The Atlanta Track Club Elite team traveled to Nashville, Tennessee for The Music City Track Carnival on June 4-5, 2022. The meet is now part of the American Track League series and was formerly known as the Music City Distance Carnival (MCDC). Its depth in the distance events has expanded to the field and sprint events with reigning world and Olympic champions competing and now is part of the World Athletics Continental Silver Tour. To kick off the weekend on Saturday Emma Grace Hurley competed in the women's 5000m and was the top American finisher in the race finishing 4th in 16:12.09.
The women's 800m was the opening event for the elites on a sunny, warm Sunday morning. Just like the heat, the pacemaker set a scorching pace of 56.45 for the first lap, but Olivia Baker stayed close behind and finished second in 1:59.80, a personal best. Coming on strong in the last 100m Sadi Henderson moved up five places to finish 3rd in 2:00.64. The two were the top two American finishers in the event. Gemma Finch placed 7th in her heat with a 2:03.93, her second fastest at the distance this outdoor season. Rachel Walters had paced Baker to a 56.45 first lap earlier in the day, and Baker returned the favor in Walters' 800m. Walters kept up the pace and won her heat in 2:05.50, a personal best for the season.
The men's 800m race had six countries represented and Shane Streich finished 9th in the first heat with a 1:49.23. The following heat included Daniel Nixon, who finished 7th with a time of 1:48.29, and Abraham Alvarado, who finished in 8th with a 1:49.30. The women's 1500m featured Allie Wilson and Yolanda Ngarambe and was the next event on the track. Wilson comfortably positioned herself in the top 3 early on, resulting in a personal best and 4th place overall finish with a time of 4:05.49. Ngarambe came in 9th place with a time of 4:08.71. In the men's 100m, Samson Colebrooke finished 8th in the first round with a time of 10.61 after having raced twice the previous day in Florida.
Less than 2 weeks ago, the Prefontaine Classic was held in Eugene, Oregon on May 28, 2022. The Diamond League meeting featured world class competition and world record attempts at multiple distances. On a wet and windy afternoon, Allie Wilson toed the line in the 800m against many of the world’s very best half milers for her Diamond League debut. Wilson finished 7th in a strong race with a time of 2:00.15, her second fastest 800m of the season. Below, Wilson has shared some insight on her first DL experience.
In three words, how would you describe your first Diamond League experience?
“ Ok I can’t come up with 3 words but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed in how I raced on Saturday, however, it was a good learning experience, and will hopefully be more prepared for the next one!”
What were your mental preparations for the race and how did you feel during it?
“Going into the race both mentally and physically I was in a really good place. I have been putting a lot more work into my mindset going into races this year as know it has been making a huge difference. I was more than ready, but still allowed myself to shy away from everything I know once the gun went off and I just didn’t execute well or run my own race.”
What will you do with this racing experience as the season progresses?
“Although it’s never fun to have a bad race, I learned lessons that at the end of the day I would rather learn now than in a championship setting. I still feel very new to racing at this caliber and know there is a lot more I can work on, and I think that is the exciting part.”
NEXT UP:
June 12, 2022 New York Grand Prix
Streaming: NBC
Meet Info Link: 2022 USATF New York Grand Prix - Sunday, June 12 Events – 2022 USATF New York Grand Prix nygp.globalathletics.com
