Matt Tegenkamp finished 4th in the 3,000m at today’s DN Galan meet in Stockholm, Sweden. Matt ran 7:40.75 behind Craig Mottram (7:37.73), Isaac Songok (7:38.97) and Daham Najim Bashir (7:39.45). (When he ran for Kenya instead of Qatar, Bashir was known as David Nyaga.)
As he describes below, Matt will now return home for almost two weeks before leaving for Beijing.
Results are here.
Things have been going very well since the Trials. That is a pretty easy statement to make considering what the weeks since Pre were like. Leading up to the Trials I only missed one workout, so I was not losing fitness, it just added a lot more stress (dealing with aches and pains) to an already stressful event. However, I was able to get 100% the week leading up to the Trials–I knew that I had put in plenty of work in the months leading up to the all-important Trials and was ready to go. Everyone knows what happened at the Trials, and I want to forget about that and move on!
Since the Trials Jerry has started the sharpening process, and I am responding very quickly. Part of that process was finding a 1500. It was supposed to be in Europe, but for a lot of reasons it did not work out. This year is a little crazy, and there were not quality 1500s when we needed them. Unfortunately, meet directors over in Europe follow the motto “What have you done for me lately?” I have not run a fast 1500 (or a fast time in any event for that matter) this year. That really limited my chances of getting into a good field. I was on the wait list for some but it is a long way to travel without having the race set in stone.
Luckily for us, our group is very strong and capable of getting in what we needed right in Madison. The one-event meet was an awesome experience. It worked out so much better than we could have planned for. It was perfect weather, an awesome crowd and no stress!! It was pretty cool talking to people after and they would be like, “I found out 30 minutes ago this was going on, so I hopped in the car and rushed down here.” It is great to know we have that support in our community and we are really going to miss it. Portland is going to be a great opportunity and we are looking forward to it, but we will not forget what Madison has done for us!
The 1500 in Madison was a great send-off for Europe. I am in Stockholm now getting ready for a 3k tomorrow. It is a great field, and ‘m really looking forward to competing. I am also glad that I am running early (12:15 CDT) so I can watch the rest of the meet. It is good to see a field of this quality leading up to the Olympics. I will need this because the Olympic 5000 is so stacked and going to be way harder than last year. Plus, I have a feeling that the runners are not going to let it come to a kick like it did last year, as we know how that will turn out!
This will be a one-and-done trip for me, so I better make it worth it. Madison will be good prep leading up to my departure for the Games–it will be hot and humid! I love that weather–that is what I grew up in and have always run well in. Also, I get to be with my wife, sleep in my own bed and relax with the dogs. I will get 12 days in Madison, and then head off to Beijing. Luckily, I get to go to the Opening Ceremonies, which is going to be awesome. I can’t wait, and I am very excited in my training progression.
Leave a comment for me so I know what I should be talking about!! More in the weeks to come.
The soon-to-be-ex men from Madison start the first part of their European tour, and as you can see from these photos, they are ready to roll, and then some.
Chris Solinsky opens tomorrow with a 5,000m in Heusden, Belgium. Matt Tegenkamp follows that up with a 3,000m in Stockholm, Sweden on Tuesday the 22nd. Tim Nelson and Sean Quigley have a 3,000m of their own on te 26th in Oordegem, Belgium.
As he has during past European outings, Teg will be filing periodic dispatches. Curious about something? Use the e-mail friendly version of askteg [AT] kimbia [DOT] net to send our latest Olympian your questions.
Wow, we knew Matt T. was good, but last night he outdid himself, winning every event at a meet in Madison, Wisconsin. Okay, so the meet had one event, a 1500m, but still.
In a field comprised of Matt, Chris Solinsky, Sean Quigley and Jonathon Riley, Matt held off a last-lap challenge from Jonathon to win in 3:37.94, the fastest 1500m ever run in Wisconsin. Jonathan (3:39.02), Chris (3:40.67) and Sean (3:43.46) followed, with Jonathon and Chris also under the old state record of 3:42.63.
Matt leaves for Europe on Thursday for a few larger meets than last night’s, then will return to Madison before heading off to Beijing.
You can read Madison publications’ reports on last night here and here. Video is available here, for now at least, by choosing the race video from among the options at the top right of the page.
Interviewed by Toni Reavis and Robert Johnson! This video, shot at KIMbia’s undisclosed bunker here in Eugene, covers it all–what happened in the 5,000m final on Monday night, their near-future racing plans, their impending move to Portland, Oregon. Grab a nice Oregon microbrew and settle in for half an hour of intelligent and interesting conversation.
Matt Tegenkamp took second in tonight’s 5,000m final at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. Chris Solinsky took fifth after seizing the lead off a sluggish pace with three laps to go. After leading early, Brent Vaughn took ninth.
We’ll be back on Tuesday with more words and some video. For now, results.
Matt Tegenkamp, Brent Vaughn and Chris Solinsky all advanced to Monday’s 5,000m final.
Matt won his heat, the first. Taking the lead in the last lap, Matt ran a sub-60 last lap after a slow opening (8:37 at 3K) to finish in 13:54.62. Brent Vaughn didn’t finish in the top 6, and therefore had to await the results of the second heat to see if he got through to the final as one of four time qualifiers.
Surprisingly, the second heat, which Chris was in, went out even slower. Chris, with “strict orders not to take the lead until three laps to go,” found himself in second for most of the race. He wound up second in 13:59.65. Brent’s 14:06.90 from the first heat got him into the final as the last time qualifier.
“I’m excited to see what happens on Monday,” Chris said. “Everyone certainly saved it tonight, so Monday should be something special.” We agree.
Things didn’t go as well for Elva Dryer in the women’s 10,000m final. She finished 15th in 33:38.60. “No go” was Elva’s two-word race summary. “When they made that move, I just had no acceleration.” Still, she said, “I know I still have good fitness, and I’m optimistic I can show it soon, most likely on the roads. I like the roads!”
We might as well end our video series as we began it–by being very, very serious.
We hope you’ve been educated, entertained or at least distracted at work by the series. We’ll be in Eugene starting tomorrow and will have regular updates from there (including video, we hope, depending on the whims of those enforcing the meet’s Ceauşescuesque taping provisions).
Teg is brimming with good ideas about how to better promote the sport he loves. Networks, meet directors, federations, are you listening?
Tomorrow: The series finale. Will there be references to the last episode of The Sopranos, Seinfeld or any of the various Bob Newhart shows?
Everyone knows that at least a few runners take performance-enhancing drugs. How do clean athletes striving for excellence deal with that reality?
Tomorrow: Teg Talks: Marketing the Sport
