May 10, 2010
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The Mizzou track and field program will host the 2010 Big 12 Track and Field Championships this weekend at Audrey J. Walton Stadium starting Friday morning at 8:15 a.m. The event will run through the entire weekend as the Big 12 Champion will be crowned at 7:15 p.m. on Sunday (May 16). The majority of the event finals will be contested on Sunday starting at 2 p.m. with the men's high jump.
The meet will feature teams from each of the Big 12's member schools, making it one of the best track meets in the world this season as the league hosts some of the best track and field talent from around the globe. In a year with no Olympics or World Championships, the 2010 Big 12 Championships should serve as one of the most competitive meets in the world, behind only the US Championships and NCAA Championships. On the women's side there are currently six Big 12 schools ranked in the USTFCCCA Top 25 and defending national champion Texas A&M sits atop that poll. Oklahoma comes in ranked fourth overall while Nebraska (16), Texas Tech (18), Kansas (21) and Baylor (25) round out the top women's teams at the event.
Several marquee athletes will be on display in the women's events as well. Iowa State's Lisa Koll highlights a talented group as she is the national leader in a pair of events - the 5,000m and 10,000m runs. Koll's top 5,000m run time of 5:17.76 is 20 seconds faster than the next closest competitor on the national list and her 10,000m run time of 31:18.07 is nearly 1:15 better than the next-best time on the national list as well. That mark is also a NCAA record, breaking Sally Kipyego's mark.
Koll is not the only national leader that will be on hand this weekend as Texas A&M boasts a pair of national leaders and the nation's top 4x100m relay team. Currently, Porscha Lucas tops the women's 200m dash ranks and teammate Jessica Beard sits atop the 400m dash list. Also, the Aggie 4x100m relay team holds the nation's best time at 42.56.
The men's teams at the meet are equally as impressive as seven Big 12 teams currently rank in the USTFCCCA Top 25. Just like in the women's poll, Texas A&M sits atop the poll, just ahead of Oregon. In all, each of the seven men's teams ranked in the top 25 all come in ranked in the top 19 teams nationally. Texas Tech sits at fourth while Big 12 Indoor Champion Oklahoma ranks 11th nationally. Nebraska (15), Baylor (17), Kansas State (18) and Kansas (19) round out the ranked men's teams that will be at the Big 12 Championships.
Just like the women's teams, the men boast five national leaders, all of whom will be on hand this weekend. Texas Tech's Bryce Lamb and Julian Wruck sit atop the performance lists in the long jump and discus throw, respectively, as the Red Raiders boast the most national leaders of all the Big 12 men's teams. Kansas' Jordan Scott is currently tied for the top pole vault mark nationally and Iowa State's Hilary Bor is the nation's top 3,000m steeplechase runner.
The 110m hurdles will feature one of the best head-to-head duels of the weekend as both Lehann Fourie of Nebraska and Ronnie Ash of Oklahoma rank 1-2 nationally in the event. The men's decathlon will also be a marquee event at the championships as there are seven Big 12 decathletes who could potentially post more than 7,600 points. Missouri's Lars Rise (Trondheim, Norway) and Nick Adcock (Kansas City, Mo.) rank second and third nationally, respectively, in the event and will be two of the favorites heading into the weekend. Kansas State, Nebraska and Texas A&M also will figure into the mix in the decathlon this weekend.
The meet will mark the first time that Mizzou has hosted the Big 12 Championships since 2002. That year, Mizzou's men finished third in the league with 75 points while the Tiger women finished eighth overall. The meet this weekend will also serve as head coach Rick McGuire's final home meet as head coach of the Tiger track and field program as he will be retiring following the season. McGuire has headed the Mizzou track and field program for 27 seasons.
Check back with MUTigers.com later this week for a more detailed preview on the 2010 Big 12 Championships and for all the latest on Mizzou track and field, stay tuned to MUTigers.com.