The men’s 10,000-meter US Championship lived up to the hype as a heart-pounding race. A slow opening pace allowed for a blistering close and drama at the finish. Woody Kincaid closed hard to win the race in 28:23.01. Joe Klecker continued his strong season with a second place finish to also qualify for the World Championships team. As for third place, Sean McGorty out-kicked the American Record Holder over 10,000m, Grant Fisher, for third.
A Classic Championship Race
This race gave the viewer a classic championship feel.
It went out fairly slow, clicking of 68-70 seconds per lap. That is a very comfortable pace for many of the top runners in the field, who have run in the low 27-minute range or faster. For their PB pace, they would typically click of about 65 seconds per lap. This meant that everyone nervously waited as they bounced through lane 1 in a crowded line.
A quicker lap of 65 seconds at 8,000m (roughly five miles) made the field string out just a bit. This was only a preview for the surge that Fisher would place a few laps later.
When Fisher made a move at 8,800m, the whole field could feel it. He dropped a hard 60.44s lap and followed it up with a 59.91s lap. It made the field thin out greatly, however, the major players were all still there.
Fisher made this move in an attempt to take the kick out of the other athletes in the field. Fisher ended up taking the kick out of his own legs as the windy night weighed heavily on him while he was leading and caused him to fatigue quickly. He ultimately faded to fourth over the final 200 meters while Kincaid, Klecker and McGorty stormed home.
This race provided a sit and kick style with a twist. There wasn’t just a blazing last lap, which was run in 54 seconds by Kincaid, but there was also a hard close from 1,600 meters out. Kincaid closed that final section in 4:01, which is extraordinarily fast for the end of a 10,000m race. With some shoving and nudging throughout, the race was a battle all the way home.
An Elite Era of US Distance Running?
What particularly sticks out about this race is the quality of athletes that are upfront. They are not only some of the best in the country, but are some of the best in the world.
All of the top four finishers could be medal contenders at the World Championships in August. Each of them have help rewrite the US distance record book. Kincaid, Klecker, and Fisher all boast sub-13 personal bests over 5,000m, as well as top-10 all-time US marks in the 10,000m. McGorty is not far off either with 13:06 and 27:18 personal bests.
Even more impressive than the PBs being thrown down, is how well that the athletes compete on the international stage. Last year, all of the 10,000m runners from the United States finished in the top-12 at the World Championships. With many of the same names on the slate for this year, almost all of which have set shiny new PBs, even better placement could be on deck.
Some Questions Remain
Both Kincaid and Klecker came into the race with the World Championship time standard in the 10,000m, meaning they are already eligible to represent Team USA at the World Championships. Sean McGorty, however, does not currently have the standard.
Although McGorty does not currently have the time standard, he has until July 30 to hit the time. He could find some sort of fast race to do so between now and then.
Another option for McGorty is to pursue a higher world ranking. Athletes are able to qualify in if their world ranking in the event is high enough. This is based off of a scoring system of how an athlete places in races throughout their season. McGorty’s ranking will certainly rise as a result of this race, so it will be interesting to see if it is enough to get him in to the World Championships.
If McGorty were to not meet the qualifying standard for the World Championships, the spot would be given to the next athlete in line with the time standard. This would be Grant Fisher. It would be a wild turn of events for Fisher to end up on the team through this route. Both athletes have the resume to represent the United States at a very high level on the international stage.
It will certainly be interesting to see how this selection process plays out over the next month.
Moving Forward
It will be exciting to see how the US men can do in the 10,000m at the World Championships. With another strong team being put together, the United States’ first men’s World Championship medal in the 10,000m could be on deck.
Make sure to check out the rest of the US Championships on CNBC or Peacock this week. There will certainly be more action in store as more athletes compete to represent the United States at the World Championships.
Stay tuned for further professional Track & Field content, including meet previews, race analysis, and season projections.
Featured image courtesy of Chuck Aragon.
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