USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships - Day 1 Preview

The USA Outdoor Track & Field Championships start today and run through Sunday, June 27th, at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.

For DAY 1 (Thursday), here is your schedule of events:

The Run-Down of Thursday's Finals....and the Steeple Prelims:

Women's 3000m Steeplechase - 4:15pm CDT:

We all know this event is my baby, so yes, I'm going to devote most of this post to it, even though it's only the prelim and not the final today! The steeple has blown open this year, as the recent women to dominate the event are nowhere to be found when the barriers are put on the track.

Jenny Barringer, the American Record holder and 5th-place finisher at last August's World Championships, initially entered the steeple but has since scratched and only declared in the 5000m.

Anna (Willard) Pierce ran the steeple at the USATF Championships in 2009, placing 2nd to Barringer, but gave up her spot on the Worlds team to Lindsey Anderson, opting to run the 1500m. Since then has dominated the shorter races, winning some prestigious 800m races and breaking 4 minutes in the 1500m. She is entered in the 1500m this weekend.

Anderson herself has been quiet this season after placing a solid 9th in the US 15K Championships in March.

What we have left is a strong but closely packed field of women, many of whom suddenly have a chance at victory now that last year's top dogs aren't around. Not to say these ladies are sloppy seconds. Let's take a look at the top names.

THE FAVORITES:

Lisa Aguilera - Aguilera held the American Record for almost a year - from late July 2007 until July 3rd, 2008. Aguilera was the 2nd American woman to ever break the 9:30 barrier, after Briana Shook first did it in 2004. Unfortunately, she did so just a month after missing the US team for the 2007 World Championships by one spot. So our American Record holder was not on the World Team in 2007. In 2008, Aguilera was ready to make the first-ever women's steeplechase Olympic team but again fell a bit short, placing 5th at the Trials. In 2009, she had a so-so USA Championships and again missed making the World team, but came within 5 seconds of her PR at the World Athletics Final (different from the World Champsionships) after being knocked off her stride in the first lap when a competitor fell. Aguilera made a coaching change in the fall of 2008 and seems to be on the upswing now, as she has already run 9:41 this year, a very fast early-season time for her. Follow Lisa on Twitter at @aggyrun!

Bridget Franek - Bridget Franek made a huge step up when she PR'd in 9:36.74 to place 3rd at the 2009 USATF Championships and qualify for the World Championships squad. Since then, she has dominated the NCAA scene with Jenny Barringer gone, and won the NCAA Championships a couple of weeks ago in 9:38.86, a full 13 seconds ahead of second-place Emma Coburn. Franek looked very much in control during the race and should be able to really challenge Lisa Aguilera. This will be a great race!

DON'T COUNT OUT:

Nicole Bush - Nicole Bush fell in the water pit in the prelim heat at last year's USA Championships and broke her foot, most likely due to the fact that the officials hadn't lowered the water pit barrier to the proper height of 30 inches for the women's race. (More on that HERE.) But she is back this year and seems to be healthy, having run 9:49 in Brazil in May.

Shayla Houlihan - Shayla Houlihan is undefeated in the steeplechase in 2010. She has won 3 steeplechases and ran 10:03 each time. This woman is chomping at the bit! She opened at the Stanford Invitational, where she took 26 seconds off of her previous PR, then followed it up with wins at the Drake Relays and the New Balance Twilight Steeplechase. She has beaten strong competitors but not the clock. Look for her to have a breakout race this weekend with her brand new kit for her brand new sponsor, Brooks. Follow Shayla on Twitter at @Shalayla!

Emma Coburn - Colorado sophomore Emma Coburn has been saying all season that she wants to run in the 9:40's, and you don't usually hear that kind of talk from Buffs unless they can back it up. Look for Coburn to avenge her distant 2nd place at the NCAA's with a strong place and time in Des Moines.

The women's steeplechase prelims take place at 4:15 pm CDT on Thursday.

Women's Triple Jump - 6:20pm CDT:

The clear favorite in this event is multiple-time NCAA Champ Erica McLain, who graduated from Stanford in 2008 and promptly qualified for her first Olympic team. She went on to place second at the 2009 USA Outdoor Championsihps and is now looking to break the American Record of 47 feet 5 inches, set by Tiombe Hurd in 2004.

"I just need to jump. I'm too mentally wrapped up in the event, too much of a technical jumper. As soon as I let go and trust my training, my body knows what to do." McLain states.

The women's triple jump takes place at 6:20pm CDT on Thursday. 

Men's 10,000m - 8:20pm CDT:

LetsRun.com has a great preview of the middle-distance and distance events HERE. They are billing the men's 10K as "The Galen Rupp Show," as American Record holder Chris Solinsky is not entered in the meet at all.

Women's 10,000m - 8:55pm CDT:

This should be a very exciting duel between Olympian Amy Begley and NCAA Champ and record holder Lisa Koll, especially with all of the Iowa fans in the stand cheering Koll on. She will need it, as beating Begley is a tall order. Begley beat Olympic bronze medalist Shalane Flanagan for the USA title last summer and appears to be in top form this season. There is no TV coverage until Friday, but the live internet stream will be better for this race anyway, as all 25 laps will be shown with no commercial breaks or other interruptions. So get your dinner or dessert ready to eat by 8:20pm CDT and settle in for a good show. There are links below to the live coverage by both FloTrack and RunnerSpace. Take your pick as to which one to watch.

Oh yeah, and follow Amy Begley on Twitter at @yoderbegley!

Preliminary Rounds - Who to Watch (in no particular order):

Women's 800m - 4:45pm CDT:

Hazel Clark

Alysia Johnson

Maggie Vessey

Geena Gall

Christin Wurth-Thomas

Latavia Thomas

Phoebe Wright

Men's 800m - 5:05pm CDT:

Nick Symmonds

Khadevis Robinson

Men's 400m Hurdles - 5:25pm CDT:

Bershawn "Batman" Jackson

Johnny Dutch 

Michael Tinsley

Jeshua Anderson

Women's 1500m - 5:50pm CDT:

Anna Pierce

Shannon Rowbury

Christin Wurth-Thomas

Women's 400m - 6:10pm CDT:

Sanya Richards-Ross

Debbie Dunn

DeeDee Trotter

Francena McCorory

Nathasha Hastings

Monica Hargrove

Men's 400m - 6:35pm CDT:

Jeremy Wariner

Calvin Smith

Tavaris Tate

Kerron Clement

Women's 100m - 7:10pm CDT:

Allyson Felix

LaShaunte'a Moore

Alexandria Anderson

Men's 100m 7:35pm CDT:

Ivory Williams

Travis Padgett

Walter Dix

How to Follow the Meet:

• Schedule and Results HERE
• Flotrack Coverage HERE
• RunnerSpace Coverage HERE
• ESPN, June 25 8:00-10:00 pm 
  ESPN2, June 26 1:00-2:30 pm 
  NBC, June 26 3:00-4:00 pm 
  ESPN, June 27 1:00-2:30 pm 
  NBC, June 27 3:00-4:00 pm 
• Follow the Women Talk Sports Track & Field Twitter List here:@womentalksports/track-field
• Follow me on Twitter at @AnnGaff for color commentary and discussion

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