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VALENCIA, Spain - American athletes begin competition Friday, March 7,
at the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Track & Field Championships. Finals set to
be contested Friday at the Velódromo Luis Puig include the men's
and women's 60 meters and men's shot put. Athletes will compete for a
total of nearly $2.5 million in prize money, including $40,000 for
individual champions and a $50,000 bonus for world records.
The first final of the night is the men's shot put, featuring 2004 World
Indoor champion and current U.S. Indoor champion Christian Cantwell
(Columbia, Miss.) and reigning World Indoor and Outdoor Reese Hoffa
(Athens, Ga.). Cantwell and Hoffa currently own eight of the top 12
throws so far in the world this year.
Two-time NAIA Indoor 60m and 200m champion Michael Rodgers (Round Rock,
Texas), the reigning U.S. Indoor champion in the men's 60m, and 2007
World Outdoor 4x100m gold medalist Leroy Dixon (Los Angeles, Calif.)
will have a busy day in the men's 60m. The heats, semifinals and final
all are scheduled for Friday. Rodgers has run the third fastest time and
Dixon is the eight fastest man so far in the world this year.
In the women's 60m, which also has three races on Friday, two-time World
Indoor silver medalist Angela Williams (Ontario, Calif.) and 2008 U.S.
60m runner-up Alexis Joyce (Denver, Co.) will be chasing gold. Williams
owns the #3, 4 and 6 performances in the world in 2008.
Americans participating in qualifying action Friday include 2007 U.S.
Indoor champion Andra Manson (Austin, Texas) and Jesse Williams (Eugene,
Ore.), who ended his 2007 season ranked #8 in the world by Track & Field
News. Two-time U.S. Indoor and Outdoor champion Shani Marks (Brooklyn
Park, Minn.) will jump in the qualifying rounds of the women's triple
jump and 2004 Olympian Kenta Bell (Kissimmee, Fla.) and two-time U.S.
Indoor champion Aarik Wilson (Lawrence, Kan.) are entered in the men's
triple jump.
The men's long jump also will get under way tomorrow featuring 2004
Olympic silver medalist John Moffitt (Baton Rouge, La.) and two-time
U.S. Indoor champion Trevell Quinley (Chula Vista, Calif.). Two-time
U.S. Indoor and Outdoor champion Jenn Stuczynski (Churchville, N.Y.) and
2004 Olympian Jillian Schwartz (Jonesboro, Ark.) will compete in the
women's pole vault qualifying.
On the track, 2008 U.S. Indoor champion David Neville (Los Angeles,
Calif.) and 2007 U.S. Indoor champion Greg Nixon (Lubbock, Texas) will
compete in the men's 400m and 2004 Olympic 4x400m gold medalist
Moushaumi Robinson (New Albany, Ohio) and 2008 U.S. Indoor champion
Shareese Woods (Charlotte, N.C.) will run in the women's 400m. Four-time
U.S. Outdoor champion Khadevis Robinson (Santa Monica, Calif.) and 2007
U.S. Indoor champion Nick Symmonds (Springfield, Ore.) will run in the
men's 800m. On the women's side, American indoor record holder Nicole
Teter (Eugene, Ore.)and 2004 NCAA Indoor champion Nicole Cook
(Knoxville, Tenn.) will compete in opening round action.
Two-time NCAA 5,000m champion Chris Solinsky (Madison, Wisc.) and
three-time U.S. Indoor champion Jonathan Riley (Fitchburg, Wisc.) will
run in the men's 3,000m while two-time Olympian Jen Rhines (Mammoth
Lakes, Calif.) and Julie Culley (Arlington, Va.) will compete in the
women's 3,000m. Two-time U.S. Indoor champion Rob Myers (Westerville,
Ohio) and Stanford standout Russell Brown (Hanover, N.H.) will race in
the men's 1,500m.
For more information on Team USA at the 2006 World Indoor Championships,
visit www.usatf.org.
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