“I think the conditions are as good as they can get today,” said pole-vaulter Dean Starkey, who in statements before his event accurately predicted the 1999 adidas Oregon Track Classic, held May 15 at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon.

US pole vault record holder Jeff Hartwig was looking for an improved performance over the previous year’s meet. “This meet is a chance for redemption,” noted Hartwig. “Nobody vaulted well last year.” Hartwig would have to look elsewhere for redemption as former record holder Lawrence Johnson would win the event with a vault of 18’ 4 ½”.

CBS commentator Dwight Stones offered his thoughts on the nationally televised meet and the current status of the sport in America. “These kind of events bring the sport to a new level. We have found that we’ve been able to bring a big crowd to the sport with good television coverage. You can’t have a track meet that meanders all day long. In Oregon, you can have a day long meet, which is a testament to the fans in this state. But for a national television audience, any meet over 2 or 3 hours is just too long and it’s asking too much. Therefore, the meet schedules have to be shortened somewhat. You will probably only see a men’s 5000 in its entirety if there is an American who is running for a medal. Like NASCAR, the runners are just turning left, but there’s no crashes in track & field.”

With sunny skies welcoming athletes to the track in the early events, America’s premier steeplechaser, Mark Croghan, took the lead in his specialty from the 200-meter mark. Challenged midway through the race by Canadian Joel Bourgeois, Croghan held on to win with a finish of 8:30.08. “I was ready to run well today, but the pace was a bit slower than I wanted,” said Croghan. “You really couldn’t ask for better conditions today for the steeple. From here it’s on to Eugene [for the US National Championships] in June.”

Eschewing caution for a victory, the women in the 800 meters saw a pace was fast and furious. Cutting to the inside early, Meredith Rainey Valmon led the field through the first quarter in 59 seconds. Mozambique’s Tina Paulino, surging at the 200 mark, nipped Valmon at the wire to take the win with a 2:02.37. “I was very happy with my win today,” said Paulino. “It was a bit cool today, because I’m used to the warm temperatures in Georgia. I thought the pace was going to be fast, so I held back to see what kind of kick I had in the last 200.” Paulino, a teammate of Maria Mutola’s from Mozambique, has plans to make her country’s Olympic team for the Sydney games.

The early pace in the women’s 5000 was set by reigning US cross-country champ Deena Drossin, who was tailed by Canada’s Kathy Butler and Mexican Olympian Adrianna Fernandez. With three laps to go, Fernandez surged to a huge lead and was buoyed by the enthusiastic crowd. With her time of 15:14.33, Fernandez shattered the old meet record of 15:32 held by Amy Rudolph. Pre-race favorite Elva Dryer struggled late to finish fourth in 15:31. Fernandez, coached by Mexican running icon Rodolpho Gomez, who recently ran an incredible 2:24 at the London Marathon, has her sights set on running the 5000 and 10,000 at the Pan American Games in Canada, and a shot at the Mexican Olympic Marathon team.

A late entrant to the meet, Fernandez’s Mexican teammate David Galvan, was frustrated at the slow early pace. “The conditions were good, but I was alone early, and nobody else wanted to push” lamented Galvan through an interpreter. In spite of the slow pace, Galvan was able to crank out a 13:33, a time fast enough to automatically qualify him for the Pan Am Games. After that meet, Galvan, 26, intends to shoot for the World Championships in Seville.

Temperatures had cooled significantly trackside by the time Larry Wade won the 110-meter hurdles in 13.38. “All the athletes have to run in the weather,” said Wade. “My coaches train me for any track conditions. And my competition is the best in the world. The first four or five hurdles were tough, but I smoothed out my form as the race progressed.” Also looking surprisingly smooth was two-time Olympic gold medal winner Roger Kingdom, who captured second in 13.52, and the recently often-injured Allen Johnson who came home in fourth with a 13.71.

Poland’s Anna Jakubczak fought off strong races from Leah Pells and Shane Culpepper to take the women’s 1500 in 4:13.18. “Training at altitude in Albuquerque has helped my racing,” said Jakubczak. “My focus right now is on the 1500, and this race really has helped my attitude toward this season.” Notably absent was pre-race favorite Regina Jacobs, who failed to show for the meet.

Surprising sprint fans was Beverly McDonald, the upset winner in the 100 meters, bettering Inger Miller by 0.04 seconds with a win in 11.17. “I’m just mad right now, and upset with my performance,” noted Miller. “At this level, I have to be prepared to compete in any conditions, and today I just didn’t have my usual edge.”

Antonio Pettigrew overcame physical problems to win the men’s 400 meters. “I’ve been facing a lot of injuries this year, with some tendonitis behind my knee, and I didn’t get out as fast this year, but I’m happy with my race,” said Pettigrew, who won with a 44.91 over Brazil’s Sanderlie Parrela. Pettigrew is looking forward to a “quality year, hopefully getting together with the same four guys who set the world record last year in the 4 x 400 meters.”

Olympian Ato Boldon surprised none of the spectators with his 10.15 win in the 100 meters. “For me, I’ve run all of these 9.8’s, and they don’t always serve me well. I prefer to have a solid race, even if it’s a bit slower. If I run a really fast race it hurts a lot the next week.” Boldon is heading for some races against Frankie Fredericks in Stuttgart, Finland, and Athens. “This was a good training run today,” said Boldon.

Canadian Kevin Sullivan felt great about his win in the 1500 meters. “Once things got settled down after the first few laps, I felt really great at 1000 meters. Then it was just a matter of hanging on from there.” Sullivan broke the tape in 3:58.69, followed closely by David Krummenaker in 3:58.94. Veteran runner Jason Pyrah caught a few errant elbows and was jostled out of the race with 300 meters left to the finish. “I was just out of it mentally today, but this was a good learning experience for me,” said Pyrah, who finished fifth in 4:04.32. Pyrah is considering a jump up in distance to the steeplechase or 5000 for Sydney, but hasn’t made any final decisions about his racing future.

Fans were treated to some great early-season performances and top-notch competition. Most athletes interviewed were planning on meets scheduled in the next few weeks for St. Louis and Eugene.

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