Close Finishes Highlight Day Two of USATF Indoors

By Scott Bush

Tight finals and competitive prelims defined the landscape at Saturday’s USATF Indoor Track and Field Championships. Day two of the indoor contest saw over a half dozen national champions crowned, including a variety of top five marks in the world. Here are a few of the tidbits we learned throughout the days competition. 

Erik Kynard is One and Done

Fans may have been a little skeptical of Erik Kynard heading into Saturday’s action. The standout high jumper had yet to compete indoors and no one knew what type of shape he was in. Well, turns out no one needed to worry, as Kynard won the national title in 2.34m, tying for second best jumper in the world.

Kynard knows in order to be the best in the world, he’s going to have to break the American record and go even higher, as a handful of his top competitors consistently compete to take down the world record. Kynard earned silver at the 2012 Olympic Games, so he’s no stranger to success, but he knows it’s time for him to get back on top and his win in Boston was the perfect way to take another step forward as a professional.

Jeremy Taiwo is a Man to Watch

After dealing with injury much of 2014, Jeremy Taiwo returned to prominence in a big way Friday and Saturday. Taiwo scored 6273 to win the men’s heptathlon

While Ashton Eaton and Trey Hardee are clearly established veterans, there’s a young crop of multi-event talent coming up quickly and Taiwo’s mark shows he could very easily continue to 

One other note, while Taiwo currently trains at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, California, he is currently not sponsored. His comic book uniforms (he wore a Spiderman top today in his win) are entertaining, but he’s certainly hoping his performance in Boston leads to a sponsorship. 

Felisha Johnson is Ready for Outdoors

After finishing fourth in 2014, Felisha Johnson came up big in the women’s weight throw, tossing a seasonal best of 23.45 to win her first U.S. title in the event. 

At the USATF Outdoor Championships last year, Johnson placed second in the shot put, her primary event outdoors. She tossed 19.18m, which put her at US#2 behind Michelle Carter and World #7. 

Johnson is healthy, confident and ready to get outdoors and put up some great marks this season in the shot put. Keep an eye on the 25 year old as she seeks to take her talent to another level and challenge for an outdoor U.S. title and a medal at the World Championships should she qualify out of the USATF Outdoor Championships. 

Will Claye is Ready to Repeat

Always one to put on a show, Will Claye easily trumped the competition Saturday, winning the men’s long jump with a best of 7.93. While his winning mark was well off where he hoped to hit, his consistency on the final four jumps was impressive.

7.92m, 7.80m, 7.93m, 7.80

Claye mentioned he’s barely jumped in practice yet, as he prepares for a long outdoor season, so to come away with a win shows well. Claye doubles back tomorrow to try and win a stacked men’s triple jump.

Shannon Rowbury is Poised for a Huge Outdoor Season

Shannon Rowbury put on a clinic this indoor season, running one of the fastest mile performances in history, winning time and again and on Saturday she easily pulled away from the field to win the women’s mile. Rowbury held off a late-charging Katie Mackey to take home another national title. The different between this race and a few of her other successes this indoor season was just how tactical the race was.

A 2:26 opening half mile meant a furious finish was sure to happen. When Rowbury took over the lead with just over a quarter mile to go, she surged and never looked back, showing her speed is in fine form, crossing the finish in 4:34.40. As the outdoor season approaches, after she’s done competing in the two mile tomorrow, keep an eye on Rowbury. She had a very impressive season in 2014 and is in even finer form thus far.