Posted: August 20, 2007

Athletics: Team USA men triumphant at 2007 Thorpe Cup

INDIANAPOLIS - Team USA's men's squad came home with the crown after winning the 2007 Thorpe Cup, an annual USA vs. Germany multi-event match, over the weekend in Bernhausen, Germany. The men took the lead after the first event and never looked back, coming away with the team title with 38,084 points to Germany's 36,976. Dartmouth grad Mustafa Abdur-Rahim won the individual title with 7,760 points. He was fourth heading into day 2 of competition and down 339 points with one event remaining, but he gunned a 4:27.88 1,500 meters to overtake teammate Ryan Harlan who came in second with 7,736. This was the third time in the event's history that the Americans swept the top three places as Wisconsin's Joe Detmer took third with 7,616. Two-time NCAA DII champion Chris Randolph worked his way from eighth after day one to finish fifth with 7,502 and Chris Boyles was seventh with 7,470. Ryan Olkowski (7,405) and Chris Helwick (7,354) were ninth and tenth, respectively. On the women's side, it was a hard-fought competition as the American women lost out to the Germans by just 13 points, 16,946 to 16,933. 2005 NCAA champion Lela Nelson won the individual title with 6,022 points with victories coming in the high jump (1.82 meters/5 feet 11.5 inches), 200m (24.36) and long jump (6.48m/21-3). Julie Pickler took second with 5,718 and three-time NCAA champion Jackie Johnson was sixth with 5,193. Other U.S. finishers include Danielle McNaney (5,638) and Ryanne Dupree (5,465). For more information and complete results from the 2007 Thorpe Cup, visit USATF.org. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest