INDIANAPOLIS - Chris Derrick (Portland, Ore.) has been named USA Track & Field’s Athlete of the Week after winning the USA Cross Country Championships 12 km race in 35:36.6 on Saturday in St. Louis.
After multiple runner-up finishes at the NCAA championships, Derrick won his first national championship in his first year as a professional athlete. Derrick holds the American collegiate record in the 10,000m and was a 14-time NCAA Division I All-American while at Stanford. Derrick is now training under Jerry Schumacher in Portland.
Derrick with compete at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland on March 24.
“I'm excited to test myself against some of the best runners in the world,” Derrick said. “I expect to be a bit over my head and to have to really struggle through, which I hope will give me perspective and help me grow as an athlete.”
Now in its 12th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week and features the athlete on www.usatf.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week.
2013 Winners: January 9, Bobby Mack; January 16, Mary Cain; January 22, Ajeé Wilson; January 30, Duane Solomon; February 6, Chris Derrick
About USA Track & Field
USA Track & Field (USATF) is the National Governing Body for track & field, long-distance running and race walking in the United States. USATF encompasses the world's oldest organized sports, the World's #1 Track & Field Team, the most-watched events at the Olympics, the #1 high school and junior high school participatory sport, and more than 30 million adult runners in the United States: USATF.org.
Know someone else who's interested in running and triathlon?
