University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, March 6
Long Beach, CA
All Day
University of Minnesota
at
Beach Opener
Players Mentioned
Sprints
/ Men's Track & Field
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Sprints
/ Men's Track & Field
Sprints
/ Men's Track & Field
Distance
/ Men's Cross Country
Sprints/Jumps
/ Men's Track & Field
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Sprints
/ Men's Track & Field
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Distance
/ Men's Cross Country
Barmes, Caleb Highlight the Gophers Outdoor Opener
3/7/2026 6:40:00 PM | Men's Cross Country, Men's Track & Field
Minnesota's men began the 2026 outdoor season at the Beach Opener.
MINNEAPOLIS – The University of Minnesota men's track and field team kicked off the 2026 outdoor season with a trip to Long Beach, Calif., at the Beach Opener. Anthony Barmes led the way on Friday in the men's hammer throw while John Caleb stole the show on the track on Saturday to help the Maroon and Gold secure 11 collegiate victories over the two-day competition.
Friday's debut of Anthony Barmes put him straight into the Gopher hammer throw record books. Barmes made his official debut in the Maroon and Gold with a 72.62m (238-3) showing on attempt two to become No. 4 all-time at Minnesota. Barmes made his debut after a career at Drake where he was a two-time Second Team All-American and held a previous lifetime best of 71.07m (233-2). Overall at the Beach Opener Barmes was the runner-up behind professional Trey Knight's 76.15m (249-10) winning throw and held off teammate Angelos Mantzouranis' 72.06m (236-5) who finished third.
Day two of the Beach Opener was led by true freshman John Caleb of Ogun State, Nigeria put forth a winning 100m time of 10.22 (+0.6 m/s) and then followed that up with a runner-up finish in the 200m with a windy time of 20.37 (+4.1 m/s). Caleb's wind-legal 100m time of 10.22 puts him at No. 3 all-time in Minnesota history in just his first competition in the Maroon and Gold.
In the field both Charles Godfred and Hakeem Ford picked up wins in their respective jumping events. Godfred, a two-time Big Ten champion, needed just three attempts to secure his win with a final mark of 7.62m (25-0). Ford's victory in the triple jump came on his sixth and final attempt of the competition with a 15.65m (51-4 1/4). Ford's season-opening leap was over a foot further than his first competition from his 2025 season where he finished as a Second Team All-American.
The lone relay win in Long Beach for the 'U' came in the final event of the weekend, the men's 4x400m relay. The quartet of Joe Manser, Max McQuide Ahmed Khadar and Ramy Ayoub combined to stop the clock in 3:07.80 to easily win the meet by nearly four seconds over Maryland (3:11.58).
Other notable individual wins for Minnesota included: Nolan Sutter's lifetime best 9:05.37 in the 3000m steeplechase, Emmett Gerres' 1500m win in 3:47.79, Ramy Ayoub's winning time of 47.11 in the men's 400m and Tony Nelson's lifetime best of 17.58m (57-8 1/4) won the shot put.
For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota cross country and track and field team on X.com (Twitter) and Instagram (@GopherCCTF) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the season.
Friday's debut of Anthony Barmes put him straight into the Gopher hammer throw record books. Barmes made his official debut in the Maroon and Gold with a 72.62m (238-3) showing on attempt two to become No. 4 all-time at Minnesota. Barmes made his debut after a career at Drake where he was a two-time Second Team All-American and held a previous lifetime best of 71.07m (233-2). Overall at the Beach Opener Barmes was the runner-up behind professional Trey Knight's 76.15m (249-10) winning throw and held off teammate Angelos Mantzouranis' 72.06m (236-5) who finished third.
Day two of the Beach Opener was led by true freshman John Caleb of Ogun State, Nigeria put forth a winning 100m time of 10.22 (+0.6 m/s) and then followed that up with a runner-up finish in the 200m with a windy time of 20.37 (+4.1 m/s). Caleb's wind-legal 100m time of 10.22 puts him at No. 3 all-time in Minnesota history in just his first competition in the Maroon and Gold.
In the field both Charles Godfred and Hakeem Ford picked up wins in their respective jumping events. Godfred, a two-time Big Ten champion, needed just three attempts to secure his win with a final mark of 7.62m (25-0). Ford's victory in the triple jump came on his sixth and final attempt of the competition with a 15.65m (51-4 1/4). Ford's season-opening leap was over a foot further than his first competition from his 2025 season where he finished as a Second Team All-American.
The lone relay win in Long Beach for the 'U' came in the final event of the weekend, the men's 4x400m relay. The quartet of Joe Manser, Max McQuide Ahmed Khadar and Ramy Ayoub combined to stop the clock in 3:07.80 to easily win the meet by nearly four seconds over Maryland (3:11.58).
Other notable individual wins for Minnesota included: Nolan Sutter's lifetime best 9:05.37 in the 3000m steeplechase, Emmett Gerres' 1500m win in 3:47.79, Ramy Ayoub's winning time of 47.11 in the men's 400m and Tony Nelson's lifetime best of 17.58m (57-8 1/4) won the shot put.
For more information on the Gophers, continue to check back with GopherSports.com. Keep up with the University of Minnesota cross country and track and field team on X.com (Twitter) and Instagram (@GopherCCTF) and on Facebook, so you do not miss any content during the season.
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Friday, July 18
Gophers Finish 1-2 in Hammer Throw
Monday, June 16