Jesse Owens Classic Celebrates 22nd Edition with Top Flight Field – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/4/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
May 4, 2007
Meet Schedule
College/Open Heat Sheet
High School Heat Sheet
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Athletes from all levels will converge in Columbus for the Jesse Owens Track Classic, which enters its 22nd year Saturday. Like the “J.O. Classics” of the past, the 2007 edition will serve as a stage for scholastic, collegiate and post-collegiate athletes to perform at their highest levels in Jesse Owens Memorial Stadium.
A field of more than 70 Ohio high school boy’s and girl’s squads will give way to top-notch collegiate and professional fields in the afternoon Saturday. The high school teams will get action underway at 10 a.m., and post-collegiate competition will get going at 3:30 p.m.
In its history, the Jesse Owens Track Classic has served as a top venue for many future and former Olympians. Current and past record holders for the Jesse Owens Track Classic include Olympic medalists John Drummond, Michelle Finn, Allen Johnson, Edwin Moses, Dwight Stones and former Buckeyes Diane Dixon, Joe Greene and Butch Reynolds. Others of Olympic fame include Judi Brown, Roger Kingdom, Carl Lewis, Louise Ritter and Calvin Smith, as well as past OSU Olympians Mark Croghan and Stephanie Hightower.
Whether at the high school, collegiate or professional levels, all competitors in each running of the Jesse Owens Classic experience the true sense of the spirit and virtue of the four-time gold medal-winning hero.
“The Jesse Owens Classic is named for the finest Olympian of all-time,” Robert Gary, Ohio State men’s head coach and Owens meet director, said. “Matched with the great facility we have at Ohio State, the Classic has been and will continue to be one of the premier events in the country for years to come.
“I am very excited about the future of the Jesse Owens Classic. For the 2008 edition, we will actively invite the very best Ohio High schools; previewing the state meet in a very professionally run meet and allowing high schoolers to watch the best college and professionals compete should be a great draw. May 2-3, 2008 is also two weeks before major conferences and we already have commitments from some great track and field programs.”
This year, the Jesse Owens Classic features several headline athletes and events:
Men’s 100- and 200-meter dash preview (Approx. 10:40 a.m.): The 100m dash displays five entries that carry sub-10.3 times. Former USA Track and Field sprinter Mickey Grimes enters with a seed time of 9.99. He was part of the U.S. 4×100-meter relay team that won gold at the 2001 World Championships. Grimes also lettered as a defensive back at Abilene Christian University. Kyle Farmer, a former SEC champion sprinter at Florida, also is entered in the 100m. He was part of the Gators’ 2004 NCAA Outdoor Champion 4x100m team. Former Buckeye Todd Dutch also contributes to the strong field with his 10.29 seed time. All three sprinters also are entered in the 200m. They’ll be joined by two-time Big Ten champion Tony Cole. He was the league’s indoor 200m champion in 2007 and was named 2005 Freshman of the Year by the conference coaches after winning the indoor 60m that season.
Women’s 100- and 200-meter dash previews (approx. 10:30 a.m.): Nickesha Anderson, a multiple NAIA All-American as a sprinter at Missouri Baptist, owns an 11.29 seed mark in 100m and 23.45 in the 200m. Consuella Moore, a former Big Ten champ at Penn State, is scheduled to run in the 100m and 200m events. She was a four-time NCAA All-American in the 200m and earned a spot on the U.S. 4x100m pool for the 2004 Olympics in Athens. Her seed times of 11.30 in the 100m and 22.7 in the 200m. The 2007 Jesse Owens meet will serve as the only chance to see Ohio State’s multiple Big Ten champion sprinter Jenna Harris. A redshirt for the 2007 outdoor season, Harris is entered in both events. She won the 2005 conference title in 100m and claimed the 60m indoor championship in 2007.
Men’s 400-meter dash preview (4:45 p.m.): Former Buckeye Rich Jones represented the Columbus Elite Track Club. Jones teamed with former Buckeye football and track standouts Butler By’not’e and Robert Smith to win back-to-back Big Ten 4x400m relay titles in 1992 and ’93. Tyrone Ross of the New York Elite Track Club is the top seed at 45.93. Antwon Dussett, a nationally ranked Master’s sprinter (30 years or older), is seeded third at 47.50. He was ranked third in the U.S. Master’s 100- and 400-meter dashes in 2006. Matt Comer, an All-Big Ten performer in the 400-meter hurdles in 2006, represents Ohio State.
Men’s 400-meter hurdle preview (5 p.m.): Features a young, up-and-coming standout for Ohio State in Elon Simms. He finished third at the 2006 outdoor Big Ten championships and has a regional qualifying time of 51.74, set at the All-Ohio Championships two weeks ago. That performance earned Simms Big Ten athlete of the week honors.
