WACO, Texas, April 19, 2008 (AFP) - American Jeremy Wariner, double world champion and Olympic 400m gold medallist, clocked the fastest 400m of 2008 Saturday at a university athletics meeting here.
Wariner clocked 44.56sec to set the pace so far in the young Olympic season.
American Sanya Richards, the women’s 400m Olympic champion, posted the fastest women’s time of the year when she clocked 50.47sec in her first race of the season at the distance.
On February 21, Wariner ran his first 400m of the season in Melbourne, Australia, clocking 44.82sec.
His time on Saturday eclipsed the mark of 44.72 posted by Lashawn Merritt on March 28.
Richards improved on the 51.22 posted by Mary Wineberg on April 5 in Cincinnati.
Wariner and Richards, expected to be among the United States’ gold medal contenders at the Beijing Games in August, were competing in the annual meeting at Baylor University, organized in honor of Michael Johnson, holder of the 200m (19.32) and 400m (43.18) world records.
Do you think this gives much insight into Wariner’s shape? It must have been around this time last year he ran half a second quicker in Osaka. It could have been a couple of weeks later. But then you could argue the Olympics are a week or two earlier than the WCs were last year so he may want to be a couple weeks ahead of where he was last year. Of course I don’t know what the conditions were like in Waco, but I would assume Texas in late April is fairly warm?? I would consider the level of competition in the meet, but last year in Osaka he ran away with the race, so I’m not sure how much that matters. I probably wouldn’t be asking this if he was still with Clyde Hart though!
Too difficult to assess: Wind readings fluctuated wildly between -0.9 to +4.8 m/ps.
If Wariner had anything like a 4.8 in his face in the first 200m, that would surely slow him up considerably. Or he may have just cruised the backstraight and waited until he picked up the tailwind to work home.
Men 400 Meter Dash Invitational
NCAA Reg: # 47.20
Hart/Patter: ! 43.75 1997 Michael Johnson, Unattached
World: $ 43.18 8/26/1999 Michael Johnson, USA
American: @ 43.18 8/26/1999 Michael Johnson, USA
US OLY A: A 45.00
US OLY B: B 45.95
Name Year School Finals H#
1 121 Betters, LeJerald Baylor 45.61B 2
2 136 Iglehart-Summers, Qu Baylor 46.36# 2
3 256 Quow, Renny South Plains 46.43# 1
4 197 Courtney, Michael Sam Houston St. 46.54# 1
5 321 Beckwith, Eddie Texas-Arlington 47.04# 1
6 37 Johnson, Jordan Abilene Christia 47.38 1
7 330 Fujiwara, Takeshi Texas-Arlington 47.71 1
– 50 Wariner, Jeremy Adidas X44.56 2
– 167 Williamson, Darold Nike X45.24 2
– 169 Ayre, Sanjay Puma X45.69 2
– 170 Williams, Andrae Reebok X46.87 1
– 369 Barrett, DeWayne Unattached X47.12 2
– 376 Hewitt, Zwede Unattached X47.29 2
– 378 Jacob, Johnny Unattached X48.35 1
That 44.0 was an anomally. He mentioned in the post race interview that he didn’t feel he was in that type of shape and that the track was fast. His races after that confirmed it with a bunch of 44.7s i think …
Dazed, I know you “know” sprinting but I reckon it’s still too hard to make a call on such “anomalies” because we don’t know whether coach Hart made the call to hammer Wariner and race him under a load, to prepare him to go his 43.4 in round three at Osaka. That 44.0 was what it was. Thereafter, you need to be on the inside to know why the times went backwards. … but it’s good to speculate anyway 
i definetly was surprised he went “only” 44.5x after people said how good he looked doing a 43.4x split at Texas Relays. i was anticipating a 44.1 or better. although his speed is up from last year at this time, he ran 20.3x already and lasy yr he was around 20.5 or 20.6. i “read” on another site that he went through in 21.00 for 200m.
maybe that says something about his training. i know its been said that Ford does a little more speed than Clyde Hart (i guess it showed in that 20.3), but otherwise the training is supposed to be the same.
