Two Oregon athletes qualified for the Olympics and one Oregon athlete suffered a devastating defeat on Monday during the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials.
During the javelin final, Cyrus Hostetler pumped up the crowd at Hayward Field by beginning to clap before he was about to take his fifth throw. When the crowd began clapping and picking up rhythm, he unleashed a throw that would be the furthest throw of the competition at 273 feet, 1 inch.
“I definitely knew that the only way that I was going to throw far is to really get that crowd behind me and kind of absorb the energy of Hayward Field,” said Hostetler.
In celebration, he ran across the track, slightly disrupting the men’s 5,000-meter, to hug his coach, Christina Sherwin, who was a volunteer coach at Oregon while he was there.
“She is definitely the reason why I’ve thrown so far and done so well this year and in years past,” Hostetler said. “I just wanted to give her a big hug. Everything goes to her.”
Behind him, in second place, was Curtis Thompson. On his first throw, Thompson threw 271-11, missing the Olympic standard by 12 centimeters. He wasn’t able to improve from there, so Thompson did not reach the qualifying standard and will not be able to compete at the Olympics.
Third place finisher Riley Dolezal finished with a distance of 261-4 to round out the podium, but also missed the qualifying standard. He fouled his last two throws, so he also wasn’t able to improve on his fourth throw and earn the standard.
Because of this, accompanying Hostetler to Rio will be another former Duck, Sam Crouser. Crouser finished fourth with a throw of 256-1, but had already eclipsed the Olympic standard earlier this season, meaning he will be able to compete in Rio despite missing out on a top three finish.
“I wasn’t throwing as far as I wanted, but it was better than what it has been throughout the year,” Crouser said. He began training in February, which was later than he wanted, due to tendinitis. Because of that, his performance this season hasn’t met his own expectations.
Later in the day, during the women’s 800 meter final, Raevyn Rogers looked to be in good position to make the Olympic team. She was in second place through the first lap, but around the 600 meter mark, Brenda Martinez and Alysia Montano clipped shoes, sending Montano to the ground and knocking Rogers off her stride.
“I just remember getting grabbed,” said Rogers. “I got pulled back, but things like that happen for a reason.”
The collision took Montano out of the race entirely, and effected the performance of several other runners, including Rogers. of Kate Grace was able to coast through the finish line and win the race in 1 minute, 59.10 seconds. Behind her was Ajee Wilson and Chrishuna Williams, finishing in 1:59.51 and 1:59.59, respectively. Rogers finished in fifth in 2:00.59.
“I had to mature and really consider myself one of them and not underestimate abilities on my age and my situation going into the race,” Rogers said.