University of Minnesota Athletics
Wednesday, June 9
Eugene, OR
TBA
University of Minnesota
at
NCAA Outdoor Championships
Players Mentioned
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Distance
/ Men's Track & Field
Multi-Events
/ Men's Track & Field
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Photo by: NCAA Photos via Getty Images
Zaltos Leads Gophers on NCAA Day One
6/9/2021 10:22:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Men's Track & Field, Women's Cross Country, Women's Track & Field
Kostas Zaltos placed third in men's hammer throw at the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
EUGENE, Ore. -- Kostas Zaltos led the Golden Gopher track & field program on opening day of the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, securing a third-place finish in men's hammer throw in his NCAA debut for the Maroon & Gold at Hayward Field on Wednesday.
Zaltos recorded a career-best mark of 71.21m (233-07 ft.) to improve on his mark at second in Minnesota history and place third at the national meet. The Kilkis, Greece native won six hammer throw titles during the 2021 outdoor season, including the Big Ten Conference title. He finished as runner-up at the NCAA West Prelim before placing third at the NCAA Championships.
Kyle Atkinson joined Zaltos in making his NCAA debut and finished 21st in men's shot put. Atkinson recorded a mark of 17.45m (57-03 ft.), shy of his season-best throw of 19.53m (64-01.00 ft.), which ranks fifth on Minnesota's all-time list.
Wednesday's competition also saw Alec Basten punch his ticket to Friday's final in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase. Basten advanced automatically by placing third in his heat in 8:37.18, which ranked 11th in the two semifinals overall.
Teddy Frid competed in the first five events of the NCAA decathlon on Wednesday as well. Halfway through the competition, Frid is in 17th place with 3,781 points. His best finish of the day was a 10th-place showing in high jump at 1.95m (6-04.75 ft.). His highest-scoring event of the day was the 100 meters where he picked up 808 points after finishing 19th in 11.24 seconds. Frid also placed 13th in long jump (6.94m, 22-09.25 ft.), 16th in the 400 meters (50.64), and 20th in the shot put (12.40m, 40-08.25 ft.).
Action continues at the NCAA Championships Thursday through Saturday.
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Zaltos recorded a career-best mark of 71.21m (233-07 ft.) to improve on his mark at second in Minnesota history and place third at the national meet. The Kilkis, Greece native won six hammer throw titles during the 2021 outdoor season, including the Big Ten Conference title. He finished as runner-up at the NCAA West Prelim before placing third at the NCAA Championships.
Kyle Atkinson joined Zaltos in making his NCAA debut and finished 21st in men's shot put. Atkinson recorded a mark of 17.45m (57-03 ft.), shy of his season-best throw of 19.53m (64-01.00 ft.), which ranks fifth on Minnesota's all-time list.
Wednesday's competition also saw Alec Basten punch his ticket to Friday's final in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase. Basten advanced automatically by placing third in his heat in 8:37.18, which ranked 11th in the two semifinals overall.
Teddy Frid competed in the first five events of the NCAA decathlon on Wednesday as well. Halfway through the competition, Frid is in 17th place with 3,781 points. His best finish of the day was a 10th-place showing in high jump at 1.95m (6-04.75 ft.). His highest-scoring event of the day was the 100 meters where he picked up 808 points after finishing 19th in 11.24 seconds. Frid also placed 13th in long jump (6.94m, 22-09.25 ft.), 16th in the 400 meters (50.64), and 20th in the shot put (12.40m, 40-08.25 ft.).
Action continues at the NCAA Championships Thursday through Saturday.
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