Adam Goucher on Road
Adam Goucher of Portland, Ore., is on the road this weekend, competing in the New York City Half-Marathon at 7 a.m. Sunday. He's racing on the roads just three weeks after running in the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials 10,000-meter final, where he finished seventh in Eugene, Ore.
A press release from the New York Road Runners:
A galaxy of international stars, including 2008 Olympic marathoners
Catherine Ndereba of Kenya, Benita Johnson of Australia, Hendrick
Ramaala of South Africa, and Mada Perez of Mexico have entered
the NYC Half-Marathon Presented by NIKE.
"Even more than a major international race, this year's NYC Half
provides a pre-game glimpse at some of our sport's favorites as they
head into Beijing," said race director Mary Wittenberg said. "We welcome Catherine, Benita,
Hendrick, Mada stars in their own right to our July running summit of
Olympians."
Perez, 28, finished six seconds behind winner Hilda Kibet in 32:49 on
June 7 at the NYRR New York Mini 10K. Coached by German Silva, the 1994
and 1995 New York City Marathon winner, Perez set the Mexican marathon
mark of 2:22:59 in finishing fourth at the 2006 Chicago Marathon.
Also entered are last year's IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships
silver medalist Patrick Makau and his Kenyan countryman Felix Limo.
Makau, 23, is returning to New York after capturing the Healthy Kidney
10K crown in Central Park in May and will be putting a four-race
winning streak at the half-marathon (13.1-mile) distance on the line.
Limo, 27, is one of the premier marathon runners in the world, with
World Marathon Majors Series crowns at Berlin (2004), Chicago (2005),
and London (2006).
On the women's side, Yuri Kano, 29, of Japan, who took fourth place in
the NYC Half in each of the last two years, returns fresh off a
personal best of 1:08:57, set in winning the Sapporo Half-Marathon.
Athletes will vie for prize money of more than $70,000, with the male and female winners each receiving $10,000.
Posted by: pates on 7/24/2008 at 8:42 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
New Equipment Manager
Former collegiate and professional equipment
manager Chris Garner has joined the Minnesota Duluth men's program in that
position. He accepted a job offer July 6 and has been working since July 14.
Garner, 30, a native of
Garner has worked as a volunteer, assistant
or full-time equipment manager for the
The
"Being at UMD is a dream job because it's the
best of both worlds for me," Garner said Wednesday. "It's a great program with
a good tradition, and in the best league outside of the NHL. And I love camping
and backpacking and this is a great part
of the state for that."
Also, new UMD assistant coach Brett Larson is expected to travel to Slovakia next month to do some scouting, including the Under-17 Five Nations Tournament on Aug. 19-24, which includes recruit Travis Faulk of South St. Paul on the U.S. roster, along with Duluthian Derek Forbort.
Also, recently returning from NHL development camps were UMD players -- goalie Alex Stalock (San Jose), winger Matt Greer (Columbus), defenseman Josh Meyers (L.A. Kings) and winger Michael Gergen (Pittsburgh).
Also, Dallas Stars defenseman Matt Niskanen has been in Duluth recently, skating with some of UMD's players.
Posted by: pates on 7/23/2008 at 5:04 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Faulk Chooses UMD
A couple of family connections aided
Minnesota Duluth in gaining a men's hockey commitment from
Faulk, 16, a sophomore last season, accepted
a scholarship Monday and plans to play the next two years with the U.S. National
Team Development Program in
Former
UMD winger Marco Peluso is related to Faulk by marriage, while one of Faulk's
close friends and high school teammates, goalie Adam Wilcox, is a cousin of UMD
goalie Alex Stalock of
"UMD looked like the right school for me
and I felt like I fit in there. It seemed like a good time to make a commitment
and I've always wanted to play at UMD," Faulk said Tuesday. "I
watched them play five or six times last season and when they made an offer, I
couldn't say no."
Faulk, 5-foot-11 and 182 pounds, had six
goals and 15 assists for 21 points in 26 games last season, his first as a
varsity player.
