EUGENE, Ore. ? Three University of Kentucky track and field members advanced to their event finals Thursday evening at the United States Olympic Trials hosted by the University of Oregon at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The top three competitors in each event are selected to compete in the 2008 Summer Olympic Games to be held in Beijing, China, this August.
Two UK throwers advanced in the men?s discus qualifying. UK assistant coach for throws, Doug Reynolds and rising senior Rashaud Scott both advanced to the event final to be held at 5:50 p.m. ET Sunday. Reynolds threw a distance of 198-3 on his first toss to claim sixth overall. Scott, the reigning NCAA Champion, threw 197-2 to place 10th and advance as a member of the top 12 finalists. Rising senior Chase Madison finished 21st overall with a throw of 183-9. The reigning SEC Champion has competed all season while recovering from off-season foot surgery in 2007.
Earlier in the evening rising sophomore Grant Lindsey advanced to the high jump final after clearing the initial two heights in competition. Lindsey soared over the first bar height of 7-0.50 on his first attempt. On the second height of 7-2.50, the Wildcat cleared on his third attempt. Lindsey was one of only 11 event finalists to clear both heights. The high jump final will take place Saturday at 3:55 p.m. ET.
Rising senior Ashley Muffet was the final Wildcat to compete Thursday, throwing in the women?s shot put qualifying. Muffet finished 17th overall in the event with a toss of 50-2.50 on her final attempt.
Sprinter Jenna Martin begins her Olympic quest north of the border in Canada. Martin will compete in her best event, the 400 meter dash, during the semifinals Friday at 8:30 p.m. ET. Twenty-two competitors will battle Martin for a spot in the 400m dash final set for 4:30 p.m. ET Saturday.
Martin already holds both the indoor and outdoor varsity and freshman records at Kentucky in the women?s 400 meter dash in her first two years as a Wildcat. The Canadian also has an indoor 4x400m relay record in hand set earlier this year under the direction of UK assistant coach for sprints, Erin Tucker. Martin has already had a taste of international competition representing Canada last summer at the 2007 Pan Am Junior Athletics Championships held in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The native of Bridgetown, Nova Scotia, comes into the Canadian trials with the third-best mark in the nation of 51.91 in the 400m dash that she ran under her flag in Brazil.
The top three finishers in each of event at the Olympic Trials event must have made the Olympic ?A? standard over the past 18 months to automatically represent their country in the Games. If the athlete has not achieved that mark at or prior to competition in the trials, the next best finisher in each event that has cleared the standard could be chosen for competition at the Games despite not finishing in the top three positions of their respective event.
The current ?A? standards in events with UK athletes are as follows: men?s high jump (7-5.75), men?s discus (209-2) and the women?s 400m dash (51.45). The aforementioned Wildcats are on the cusp of these automatic marks but none have attained an ?A? standard yet.
One Wildcat that has attained an Olympic standard is sprinter Jose Acevedo who will represent Venezuela at the games after making the cut at the Mideast Regional Championships in May. In addition, recent UK graduate David Freeman has also been selected by his native Puerto Rico for the Games.
Acevedo and Freeman will join other Wildcats with ties to South America, the Caribbean and Central America this weekend at the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Championships July 4-6 in Cali, Colombia. Hurdler Mikel Thomas of Trinidad and Tobago won two medals at the pre-eminent meet in his homeland last week but needs to make an Olympic standard to be considered for the contingent headed to China from the island nation. Luis Luna a 2007 UK graduate who sprinted for Venezuela in the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, will also try to make the “A” standard of 45.95 in the men’s 400m dash this weekend at the CACs.
There are not any dedicated broadcast times for any of the U.S. Olympic Trials? field events on NBC and their cable affiliates like USA nor web streams found at NBCOlympics.com. Although, there may be highlights of field event competition interspersed with running event coverage from Hayward Field in Eugene throughout the weekend. Live U.S. Olympic results can be found at USATF.com or Eugene08.com while Canadian results can be found at Canadiantrials.ca.
True Blue fans can find recaps of each Wildcat performance on UKathletics.com at the end of each evening?s competition on the Pacific Coast and in Canada.
Kentucky Olympic Trials Participation Schedule July 4-6, 2008
Team Canada Women?s 400 Meter Semifinals ? Friday 8:30 p.m. ET
Jenna Martin
Team USA Men?s High Jump Final ? Saturday 3:55 p.m. ET
Grant Lindsey
Team Canada Women?s 400 Meter Finals ? Saturday 4:30 p.m. ET
Jenna Martin
Team USA Men?s Discus Final ? Sunday 5:20 p.m. ET
Doug Reynolds
Rashaud Scott
