virginia's Ryan Collins (Mansfield, Mass.) was the runner-up in 14:46.50. It was Centrowitz's first 5,000m ever. 

For more information and complete results, please visit www.usatf.org.  

ATHLETE QUOTES 

Jeneba Tarmoh, Women's 100 meters: 

"I'm pretty happy matching my PR in this event. It shows I have some consistency in my racing. When there is consistency, there is also time for a big drop. I'm very happy. 

"It's been a pretty cool season. It was a learning experience. Just like anything new, first-time thing is a learning experience. I enjoyed it. 

"It's exciting making the World team. I've been to a World Juniors before so I have an idea what to expect. 

Terrell Wilks, Men's 100 meters: 

"It was a great day for me. I set a PR and broke the stadium record. The key in the final was being relaxed. 

"I'm excited about the World Junior meet, I've never been out of the country. So, this is going to be a fun experience. 

"I had a good year at Florida. It was my first full year of track. 

Rebecca Wade, Women's Steeplechase: 

"I didn't want to go out too hard. I also didn't necessarily want to take the lead. I figured when the paced slowed down I would move to the front. It went as planned, with a decent pace. I didn't have to lead it front the start, so that was nice. I feel like I had some people pushing me the whole way. It went really well. 

"This was a nice evening for racing. I've been training during the hottest part of the day back in Houston, so it was nice to race in these conditions. 

"We had nationals last weekend and my coach and I decided to give this a try. It's a very nice surprise to win this race. I'm so glad I decided to come. 

Anastasia Jelmini, women's discus winner 

It was a good day. It was kind of hard to adjust to the time change.  

My warm-ups were really good. I had a couple of things to put together for the final, but I did.  

It's my first World team, I didn't go last year. Its very exciting. I've never been overseas. I'll be very proud to represent my country. 

Booker Nunley, men's 110m hurdles winner 

This is the greatest feeling. I've been dreaming about this since last year getting dead last. 

Joseph Berry, men's pole vault winner 

I came in at 5 meters. I debated whether or not to come in at 5 or 5.05. I cleared on the second attempt and then went to 5.10 to get the wold qualifying mark. I missed the first, but cleared it and then went to 5.15. I was very excited after 5.15, I knew I made the World Team. 

The wind was a little sideways at times. 

I've really been working hard on putting down my foot and taking off. 

Its amazing to make the World Team. I've never been to Europe at all. I feel great that I made it. Its going to be a good competition. I'm excited to go over there and compete. 

Matt Centrowitz, men's 5,000m winner 

I knew I had the standard going in so I just relaxed and ran. It was my first 5,000 ever. I was trying to feel as comfortable as possible. I was more of a two-miler in high schooler.  

It's always exciting to make any U.S. team. I'm happy. 

Luke Laird, men's javelin winner  

It was a decent day. I knew if I hit 66-5 I'd make it. I was ranked first coming in. It took me until my last throw so I kind of pulled it out in the end. 

I'm pretty pumped about making the team. I am redshirting this year so my whole season. I was working all season for this and to get to the World Championships is great.