He said he took about two weeks to make a
college decision, but that UMD had been on the top of his list. He was also
considering
"He got better every day last season and
would've been an all-state candidate as a junior," said
Faulk is on the roster for the U.S. Under-17
Select team in the Five Nations Tournament on Aug. 19-24 in
John Hynes, coach with the U.S. National Team
Development Program, saw Faulk in a Select 16 Festival last month in
UMD now has two recruits for 2010-11 as Faulk
joins goalie Mac Carruth of Shorewood,
Posted by: pates on 7/22/2008 at 4:42 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Washington Post on Goucher
The Washington Post had this short feature on Kara Goucher in Wednesday's edition by Amy Shipley:
Four years ago, Kara Goucher's running career had become a disaster. She and her husband, Adam, also a professional distance runner, had battled hard luck and injuries, but this topped everything: At the 2004 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, Kara Goucher finished dead last in the 5,000 meters. In the first heat.
At the 2000 Olympic trials, she had finished eighth overall as a junior at the University of Colorado. Now this? She stumbled out of that July feeling miserable. Adam, who had competed in the Sydney Olympics in 2000, also failed to make the 2004 team.
That "was probably ground zero for me," Goucher, 30, said after earning a place on this year's Olympic team in the 5,000 and 10,000. "I ate a lot, gained a lot of weight. It was a low time, but obviously something was still there. There were times when I asked myself, 'Am I crazy?' It never totally went away. I kept trying and kept coming back."
Eager to climb out of their joint rut, the Gouchers moved from their training home in Boulder, Colo., to Portland, Ore., where they joined Alberto Salazar and Nike's "Oregon Project." They immediately liked the changes: the camaraderie of the group, and the drop from high altitude to near sea level. Kara Goucher finished second in the 5,000 at the 2006 U.S. outdoor championships and then, at the urging of Salazar, moved up to the 10K.
She finished second at the U.S. championships in that distance the next year, assuring herself she was on the right track.
Then she got absolute confirmation.
At the 2007 world championships in Osaka, Japan, Goucher was a stunning third in the event. Her bronze medal was the first earned at that distance by an American woman in world championship history.
At the recent U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., Goucher won the 5,000 and finished second to Shalane Flanagan in the 10,000. Adam, who continues to try to come back from injuries, withdrew from the 5,000 and finished seventh in the 10,000, failing to make the team. Goucher acknowledged some preoccupation with the fate of the "love of her life" during the trials, but she also reveled in her own turnaround.
"Since 2004, there was always a little hope in me," she said after the 10,000. "I knew there was that fast girl in there somewhere. That's what kept me going."
Posted by: pates on 7/17/2008 at 11:24 AM | Comments (1) | Permalink
Kurvers, Lessard in News
Wednesday's NHL news involving two former Minnesota Duluth players and former Hobey Baker Memorial Award winners. Tom Kurvers became assistant general manager for the Tampa Bay Lightning, and winger Junior Lessard was signed by the Atlanta Thrashers as a free agent:
From the Tampa Tribune: Tampa Bay announced several hockey operations changes and additions.
Greg Malone, father of newly signed free-agent forward Ryan Malone,
was named the team's head pro scout; former NHL defenseman Kurvers
was named assistant general manager; and longtime NHL scout Jim Hammett
was named director of player personnel, replacing Bill Barber, who
recently resigned.
The Lightning also named three assistant coaches to Barry Melrose's staff: Rick Tocchet, Wes Walz and Cap Raeder.
Malone, an 11-year NHL player, spent 16 seasons as a scout with Pittsburgh before spending the past two years with Phoenix.
Kurvers, 45, played 11 years in the NHL, retiring in 1995. He spent
the past 10 years in the Coyotes front office, the last three as player
personnel director.
From the Atlanta Constitution: The Thrashers also signed three other unrestricted free agents, forwards Lessard, former Minnesota State-Mankato player Grant Stevenson and Mike Hoffman.
Lessard, 28, appeared in 21 games last season with Dallas and Tampa
Bay. Lessard won the 2004 Hobey Baker Memorial Award.
Stevenson, 26, led Quad City (AHL) with 73 points and 43 assists,
and tied for the team lead with 30 goals in 80 games last season.
Lessard, a native of St. Joseph De Beauce, Quebec, has appeared in 27 career
NHL games with the Stars and Lightning, registering four points (three
goals, one assist). He has recorded 168 points (80 goals, 88 assists)
in 257 career AHL games with Houston, Iowa and Norfolk. Lessard, who
was originally signed as a free agent by Dallas on April 15, 2004, had
his best offensive totals in 2006-07 when he tallied 52 points (27
goals, 25 assists) in 65 games with Iowa.
Posted by: pates on 7/10/2008 at 7:10 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
