By Jacob Most
July 24, 2014 –
EUGENE, Ore. – Kentucky freshman Nick Anderson finished eighth in the IAAF World Junior Championships 110-Meter Hurdles Final while representing the United States on Thursday at Oregon’s Hayward Field.
Running out of lane eight, Anderson clocked a time of 13.93.
The 2014 World Junior Championships Final was the fastest in history as the race featured the U-20 World Record in addition to the second-fastest time in history. France’s Wilhem Belocian won, breaking Wayne Davis II (USA and Texas A&M – competes for Trinidad and Tobago at senior level) World Junior Record, while the Silver Medalist ran 13.06, which was also .02 seconds faster than Davis’ previous mark.
“I just tried to finish the race because the competition is great, the crowd is amazing and I wanted to represent USA well,” Anderson said. “I was a little disappointed, because of all the work I put in practicing and training. I’m still happy with the result. I made it here, I competed my best and I made the final so I have to take something away.
“I always knew something special would happen in this race. Every round somebody was running incredibly fast so I knew something special was going to happen in the final.”
The 110m hurdles is run over 39-inch (99 cm.) hurdles, which are three inches shorter than those used in NCAA and senior-level competition.
Anderson made it through the preliminary and semifinal rounds respectively each of the past two days with respective times of 13.61 and 13.68. He was dealt a tough lane-assignment as his semifinal time was the slowest of those that qualified for the final.
He is one of five Wildcats to represent his nation in international competition this summer.
Four Wildcats qualified to compete at the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletic Association (NACAC) Under-23 Championships, which will be held in British Columbia, Canada in August by virtue of their performances at Senior National Championships last weekend.
Kendra Harrison (100m hurdles), Sha’Keela Saunders (long jump) and Matt Hillenbrand will compete for the U.S. at the NACAC U-23 Championships, while Raymond Dykstra (javelin) will compete for Canada on home soil.