Women’s 400-meter dash preview (4:45 p.m.): Monique Hennigan, who helped the U.S. to gold medals in the 4×400-meter relay in the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games, is the top seed at 52-flat. Harris follows with a mark of 52.78. Two weeks after winning the 60m at the Big Ten meet, Harris gained her first All-America honor in the 400m at the NCAA indoor meet. Moore also is slated to run in the 400m.
Men’s mile preview (7:15 p.m.): The mile invitational features an intriguing combination of Ohio State ties and top-level national runners. Rob Myers, a former All-American at Ohio State, is competing for Reebok. He holds the Jesse Owens meet mile record (3:59.53) and has a personal-best of 3:52.86. Myers narrowly missed a spot on the 2004 U.S. Olympic team. He finished third in U.S. mile trials, a shade off the Olympic qualifier. Thomas Morgan is the top mile seed at 3:58.24. He’ll be running with Zap Fitness. He recently was named USA Track and Field Athlete of the Week Jan. 2 after winning the Emerald Nuts Midnight Run on New Year’s Eve. Jeff See is considered Ohio State’s next great miler after claiming the 2005 Nike High School Outdoor Mile National Championship in his senior campaign (2005) at Middletown (Ohio). The 2007 Big Ten indoor mile champ is redshirting the outdoor season and will compete unattached to Ohio State with a 4:00.52 seed time.
Men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase preview (7:40 p.m.): Mircea Bogden, the 2005 NCAA Steeplechase Champion from UTEP, is seeded first at 8:23.41. Former Buckeye All-American Brian Olinger, who finished his Ohio State career last season, comes in with a seed mark of 8:30. Now running for Reebok, Olinger became just the second American collegiate athlete to break the 8:20 mark (8:19.56) in the 3,000-meter steeplechase July 28, 2005 in Belgium. Solomon Kandie, a six-time Conference USA champion at Tulane, is seeded third at 8:32.10. He finished third in the NCAA steeple in 2002.
Women’s 3,000-meter run preview (6:50 p.m.): Lindsi Benedict, formerly Lyndsi Gay, is the 2006 Run Ohio Magazine Runner of the Year. She completed her Ohio State career in 2004 and has a 9:50 seed time to front the steeple field. She now is a personal trainer and resides in New Albany, Ohio.
Women’s 100-meter hurdle preview (4:15 p.m.): Christine Spence, a volunteer coach for Ohio State, is the top seed at 13.44. The high jump record holder in the Mountain West Conference, Spence was a four-time All-American at UNLV and narrowly missed the finals of the 100m hurdles at the 2005 U.S. Championships.
Men’s and Women’s high jump preview (3:30 p.m.): Spence also is entered in the high jump and again is the top seed at 5-11 1/4. Her main competition could be Buckeye Jessica Stringer, who has won the three of the last four Big Ten high jump titles. For the men, Ohio State’s Marios Iacovou, who hails from Nicosia, Cyprus, is a contender to defend his 2006 Jesse Owens high jump championship.
Men’s and women’s long jump and triple jump (5:30 p.m.): Buckeyes Brandon Cathcart and Veronica Vance are ranked near the top of the Big Ten’s triple jump standings. Both jumpers have qualified for the NCAA Mideast Regional. Vance is the top seed at 41-1 1/2 and Cathcart is the No. 2 at 50-6 3/4. Vance also is the top seed in the long jump at 19-2 1/4. Donald Washington, a defensive back on the Ohio State football team, is scheduled to compete in the men’s long jump as well.
Men’s and women’s discus preview (3:30 p.m.): The men’s discus may be a one-man competition for the top spot. Johnson, who will compete unattached, was a Top 8 finisher in the discus at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Trials. He is a disciple of former American record holder Jud Logan, Ashland’s head coach. Former Big Ten champ Melissa Bickett of Michigan is the frontrunner for the women. She boasts a top mark of 173-10 1/2 this season.
Men’s hammer preview (6 p.m.): 2006 USA Outdoor Champion A.G. Krueger is the feature thrower Saturday. He holds the Jesse Owens Meet record at 252-7. Kibwe Johnson also will vie for the hammer title. He was the 2006 U.S. Indoor Weight Throw runner up. His top mark this season is 241-3. Lenny Jatsek, the two-time defending Big Ten weight champion, and Dave Ebersole represent Ohio State. Both have qualified for the NCAA regional meet.
Women’s hammer preview (6 p.m.): Former Ohio State All-American and Keturah Lofton highlights the women’s end of the hammer. She set the Ohio State record at the Owens meet last season at 209-1. Current Buckeye Veronica Jatsek is right behind her former teammate at 201-9 1/4.
Men’s and women’s shot put preview (3:30 p.m.): Former SEC champion Andy Fryman leads all candidates for the shot title. The former Kentucky Wildcat has a top throw this season exceeding the 63-foot mark. Veronica Jatsek is a top contender for the women’s shot as well.
