World Junior Championships Day Four Morning Session

July 11, 2008 from USATF press release (Bydgoszcz, Poland) Qualifying races on the fourth morning of the World Junior Championships came in quick and steady order for the Americans on Friday. This is the final morning session of these championships. Hurdlers Ronald Brookins of Sacramento State and Booker Nunley (Garner, NC) avoided any problems with the numerous false starts that occurred in the opening round of the 110m hurdles. Nunley had the second fastest time of the day with a 13.68 heat winner. Brookins was runner-up in his heat with a 13.98 that ranked equal 16th. Both advanced to the semifinal.

Jamaica's Warren Weir led qualifying with a 13.65 and current world junior leader Konstantin Shabanov of Russia posted the third best mark at 13.73. One of the two false start casualties included 13.77 hurdler Frederic Zizi of France.

The women's 1,500 qualifying had Jordan Hasay (Arroyo Grande, CA) and Oregon's Alexandra Kosinski moving on to the final. Kosinski won her heat in a personal best of 4:19.14 as she broke away from the pack on the final lap with Great Britain's Stephanie Twell. The pair enjoyed a comfortable pace to the finish line were Kosinski edged ahead of Twell, covering the final 300 in 48.9 seconds.

Hasay found herself in a slightly quicker race that also involved more bumping at various stages of the race. Stationed with a couple of other runners in third place through the first couple of laps, Hasay was in fourth place as the leaders began to kick with 300 meters remaining.

The front trio of runners held a 5 to 8 meter gap on Hasay as they reached the homestretch. Ethiopia's Asmerawork Bekele won the race in 4:17.05. Hasay was passed by Kenyan Stacy Ndiwa (4:20.68) in the final 10 meters of the race and placed fifth in 4:20.82, which was the second best of the three time qualifiers.

Field event qualifying found Anna Jelmini (Bakersfield, CA) and Erin Pendleton (Lindsey, OH) through to the finals of the discus, while Seton Hall's Shakia Forbes and Oregon's Jamesha Youngblood didn't have as much luck in the long jump.

Jelmini placed fourth in her flight and 10th overall with a mark of 164-5 (50.13) while Pendleton finished seventh in her flight and 11th overall among the 12 making final with a 164-1 (50.01).

Forbes reached a mark of 19-7 (5.97) while Youngblood went 19-1 (5.82) as they placed 14th and 19th overall.

The heptathlon started early this morning and two events were completed in the morning session with Ryann Krais (Eagleville, Pa.) scoring 1,896 points off a 13.73 hurdle race and clearing 5-7.75 (1.72) in the high jump. Kentucky's Erin Sampley ran a 13.88 for 995 points in the hurdles, but did not clear a height in the high jump.

QUOTES

Ronald Brookins, 110m Hurdles
"It was a little nerve-racking with the false starts. I was praying it wasn't me they were going to call it on since I flinched at the start, but the guy next to me went out of the blocks. I don't know why they were so anxious in the first round.

"I thought I had a good start, but then we ran into a big headwind. So after the first hurdle it felt like I slowed down. But once I got over one and felt I was in the lead I cruised it through without really pushing too much.

"I'm hoping to medal. I need to push myself and get my PR down. That's what I'm really hoping for, to get a PR.

"It's a lot different dropping back down in hurdle height. You have to be quicker over the top of these because they're shorter. It's easier to get over. On 42's it's a bit higher so you have to use more technique."

Booker Nunley, 110 hurdles
"It was an okay race, but I felt kind of rusty. My start felt really good, though. I shut it down at the end to conserve some energy.

"I came here to win. That's what I plan on trying to do.

"The hurdle height doesn't really matter to me. I consider myself one of the top technical hurdlers. My coaches always said if you can hurdle technically, it shouldn't really be a problem. You might need a few weeks to get back into that mode, after that it's okay."

Anna Jelmini, Discus
"It was exciting to compete today. I was really pumped up. I think my throw was pretty decent and it should get me into the finals."

Alexandra Kosinski, 1500 meters
"I didn't feel like I was pushing it, so it was a good race. I've hit 4:19 five times now. I felt comfortable the whole time. My coach told me if I'm there with the last 300 just kick it in, don't slow down at the end because we have two days to recover.

"I was never boxed in during the race and that's a problem I always have. I'm not good at running in crowds.

"From high school to college was a huge transition for me. I was having a lot of trouble running in groups and the year of college really helped me to adjust. I really struggled at the end of my collegiate season. When people pulled away from I wasn't able to respond.

"I was so antsy to race. But it was good since I was able to adjust to the time change. Plus I'm part Polish on my dad's side of the family. I've taken a ton of pictures and have enjoyed my time over here."

Jordan Hasay, 1500 meters
"I didn't expect it to be this fast today, so I just wanted to go out and do my best. I felt horrible though. Maybe I'm still a little bit jet-lagged. But I'm going to come back and do whatever I can to do well in the finals.

"It was a really aggressive race. There were some girls who were giving some good elbows. That's just the way it goes. I'm just happy that I can qualify. I didn't go with the top three at the end of the race, because I knew I was going to get a time qualifier. I wanted to save as much as I could.

"I'm ready to get going, and I thought I would feel better than I did today. I don't race well in the morning, either. I'm still a bit on California time, so it's like 2 in the morning there. So, 4:20 at 2 in the morning is pretty good."

Erin Pendleton, Discus
"I was a little nervous at first. I had to tell myself to calm down and just relax. So then I got it in my head to go throw and have fun.

"Each round I was crossing my fingers and hoping I would make the finals. It's a really nice ring to throw in and it's a great competition area. I love the stadium and the crowd has been very enthusiastic.

"I'm very happy that Anna and I both made the finals."