Deep fields ready to race at annual distance showcase

By Scott Bush

June is a fun time of year for track and field fans. With the high school and college seasons coming to an end, the full attention of the sport turns to the professional ranks, as top pros test their fitness before the USATF Oudoor Championships, while others dig deep with the hopes of qualifying. Both groups come together this month at a number of community-based track and field events from coast-to-coast.

One of the very best of these meets is the Adrian Martinez Classic, which gets underway Thursday evening in Concord, Massachusetts. The annual distance showcase brings together men's and women's fields in the 800m, mile and 3000m, providing plenty of theatrics for both those in attendance and those following along online. 

Fans across the country can watch live Thursday on Bay State Running, as citizens races begin at 4:20pm ET, while high performance events start at 6:50pm ET. In addition, there will be a pro Q&A on Wednesday at Marathon Sports in Wellesley at 7pm ET.

Headlining the action Thursday are a pair of loaded 800m events. On the men's side, the entire seven man lineup have the potential to dip under the 1:46 barrier, while the women's field could see multiple athletes break the two-minute barrier.

Edose Ibadin of Nigeria enters the men's 800m with the fastest seasonal best, having run an impressive 1:45.69 at the Music City Distance Carnival (MCDC). He leads the way alongside Quamel Prince, who finished fifth at the USATF Indoor Championships in the 800m and ran 1:46.30 in Nashville last weekend. 

HOKA ONE ONE NJNYTC teammates Chris Giesting and Jesse Garn are also entered. Giesting is coming off a win at the MCDC, taking home top prize in the 600m in 1:15.36. Meanwhile, Garn has run 1:46.17 this season, while veteran Ryan Martin looks to get back on track after some tough races of late, while Harun Abda and Sam Ellison are each capable of mixing it up for a top three finish. 

In the women's race, Ce'Aira Brown continues to build momentum on her season. After placing fourth in the 800m at the USATF Indoor Championships, she's coming off a 2:00.38 victory at the USATF Distance Classic and a fine 1500m performance the Pre Classic two weeks ago. 

Brown is joined by Maddie Kopp, who ran 2:00.88 at the MCDC. Add in Cecila Barowski, who was sixth in the USATF High Performance 800m at the Pre Classic and other notables like Meg Manley, and this race is poised to be fast. 

Both mile races should provide thrilling finishes, as well. On the women's side, Lauren Johnson, Shannon Osika and Portugal's Marta Freitas lead the way. 

For Osika, the former University of Michigan standout is running strong, having won the 1500m at the USATF Distance Classic, finished third in the mile at the USATF Indoor Championships and fifth in the Pre Classic USATF HP 1500m. Add in her seventh place finish in the 1500m at the USATF Outdoor Championships last season, and she's got the credentials to win this one. 

Johnson most recently ran to a seventh place finish in the Pre Classic USATF High Performance 1500m, that coming off a fourth place finish in the 1500m at the USATF Distance Classic. Freitas is coming off a win in the 1500m at the MCDC in an impressive 4:05.69, while Claudia Sanders is stepping up in distance after finishing second in the 800m at the MCDC in 2:00.75.

Dani Aragon joins the mix with her runner-up showing in the 1500m at the USATF Distance Classic, while former University of Arkansas standout Dominique Scott, who competed at the IAAF World Indoor Championships, is ready to test herself in the mile. Add in veteran Nicole Tully, USATF Indoor Championships eighth place finisher Helen Schlachtenhaufen and veteran Sarah Brown and this race offers plenty of intrigue across the board. 

In the men's mile, Olympian Leo Manzano is entered, but the long-time pro won't be the pre-race favorite. After finishing seventh at the MCDC, along with a few other races placing outside the top three, Manzano has some work to do in order to put himself back among the elite U.S. milers. 

VT Elite teammates Neil Gourley and Drew Piazza both enter with a chance to bring home a victory. Piazza ran to a 1:45.83 800m finish at the MCDC, while Gourley won the 1500m at the MCDC in 3:39.77. Both runners are having strong seasons and could very well work together to run fast times Thursday and dominate the race up front. 

Another pair of teammates, Ford Palmer and Rob Napolitano, who run for HOKA ONE ONE NJNYTC, have both dipped under 3:40 as well this season. In mid-May, the duo ran 3:39.98 for Palmer and 3:39.35 for Napolitano. Other extremely experienced runners like Will Geoghegan, Julian Matthews of New Zealand, Sam Penzenstadler and others make this an intriguing race to follow. 

One of the strongest storylines of the evening comes in the women's 3000m, as former NCAA champion Emily Sisson resumes racing after having a very quiet 2018 season, thus far. Sisson, who finished third at the USATF Outdoor Championships in the 10,000m last summer ran one race indoors, running an impressive 15:13 for 5000m. While 3000m is a step down in distance, fans can be excited to see Molly Huddle's training partner back racing. 

Sisson is joined by Sarah Pagano, who similarly is stepping down in distance after finishing second at the Payton Jordan Invitational in the 10,000m last month. Steeplechaser Stephanie Garcia continues to mix up her event focus this season, testing herself over the flat 3000m race, while Katrina Coogan looks to build on a fine indoor season, which saw her place eighth at the USATF Indoor Championships in the 3000m. 

Olympian Donn Cabral and HOKA ONE ONE NJNYTC teammate Graham Crawford lead the men's field. Crawford finished second in the 1500m last weekend at the MCDC and hopes to carry that momentum over to the 3000m distance. Cabral made his season debut in the steeplechase in Nashville, finishing second overall and showing he's rounding back into form. 

Former Virginia Tech All-American Tommy Curtin ran sixth in the 5000m at the USATF Outdoor Championships last summer and hopes to better that performance later this month. He's coming off a nice 13:23 5000m showing at the Payton Jordan Invitational earlier this season and will test his speed Thursday evening. 

Trevor Dunbar and Reid Buchanan placed seventh and eighth respectively in the 5000m last summer at the USATF Outdoor Championships and similar to countless others at the Adrian Martinez Classic, look to prove their fitness and gain an edge heading into the peak of the domestic season. 

The Adrian Martinez Classic promises plenty of exciting finishes and fast times this Thursday and as always provides a unique viewing experience for those both attending in-person and those following along online.