Posted: June 10, 2007

Athletics: News & Notes, Volume 8, Number 52

Nike Prefontaine Classic 100m, 400m fields announced EUGENE, Ore. - Sanya Richards, Allyson Felix, Bershawn Jackson, Lauryn Williams, Darold Williamson, Torri Edwards and Leonard Scott are just a few of the big names who will compete in the men's and women's 100 and 400 meters Sunday at the 2007 Nike Prefontaine Classic at historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore. The fourth event of USA Track & Field's 2007 Outdoor Visa Championship Series, the Nike Prefontaine Classic will be televised live on NBC, Sunday, June 10, from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. Eastern Time. A star-studded field will enter the women's 100 meters, headlined by reigning world sprint champions Lauryn Williams and Allyson Felix. Williams won the 100m at the 2005 World Outdoor Championships, and Felix, who ended the 2006 season ranked #1 in the world at 200 meters for the second year in a row, won that event at the 2005 Worlds in Helsinki. Also keep an eye on 2003 world champion Torri Edwards, who won here last year (11.08 seconds) and owns the fastest time in the world so far this season of 10.90 seconds. Three of the top-10 world-ranked competitors in the men's 100 meters will headline that event, led by the reigning World Indoor 60m champion Leonard Scott. He'll be joined in the field by Marc Burns of Trinidad, who ended the 2006 season ranked #9 in the world, and Jamaica's Michael Frater, who began this season ranked #10 globally. Two of the biggest names in the men's 400 meters are Bershawn Jackson and Angelo Taylor, who made their worldwide reputations in 400m hurdles competition. Jackson, who is the reigning World Outdoor 400m hurdles champion and 2006 Pre Classic winner, ended last season ranked #2 in the world. The 2000 Olympic men's 400m hurdles gold medalist, Taylor will enter the blocks on Sunday with the second-fastest 400m time in the world this year of 44.35 seconds. Others to watch for include reigning Pre Classic 400m champion LaShawn Merritt, who ended the 2006 season ranked #3 in the world, Jamaica's Michael Blackwood, who ended last year ranked #5 globally and Alleyne Francique of Grenada (world ranked #7) are also in the field. Also watch for 2004 Olympic 4x400m relay gold medalist Darold Williamson. In the women's 400 meters, Sanya Richards ended the 2006 campaign ranked #1 in the world after completing an undefeated season. Richards, who has been fighting off an illness this spring, will make her season debut at the Nike Prefontaine Classic. She'll face a strong field featuring Jamaica's Shericka Williams, who began this season ranked #4 in the world. Other top competitors in this event include world ranked athletes Dee Dee Trotter (#6), Monique Henderson (#7) and Prefontaine meet record holder Ana Guevara of Mexico. The following is a Q&A with Sanya Richards: Q: What can we expect to see from you tomorrow? A: I'm going to run really well tomorrow. I've been sick, but the good thing is I've been training really well. What I'm really going to try to do is execute a great race. I have no control over the weather or the wind, so I'm not going to predict a time, but I'm going to execute a really good race. Q: Have you ever identified the illness that you had? A: I had really bad ulcers, kind of a flu-like thing. They thought it could've been mono or strep throat, but it wasn't any of those. It was really tough for me because there were times when I couldn't even talk because my mouth was so sore and painful. I'm feeling much better now and I'm hoping that it won't reoccur. Q: After such an amazing 2006 season, what do you do for an encore this year? A: I'm really excited about this year. I really want to go out and win the World Championships and that's motivating me. I was really blessed to be World Athlete of the Year, and I'm not going to pressure myself to get it again. I just want to have a great season and be a world champion. Q: Will you compete in both the 200 and 400 meters at the AT&T USA Outdoor Championships in Indianapolis later this month? A: Absolutely. I definitely want to double there, now that I haven't run too many races I definitely want to run both of them at U.S. Nationals and hopefully make the team, and then pray that they drop a round at the World Championships and I can do a double there again. Q: Do you have any time goals for this season? A: Absolutely. In the 400 I want to run sub-48.2, and in the 200 I want dip under 22 seconds. Allyson (Felix), Sherone (Simpson) and myself have been flirting with it, and I'm hoping I can get into some great races with them and dip under 22 seconds. Q: With the illness now gone, how far behind is your training from where you'd like to be at this point? A: I'm not far behind at all. Coach Hart and I, sometimes I have to tell him that he was working me too hard to try to catch me back up to where I was, but it really paid dividends that he kept records of all my training, and when we looked back at where I was last year and where I am now, I'm actually ahead of where I was, so I think I'm in great shape. For more information on the 2007 Nike Prefontaine Classic and USATF's Visa Championship Series, visit USATF.org.