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This Day in Track & Field-February 13
by Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service (wmurphy25@aol.com), used with permission
1988–Three primary records fell at the Vitalis/Olympic Inv., held at the Meadowlands Arena in New Jersey. Two of the record-setters were familiar names to most fans. Romania’s Doina Melinte, the 1984 Olympic Champion at 800 meters, won the Women’s Mile in 4:18.86 to break Mary Slaney’s 6-year-old World Record of 4:20.5 and Hall-of-Famer-to-be Jackie Joyner-Kersee added 2 inches to her American Record in the Long Jump (23-1/2 [7.02m]).
But only hardcore fans would recognize the name of Brian Abshire, who won the Men’s 3000-Meters in 7:41.57 to break Doug Padilla’s previous American Record of 7:44.9. Abshire’s feat merited extensive coverage in that week’s issue of Sports Illustrated (see link below). And his AR kicked off a frenzied 30 minutes of action, including Melinte’s WR and Marcus O’Sullivan’s quick 3:50.94 win in the Men’s Mile. Relieved that his World Record of 3:49.78 was still intact was the injured Eamonn Coghlan, who fired the starting gun for the race.
The front-running Abshire was an All-American steeplechaser at Auburn and had competed in that event at the 1987 World Championships in Rome, but he was hardly a household name. His coach, Auburn’s Kelly Sullivan, who trained Abshire during his collegiate career, had to “beg” to get his star runner added to a loaded field that already included Padilla, Frank O’Mara, the 1987 World Indoor Champion at 3000-meters, sub-3:50 miler Jim Spivey, Joe Falcon, the 1987 NCAA Indoor 3k champion, Kenya’s Yobes Ondieki, and one Sebastian Coe, who was making his U.S. indoor debut. (An out-of-shape Coe dropped out with one lap to go and, embarrassed by his poor showing, later returned half his appearance fee!). Finishing behind Abshire were Ondieki (7:45.87), Terry Brahm (7:47.55), O’Mara (7:47.65-Irish Record), Padilla (7:51.82), Falcon (7:51.90), and Spivey (7:53.10).
Sullivan convinced…
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