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Special to USATF, from Bob Weiner and Rebecca VanderLinde
BOSTON - Two-time Olympic relay gold medalist and 1993 world champion 400m runner Jearl Miles-Clark heads a field of over 700 masters athletes, ages 30+ to 90+, who will descend on Boston's Reggie Lewis Center for the 2008 USA Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships March 28-30. This marks the 11th time the championships will be held at "The Reggie," located on the campus of Roxbury Community College, 1350 Tremont Street. Finals are 4-6 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, and 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday. Admission is free.
The 41-year-old Miles-Clark (Knoxville, Tenn.) is among the most decorated American 400 and 800 meter runners in history. A five-time Olympian, Miles-Clark owns a pair of Olympic gold medals in the 4x400m relay and also is the American record holder outdoors at 800 meters, the event she contested at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. She will be one of a bevy of highly regarded track and field stars in the meet and will run the 200 and 400.
A total of 18 American winners from last week's World Masters Indoor Championships in Clermont-Ferrand, France, are coming to Boston. No fewer than 15 current outdoor World Champions will participate as well, including Phil (Philippa) Raschker, the 2007 IAAF World Masters Athlete of the Year who won 10 gold medals at the 2007 World Masters Championships in Italy. For the second time, Raschker, 61, from Marietta, Georgia, is a finalist for the Sullivan Award for the nation's Top Amateur Athlete. Last week in France, Raschker won six gold medals at the World Masters Indoor Championships: 60-meter dash, 60-meter hurdles, 200-meters, high jump, long jump and triple jump, including one world and two American records.
More top entries
Also entered is Paul Babbits, who at age 47 this winter has vaulted a 45+ world record of 16 feet, 10.25 inches.The first 16 foot vault indoors by a person of any age was John Uelses in 1962; Olympic gold medalist Bob Seagren had the first indoor 17-foot vault in 1966.
Kathy Martin (Northport, NY), 55, former USATF masters Athlete of the Year who won three world indoor titles last week (800m, 3000m and cross country), is entered in Boston in the 800, 1500, and 3000.
Seven competitors are over age 90, including Bob Matteson (Bennington, Vt.), 92, and Betty Jarvis (Aberdeen, N.C.), 93.
For a full meet schedule and entries by age, visit http://www.usatf.org/events/2008/USAMastersIndoorTFChampionships/
For media interviews onsite or for more information, see National Masters Media Chair Bob Weiner trackside or call 202-329-1700
(Special thanks to contributors Ken Stone, Pete Taylor and Mike Travis.)
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