Joseph Fahnbulleh wins the 200m at the NCAA Championships (© Getty Images)
Olympic 200m finalist Joseph Fahnbulleh won the 100m and 200m titles within the space of 45 minutes at the NCAA Championships in Eugene on Friday (10).
The long-striding Liberian used his trademark finish to effect in both races, coming from behind to win the 100m in 10.00 (0.6m/s) and the 200m in 19.83 (0.6m/s), setting national records in both races. Fahnbulleh, who represents the University of Florida, won both races by clear margins as Favour Ashe and Javonte Harding clocked 10.08 for second and third respectively in the 100m. Matthew Boling was second in the 200m in 20.13.
Fahnbulleh’s outing actually started 50 minutes before the 100m final as he anchored Florida to a second-place finish in the 4x100m, their team finishing just 0.03 behind winners USC, who clocked 38.49.
But the weekend belonged to the University of Florida as they went on to take the team title in convincing fashion. Fittingly, they were victorious in the final event of the programme, the 4x400m, which they won in a world-leading 2:58.88 to take 0.12 off the championship record. They soundly avenged their defeat from the earlier relay, as this time USC took the runner-up spot in 2:59.98.
Trey Cunningham was one of the other standout performers on the track. The Florida State student maintained his winning streak in the 110m hurdles and set his fourth PB of the year to take the title in 13.00. Eric Edwards was second in 13.15 and Josh Zeller third in 13.26.
Ayden Owens-Delerme put together another impressive series of marks to win the decathlon. The Arkansas student had broken the collegiate record earlier this year with 8528, only to see it smashed by Kyle Garland weeks later with his 8720 performance at the US Combined Events Championships. But this week in Eugene Owens-Delerme won convincingly and equalled Ashton Eaton’s championship record of 8457, helped by PBs in the shot put (15.09m), high jump (2.01m), 400m (46.10), discus (46.25m) and javelin (56.07m).
Leo Neugebauer took second place with a PB of 8362, above the World Championships qualifying standard, while Garland – whose runner-up finish at the US Championships has ensured his place on the team for the World Championships – was third with 8333.
There were more records in some of the women’s finals on Thursday (9). Camryn Rogers smashed her own Canadian and collegiate records to take the women’s hammer with 77.67m, elevating her to ninth on the world all-time list.
Camryn Rogers in the hammer at the NCAA Championships (© Getty Images)
She opened with 74.90m, which ultimately would have been enough to win, but improved to 75.11m in round two before unleashing her record-breaking throw in round five. Alyssa Wilson was second with a big PB of 74.78m.
US Olympian Adelaide Aquilla uncorked a winning toss of 19.64m in the first round of the women’s shot put. Not only was it enough to win by more than a metre, it also broke the collegiate record.
Randolph Ross won his third consecutive NCAA title at 400m, following his outdoor crown last year and his indoor one earlier this year. The North Carolina A&T student won in a season’s best of 44.13, holding off Florida’s Champion Allison (44.41) and Georgia’s Elija Godwin (44.50).
Sean Burrell also retained his title. The 20-year-old, who set a world U20 record of 47.85 to win the 400m hurdles last year, hadn’t broken 50 seconds for the event this year leading up to the NCAA Championships. But, determined to hold on to his crown, the LSU student uncorked a huge season’s best of 48.70 to win by 0.43 from Malik Metivier of Texas Tech.
One of the closest contests of the championships so far came in the men’s discus, where Claudio Romero won by just two centimetres from Mykolas Alekna, 66.15m to 66.17m.
