Alan Webb Ends season on winning note, Taking Fifth Avenue Mile!

Alan Webb had an amazing track season in 2007. He won the indoor and outdoor titles at US championships. Then Webb won the Gaz de France with the fastest 1,500 meter time of the year. Alan Webb then broke the twenty-five year old American record at the mile, running 3:46.91, and he ran 1,400 meters of the World Champs final nearly perfectly, but faded to eighth over the last hundred meters. He has raced twice since
Osaka, taking eighth and fourth in the World Athletics Final. The race in New York, the Continental Fifth Avenue Mile was to be the end of his season…..

The Continental Fifth Avenue Mile is a series of road mile races, with over 5,000 participants, from age eight to 98! The elite mile for men was a stacked field. From the start, Chris Lukesic, one of Alan Webb’s training partners, took the lead, hitting the 880 in 1:58. After that, Alan Webb moved to the front, with Kevin Sullivan of Canada, last year’s winner, and Jon Rankin, the former UCLA trackster who won the Elmsey Carr Mile Trophy this past summer.
Webb increased his lead over the last 400 meters, again, with Kevin Sullivan looking ready to move. But Webb held his own, winning in 3:52.7. Kevin Sullivan ran 3:52.9 for second and Jon Rankin ran 3;53.7 for third.
On the women’s side, Canada’s Carmen Douma-Hussar won the race by taking the lead after the 880 mark. Molly Huddle had lead at the 440, with New Zealand’s Kim Smith taking the 880 through 2:12.
Carmen Douma-Hussar lead the field to its fastest women’s mile in a decade, running 4:22.8, her second Fifth Avenue win. Amy Mortimer took second in 4:23.1, with last year’s winner, Sarah Hall, in third in 4:23.7.
Webb commented afterwards that he will take off a few weeks, watch some football and begin his training for Beijing 2008.
For a related story on the IAAF website, please click:
http://www.iaaf.org/news/Kind=2/newsId=41914.html

Author

Larry Eder
Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys. Theme song: Greg Allman, " I'm no Angel."
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