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August 13, 2020
Hall, Young earn Athlete of the Week honors
INDIANAPOLIS --
Sara Hall
(Flagstaff, Arizona) ran the sixth-fastest half marathon by an American woman to earn USATF Athlete of the Week, and
Kevin Young
was selected by fans as winner of the 20th USATF Throwback Athlete of the Week award for setting a world record in the men’s 400m hurdles on August 6, 1992. In the absence of regular competition during the Covid-19 pandemic, we are taking a weekly look back at some of the great efforts by American track and field athletes through the years.
Hall won the Row River Half Marathon in Oregon in 68:18, making her the No. 6 all-time U.S. performer. She lowered her personal best, set in finishing ninth at Houston in January, by 40 seconds. Hall represented Team USATF at three World Indoor Championships, finishing eighth in the 3,000m in 2012, and won the 2011 Pan American Games gold in the 3,000m steeplechase.
One of the lasting stories of the ‘92 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Young’s 46.78 in the 400m hurdles still stands as the world record 28 years later. As the story goes, Young had been posting signs that said “46.89” on his wall in the Olympic Village. Using a stride pattern that had never been seen implemented so perfectly, Young moved past Jamaica’s Winthrop Graham after the second hurdle and then went on to destroy the field with a masterful display of technique and speed.
Young’s time clipped almost a quarter-second off the previous world record of 47.02, set by fellow American legend Edwin Moses in 1983. Moses had pipped Young for the bronze at Seoul in 1988, but Young was not to be denied by anyone on a memorable night in Barcelona. Some believe he could have been even quicker had he not raised his arm in celebration several strides before the finish.
Adding a World Championships gold in Stuttgart in ‘93, Young cemented his spot in the pantheon of the sport and was inducted into the National Track & Field Hall of Fame in 2006. Also a talented artist, Young has had his work displayed as part of the Art of the Olympians organization.
Other historical performances of note from the August 3-9 period in USATF history:
August 3 — Willie Williams World record in men’s 100m, 10.1 at Berlin, Germany in 1956
August 4 — Eleanor Montgomery American record in women’s high jump, 1.78m/5-10 at Winnipeg, Canada in 1967
August 5 — Bill Dellinger American record in men’s 1,500m, 3:41.5 at Budapest, Hungary in 1958
August 7 — Charles Austin American record in men’s high jump, 2.40m/7-10.5 at Zurich, Switzerland in 1991
August 8 — RaNae Bair American record in women’s javelin, 53.64m/176-0 at New York City in 1964
August 9 — Valerie Brisco-Hooks American record in women’s 200m, 21.81 at Los Angeles, California in 1984
Other notable performances from the past week included:
Tray Oates cleared a lifetime-best 5.70m/18-8.25 to win the men’s pole vault at the ATL VI meet in Marietta, Georgia
Michael Cherry won the men’s 400m at the Prairie View Back to the Track III meet in 45.43, the second-fastest U.S. time of the season.
Shelby Houlihan won the women’s 800m in a national-leading 2:01.08 at Portland
Now in its 19th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.
2020 Winners: January 9, Miranda Melville; January 16, Paul Perry; January 23, Natosha Rogers; January 30, Tyler Day, February 6, Devin Dixon; February 13, Elle Purrier; February 20, Tori Franklin; February 27, Sandi Morris; March 4, Abdi Abdirahman; March 12 Marielle Hall; March 19, Tim Tollefson; April 2, Louise Ritter; April 9, Francie Larrieu Smith; April 16, Erin Gilreath; April 23, Suzy Powell; April 30, Joe Dial; May 7, Dawn Ellerbe; May 14, Ramona Pagel; May 21, Brian Oldfield; May 28, Jackie Joyner-Kersee; June 4, Jesse Owens; June 11, Mary Decker Slaney; June 18, Leroy Burrell; June 25, Sandra Farmer-Patrick; July 2, Jim Ryun; July 9, Evelyn Ashford; July 16, Wilma Rudolph & Shelby Houlihan; July 23, Pat Daniels & Ryan Crouser; July 30, Michael Norman & Mildred “Babe” Didriksen; August 6, Valarie Allman & Parry O’Brien; August 13, Sara Hall & Kevin Young.
We welcome your nominations!
To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to
communications@usatf.org
.
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