Some good track news related to Troy
June 28, 2008
from Troy media relations…
...EUGENE, Ore. - Troy University junior O’Darien Bassett jumped his way into Sunday’s final of the long jump competition of the U.S. Olympic Trials at Hayward Field late Friday night.
Bassett, the top collegiate athlete left in the field, jumped a distance of 7.89 meters to finish ninth after the preliminaries and gain a spot in the finals. The junior found himself on the outside-looking in before his last jump of the night. Going into his last jump, Bassett was in 17th place with a jump of 7.63 meters. However, Bassett’s last jump had the junior checking the scoreboard to see if he qualified for the finals until the distance of 7.89 meters (25’10 3/4") appeared on the scoreboard, securing his spot in the finals.
The leader in the event is Miguel Pate of Nike, with a distance of 8.24 meters. The top three finishers in the event earn a spot on the U.S. Olympic Team for the 2008 Olympics in Bejing.
The finals of the long jump competition take place Sunday afternoon at 3:15 pm and can be seen on NBC’s coverage of the event at 7 pm Sunday night.
Meanwhile, Troy University senior Tawanna Meadows received official word Friday that she has been invited to run for the United States U-23 National Team that will compete in Mexico in July.
The senior rain in her first United States Championship Friday night at the Olympic Trials, finishing with a time fo 11.48 seconds in the 100-meter dash. The time, however, missed the mark needed to qualify for the quarterfinals of the Trials in the event.
Meadows will participate for the NACAC team that will represent the United States in Toluca, Mexico.
