Chris Solinksy, Sheffield 3000m
Chris Solinsky ran 7:36.90 - a 15-second PR - on a cold, rainy night in Sheffield, UK. His time, the 8th fastest ever by an American, was good for third place behind Kenenisa Bekele and Craig Mottram at the Norwich Union Grand Prix meeting. “I didn’t have a particular time in mind coming into the race,” Solinsky said afterwards. “I just wanted to be competitive and run faster than my PR.” As the youngest athlete in the field, he ran with poise despite a pace much faster than any he’s ever carried in a 3000m race. “I think the fastest I’ve ever come through the mile is 4:11. Tonight I was 4:03 and felt comfortable.”After the brisk first mile, the pack splintered into two groups; Solinsky hung onto the back of the front pack. At 2K the pacesetter veered off, and at the same moment Bekele made his move, quickly gapping the pack by 20 meters. Solinksy continued to work his way up, moving into third place with 500 meters to go. It appeared that he was closing on Mottram, but with 250 meters to go, Mottram looked back and dug down for another gear. “Man, in retrospect I wish I had gone a little earlier,” he said back at the hotel. “I don’t know if I could have caught him, but there’s definitely more there.”Chris’s next race will be a 5000m in Heusden on July 28th. He’ll be joined by teammates Simon Bairu and Tim Nelson; Matt Tegenkamp will be racing the 1500m at the same meet.
Sheffield 3,000m Results
Photos from Sheffield
