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IAAF.org: USA Olympic Trials – DAY 2 – Jones and Cantwell crash out
All favourites go through – men’s 800m
2004-07-12
Sacramento, California, USA - On the second day of the US Olympic Trials (10 July), there were but three finals. But two of them saw big names crashing out of Olympic team selection as shot putter Christian Cantwell and defending Olympic women’s 100 metres champion Marion Jones each failed to finish in the top three.Colander takes surprise win - Jones fifth - in
100m
For Jones, who saw half the competitive field defeating her as she finished only fifth, it was a matter of never having completely reached the Olympic-level fitness needed to achieve her season goals. There were times this year when Jones had shown flashes of her previous form, but on a high-pressure weekend when three closely-spaced races were required, the flaws became evident.
Torri Edwards and Gail Devers won the race out of the blocks, and Edwards quickly assumed a noticeable lead which she held until well after the halfway point. Running immediately to her left, LaTasha Colander used the same template which had been so successful in previous rounds, coming from a position behind the leaders, pulling even with Edwards, and then passing her with a strong finish just before the tape to score a major win, in 10.97 to Edwards’ 11.02.
Again, Lauryn Williams was hampered by a bad start, but she showed great resolve and fought her way back to a third-place 11.10, just nudging two-time Olympic champion Gail Devers (11.11) and defending Olympic champion Marion Jones (11.14) off the team.
The 27-year-old Colander has shown a great breadth of running repertoire, winning the 2000 Trials title in the 400 metres and now adding a second title in the 100. But she admitted that throughout her competitive career, she has always seen challenges in events in which she isn’t specializing.
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