ATLANTA — Atlanta provided great conditions for the 2023 USATF Masters 5 Km Championships Saturday, February 25. Masters athletes toed the line under cloudy skies, with temperatures in the mid 50’s and light winds.
Ben Bruce, a late entry after returning from Australia with his WMA Cross Country medals, sprinted to the front when the horn sounded. He led all the way to the tape, breaking the 15:38 course record established last year by 31 seconds with his 15:07. That is his second consecutive win on the Masters National Grand Prix circuit. Luke Mortensen finished second in 16:01 and Aaron Rowe claimed the bronze medal in 16:10. Jennifer Pesce was pressed more closely but was able to pull away to win in 17:49 – breaking the course record by a whopping 26 seconds. Second and third place finishers Amber Morrison and Jill Braley both dipped under the previous course record with their 17:59 and 18:11 clockings.
Those with the top age grade scores are considered the athletes with the best performance for their age. Betty Lindberg, 98, set a world record last year in winning the 95-99 division championship. She had the highest age grading performance by far. Her 58:47 time earned a score of 100.93%. Almost as impressive was the 21:41 net time turned in by Kathy Martin, 74, at 98.73%. Michelle Rohl’s 18:57 at age 57 closed out the women’s podium at 94.54%. John Glidewell, 66, posted a 17:31 to net the highest score in the men’s race at 95.90%. He was followed by Steve Schmidt, 62, whose 17:39 earned a 91.98%, edging his 61-year-old rival, Rick Lee, by less than a tenth of a percentage point. Lee’s 17:31 earned a 91.91%.
40-44 Jennifer Pesce 17:49, 45-49 Sara Girotto 18:54, 50-54 Abby Dean 19:22, 55-59 Fiona Bayly 18:40, 60-64 Kristine Clark 19:48, 65-69 Patrice Combs 22:32, 70-74 Kathryn Martin21:44, 75-79 Myrna Barnett 36:46, 85-89 Joyce Hodges-Hite 48:51, 95-99 Betty Lindberg 59:04.
40-44 Ben Bruce 15:07, 45-49 Brendan Prindiville 16:48, 50-54 Mark Andrews 16:30, 55-59 Christian Cushing-Murray 17:05, 60-64 Rick Lee 17:32, 65-69 John Glidewell 17:32, 70-74 Robert Qualls 20:09, 75-79 Dave Glass 22:54, 80-84 Doug Goodhue 26:36, 85-89 Adrian Craven 38:50.
Team championships are determined by adding up the times of the first three finishers on each team, low score wins. The Atlanta Track Club led the way with four team championships, Women’s 70 and up, Men’s 50+, M60+ and M80+. The closest contest of the day was M40+, where the Athens Road Runners, out of Athens, GA, edged the Atlanta Track Club by an average of just two seconds per runner. Other titles were taken by the Garden State Track Club Women’s 40 and up; the Greater Philadelphia Track ClubW50+; Athletics Boulder W60+; Boulder Road Runners M70+. Submitted By Paul Carlin