No Wonder
Hammy is no whammy for Wariner
By CHAREAN WILLIAMSStar-Telegram staff writer
WACO – Even with a tight hamstring, quartermiler Jeremy Wariner had a leg up on the competition in the Michael Johnson Classic on Saturday.
Wariner won the 400 meters in 44.56 seconds, the fastest time in the world this year, despite a minor strained right hamstring. Darold Williamson, Wariner’s training partner and former Baylor teammate, was second in 45.24.
Wariner said his hamstring tightened up after the Texas Relays on April 5. He has been doing treatment on it since, including after his race Saturday.
“The whole race, it was just tight,” said Wariner, who withdrew from the 4x400 relay Saturday night. “…I’m happy with what my time was, because of it. I know once I get back to 100 percent, I’ll be able to go even faster. Right now, I’d say I’m about 80 percent.”
Still, Wariner ran faster than he did in February at his only other 400 of the season when he posted a 44.82 in Melbourne, Australia. He also was faster than this time a year ago when he ran a 44.66 at the Michael Johnson Classic.
It also topped the season-opening 400 of his rival, LaShawn Merritt, who last month ran a then-world-best 44.72 at the Raleigh Relays.
Wariner, though, had hoped to be even faster.
Wariner, the defending Olympic gold medalist, has openly talked about breaking Johnson’s world record of 43.18. Wariner ran a personal-best 43.45 last year.
The Arlington Lamar graduate will not run another open 400 until the adidas Classic on May 18 in Carson, Calif.
Sanya Richards ran her first 400 of the season and signaled that she is back by running a 50.47 to dust her competition. It was the fastest time in the world this year and broke the Hart/Patterson Track and Field Complex record of 51.25 set in 1999 by Texas’ Suzianne Reid.
“We were both hoping she would get under 50, but without the competition, and the wind… was a good opening,” said Clyde Hart, Richards’ coach. “She always has high expectations, but it’s the fastest she’s run on this track.”
Richards missed six meets last year with Behcet’s disease, a chronic condition in which the body’s immune system becomes overactive. Then, at the 2007 USA Outdoor Championships, Richards lost a 400 for the first time since the 2005 World Championships.
The former University of Texas All-American had been the top-ranked quartermiler in the world in 2006, winning all 13 of her races. On Saturday, she addressed the fans at the Michael Johnson Classic, telling them on the public address system that she is “definitely going to bring home that [Olympic] gold medal in the 400 meters.”
cjwilliams@star-telegram.com
Charean Williams, 817-390-7760
That is not good. The true value of a master coach is unveiled when things stop being all roses.
the lesson from this is that he was sub-par but still managed to run the fastest time in the world so far.
Much like when Ben had a strained calf and lost to Carl Lewis then came back and smoked him later in the year. i think it was in 87.
Ben had a strained calf but still won anyway- just not by as much as usual.
my bad, i was a little hazy on the details.
Charlie, what do you expect JW to run if he were 100%?
at BEns level…1% off…and you get dusted…
but Ben flogged Carl many times…
ciao
Because of the change made- I have no idea what to expect.
Can’t help noticing that JW ran the fastest time in the world in the 400 in Melbourne, the world lead in the 200 a few weeks ago at Texas-Arlington, the world lead again in Waco…and now he has a pulled/strained hamstring.
But one of those master coaches–Bobby Kersee (this is Allyson Felix and Michelle Perry, but also Kerron Clement and Shawn Crawford now)–coaches at the same UCLA track where I go. His people haven’t even raced yet (before Mt. Sac) this year. Michelle Perry did plan to race the 200 at the UCLA meet last weekend, but bailed.
Too much too soon for Wariner?
Not if this was his (and Hart’s) pattern all along.
Bobby always tended to race sparingly early on.
hows crawford training coming along with a new coach and training system??
Why is that?
Depends on the timing of the training plan that has worked for them in the past.
Don’t Hart’s guys have a record of injuries in the early season, that’s what I had been told many years ago…
Apparently due to the change in intensity from training to racing.
There was a significant history of injuries but that might have more to do with pre-set times, which vary in stress according to the ability of the athlete. I can’t really answer that with any reliability but my suspicion would be that, when the speed is lower, the risk of injury would be magnified by longer periods away from racing.