The Olympics are 26 days away, and from now until then I will from time to time highlight some American athletes who will be going for the gold.
First up is Nick Symmonds. Symmonds won the 800m at the recent Olympic Trials in Eugene, OR in dramatic fashion. With 300m to go, Symmonds came from the back of the pack to win the trials and punch his ticket to Beijing!
Symmonds attended Willamette University in Oregon, a Division III school. There he excelled and really improved as a runner. With Frank Gagliano as his coach, Symmonds has become one of the top 800m runners in the world.
NCAA Division III Champion 800m - 2003-2006
NCAA Division III Champion 1500m - 2003, 2005, 2006
2006 USA Outdoor Runnerup at 800m
2007 Boston Indoor Games Champion at 800m
2007 USA Indoor Champion at 800m
2007 Osaka Grand Prix Champion at 800m
2007 Pre Classic Champion at 800m
2007 USA Outdoor Runner up at 800m
2007 World Championships Semi-Finalist at 800m
2008 USA Indoor Runnerup at 800m
2008 World Championships Finalist (6th) at 800m
So now Symmonds prepares for the Olympics. His has to be considered a favorite, and will be leading an American team consisting of Oregon runners. Steve Prefontaine would be proud!
Best of luck to Nick and the rest of the 800m crew - Andrew Wheating and Christian Smith!
Charlie
No comments:
Post a Comment