University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers to Compete at U.S., Canadian Trials
7/6/2016 12:00:00 AM | Women's Track & Field
| U.S. Olympic Team Trials | |||||||||||
| Date | July 1-10, 2016 | ||||||||||
| Location | Hayward Field | Eugene, Ore. | ||||||||||
| Meet Info | Meet Info | Schedule | Live Results | Live Video | ||||||||||
| Canadian Championships/Rio Trials | |||||||||||
| Date | July 7-10, 2016 | ||||||||||
| Location | Foote Field | Edmonton, Alberta | ||||||||||
| Meet Info | Meet Info | Schedule | Live Results | Live Video | ||||||||||
July 6, 2016
MINNEAPOLIS - Gophers Agnes Esser, Jess Lehman, and Nicolle Murphy and University of Minnesota alumni Gabriele Grunewald and Heather Kampf are set to compete this week.
Esser is slated to compete at the Canadian Track & Field Senior Championships in Edmonton, Alberta, while Lehman, Murphy, Grunewald, and Kampf are in Eugene, Ore., as the U.S. Olympic Team Trials conclude this week.
Gophers Continue Action at U.S. Olympic Trials
Current Gophers Nicolle Murphy (javelin) and Jess Lehman (heptathlon) join Minnesota alumni Gabriele Grunewald (1,500m, 5,000m) and Heather Kampf (1,500m) in action at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., this week.
Following a fourth-place finish in the javelin at the NCAA Championship, Murphy enters the U.S. Olympic Trials with a career-best mark of 55.84m (183-02) to rank second in Minnesota history. A four-time All-American during her Gophers career, Lehman enters the trials after a seventh-place NCAA finish in the heptathlon (5,835 points).
Grunewald qualified in the 800m, 1,500m, and 5,000m but scratched from the 800m. She enters the trials with marks of 4:04.26 in the 1,500m and 15:19.50 in the 5,000m. Kampf is seeded immediately behind Grunewald in the 1,500m at 4:04.46.
The Gophers' remaining schedule at the U.S. Olympic Trials is as follows:
Thursday, July 7
Javelin Qualifying Round, 5:30 p.m. CT (Murphy)
5,000m First Round, 6:20 p.m. CT (Grunewald)
1,500m First Round, 8:26 p.m. CT (Grunewald, Kampf)
Friday, July 8
1,500m Semifinals, 7:03 p.m. CT (TBD, Grunewald, Kampf)
Saturday, July 9
Heptathlon 100m Hurdles, 2:30 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Heptathlon High Jump, 3:30 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Heptathlon Shot Put, 5:30 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Javelin Final, 6 p.m. CT (TBD, Murphy)
Heptathlon 200m, 6:40 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Sunday, July 10
Heptathlon Long Jump, 3:45 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Heptathlon Javelin, 4:45 p.m. CT (Lehman)
Heptathlon 800m, 6:11 p.m. CT (Lehman)
5,000m Final, 6:28 p.m. CT (TBD, Grunewald)
1,500m Final, 7 p.m. CT (TBD, Grunewald, Kampf)
Minnesota alumni Liz Podominick and Jamie Cheever also competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials last week. Podominick ('08) finished fourth in the U.S. discus final, one place out of making the U.S. Olympic Team. Podominick was in eighth (59.67m, 195-09) through three throws, advancing to the final and earning three more attempts. Her best throw of the day came on her fifth attempt where she moved into fourth at 60.07m (197-01); Podominick's final throw of 58.42m (191-08) was not enough to move up.
Meanwhile, Cheever ('09) recorded a time of 10:01.46 to finish eighth in her heat and 24th overall in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the U.S. Olympic Trials. A two-time All-American for the Gophers, Cheever still ranks third in Minnesota program history with a college-best time of 10:11.33 in the 3,000m steeplechase set in 2008.
Esser Set for Canadian Track & Field Championships and Rio Selection Trials
Gophers junior Agnes Esser is slated to compete in both discus and hammer throw at the 2016 Canadian Championships and Rio Selection Trials in Edmonton, Alberta, this week. Esser enters the discus competition as the top seed (57.91m, 190-00), and she is seeded sixth in the hammer (61.00m, 200-01). Esser begins with the qualifying round in hammer throw on Thursday; the discus qualifying round was canceled, so Esser advances straight to the Friday's final. Esser's full competition schedule is as follows:
Thursday, July 7
Hammer Qualifying Round, 8 p.m. CT (Esser)
Friday, July 8
Discus Finals, 1 p.m. CT (Esser)
Saturday, July 9
Hammer Finals, 8:30 p.m. CT (TBD, Esser)
Esser wrapped up her sophomore season with the Gophers as a Second Team All-American after placing 15th in the discus (52.61m, 172-07) at the NCAA Championship. She became Minnesota's program record-holder in the discus at the NCAA West Prelim with a career-best throw of 57.91m (190-00). Esser also ranks third in program history in hammer throw at 61.00m (200-01), a mark that earned her seventh place at this year's Big Ten Championship.
Following the conclusion of the Canadian Championships and Rio Selection Trials, Athletics Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee will unveil Canada's team for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games on Monday, July 11.
Alum Spotakova Heads to European Athletics Championships
Former Gopher Barbora Spotakova is the two-time defending Olympic gold medalist in the javelin after winning the event in 2008 and 2012. She threw a world-leading throw of 66.87m (219-04) to win at the Czech Championships earlier this month and is slated to compete in the javelin at the 2016 European Athletics Championships in Amsterdam, Netherlands, this week. The javelin competition is scheduled for Saturday. Spotakova competed for one season at Minnesota, where she earned All-America honors in 2002 in the javelin and competed at the NCAA Championships in the heptathlon.
Golding, Markland Compete at Jamaican Trials
Senior Kimberly Golding placed ninth in the 100-meter hurdles (13.95 seconds) and Titania Markland finished 14th overall in the 400-meter dash (53.68 seconds) at the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA) National Senior Championships at National Stadium in Kingston, Jamaica, last week.
Up Next: NACAC U23 Championships & IAAF World U20 Championships
Esser has also been selected to compete for Canada at the 2016 NACAC U23 Championships at the athletic track of the National Stadium "Jorge Magico Gonzalez" in San Salvador, El Salvador, July 15-17. The event is put on by the North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletics Association. The hammer throw final is set for 3 p.m. CT with the discus final to follow at 5:05 p.m. CT on Friday, July 15.
In addition, Shanique Wright was named to the Jamaican team for the upcoming IAAF World U20 Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, July 19-24. Wright is scheduled to compete in the triple jump qualifying round at 4:50 p.m. CT on Friday, July 22 with the final to follow at 3:40 p.m. CT on Saturday, July 23. Earlier this summer, Wright finished as triple jump runner-up at the 2016 JAAA National Junior Championships with a jump of 12.83m (42-01.25); she wrapped up the NCAA season as a Second Team All-American honoree with a 12th in triple jump (12.99m, 42-07.50) at the NCAA Championship.
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