Imagine you are a world-class American track and field athlete vying to compete in the greatest athletic competition in the world, the Olympic Games. Imagine the test of nerves when your Olympic hopes come down to a single race, on a given day, every four years. If you place in the top three, you're in; if you don't, you go home and wait four more years for another chance. That's it: One chance, one race.
Some aficionados believe the Olympic track and field trials, which begin Friday in Sacramento, is the best track meet in the world, because of the depth of the talent and because of its all-or-nothing format. The meet is so loaded with talent that athletes who would otherwise make the Olympic finals if they lived in another country are simply left home. It is such a merciless, cut-throat format that even the likes of Carl Lewis and Dan O'Brien have been forced to watch their specialties from the stands.
At least 29 Utahns have met the tough standards to qualify for the upcoming trials, probably the most the state has ever qualified. Of that group, 17 are from Utah high schools; 20 are from BYU; 16 are BYU women and nine of those are middle-distance and distance runners.
"At the last Olympic trials we had only one runner," says Coach Pat Shane, whose BYU women's team has won two of the last three NCAA cross country championships. "Our distance program has gone crazy."
Here's a look at the qualifiers with Utah connections:
JASON PYRAH, 1,500-meter run (BYU) — Pyrah has ranked as one of America's top milers since graduating from BYU seven years ago. He made the Olympic team in 1996 with a third-place finish at the trials but didn't survive the rounds in Atlanta. Pyrah is running well this year. He won the U.S. indoor championships and placed second at the Mt. SAC Relays and sixth at the Prefontaine meet (second American). On July 1 he turned back several top Americans to win a race at Stanford with his best time of the year, 3:38.22. That mark is still nearly two seconds shy of the Olympic qualifying mark. Even if Pyrah places among the top three at the trials, he'll have to run some races in Europe to get a qualifying time, unless the trials race is uncharacteristically fast. Pyrah had to do the same thing in '96. Six days after making the team, he went to Paris and ran 3:35.21, still his personal record.
TIFFANY LOTT-HOGAN, heptathlon (BYU, American Fork/Pine View high schools) — Hogan, a former NCAA champion, also has a good chance of making the Olympic team. She finished second in the U.S. championships last year, which qualified her for the U.S. World track championships (she was 17th). The United States has five strong contenders for the three Olympic berths in the heptathlon — DeDee Nathan, Kelly Blair, Sheila Burrell, Hogan and newcomer Nicole Haynes. Hogan's personal record: 6,211.
AMY CHRISTENSEN PALMER, hammer throw (BYU/Grantsville High) — Palmer is another good bet to qualify for Sydney. She narrowly missed making the team in 1996, when she finished fifth in the shot put at the Olympic trials. Since then, she has focused on the hammer throw, which will become an Olympic event for the first time in Sydney. Palmer is a former American record holder in the hammer and currently ranks eighth in the world and second in the U.S.
JIM ROBERTS, shot put (BYU) — Only a junior, he ranks seventh in the U.S. with throws in the 65-foot range. Roberts, lean and cat-quick at 6-foot-5, 235 pounds, placed third in the NCAA meet, just 8 inches out of first place. However, making the U.S. team will be difficult in an event in which the United States could sweep the medals in Sydney.
JAMES PARKER, hammer (Utah State/Layton High) — Parker placed fourth in last month's NCAA meet and has produced a fine mark of 235-7 this year.
CHARLES CLINGER, high jump (Weber State)— The Weber State senior would be a shoo-in to make the team if he can equal his season-best of 7-7. He also has cleared 7-5 six times. The 6-foot-9 Clinger, who was raised in Freedom, Idaho, would appear to be one of the favorites, but the high jump is one of the least predictable events in track and field and anything could happen (to wit: Clinger placed only 11th at the NCAA championships).
MARK CHENN, high jump (BYU) — Chenn was born in the United States and grew up in Hong Kong. Denied a request to represent Hong Kong in Sydney, he'll try to make the U.S. team. His best: 7-4 1/2.
NATALIE GIBSON, 400 hurdles (Southern Utah U./Emery County High) — Gibson graduated a year ago from Southern Utah University, where she holds nine indoor and outdoor school records. Her seventh-place finish in last year's NCAA track championships made her the school's first track all-American. She'll have to knock about three seconds off her best time of 57.50 to make the U.S. team.
TERI (OKELBERRY) SPIERS, javelin (Weber State/Weber High) — Okelberry had been retired for seven years when she qualified for the 1996 Olympic trials, where she placed ninth. She's back again in 2000, at the age of 33. A three-time All-American, she was sixth in the 1988 Olympic trials.
MELISSA (BALDERAS) TEEMANT, 1,500 meters (BYU/Skyline High) — After retiring for a couple of years and giving birth to a baby in August 1998, Teemant came back stronger than ever and qualified for the trials with a time of 4:14. The 1,500 will be a difficult race in which to make the U.S. team since Regina Jacobs and Suzy Hamilton are near locks to take the top two spots. That leaves just one opening. Teemant probably will need to run in the 4:06-4:08 range to challenge for that spot.
SUSAN TAYLOR, 1,500-meter run (BYU/Skyline High) — Taylor came on strong at the end of the season and won the NCAA championships with a lifetime best of 4:14. She gained valuable big-race experience in the Pre meet, where she rallied late in the race to finish seventh in a strong field. "She learned a big lesson," says Shane. "She was intimidated and ran at the back, then she realized she didn't feel that bad. She had a lot left."
LINDSAY (JONES) NADAULD, 1,500-meter run (BYU/Highland High) — Nadauld, a versatile runner who earned five all-American certificates at distances ranging from 800 meters to 3,000 meters, qualified for the trials in the 1,500, along with her training partners, Taylor and Teemant. Personal best: 4:17.
FRANCIS O'NEILL, steeplechase (Ogden) — A former Kansas State athlete, he moved to Ogden three years ago to train under steeplechase guru Chick Hislop, the Weber State coach. He placed third in the U.S. championships last year and made the U.S. world team. With a best time of 8:22, he's a threat to make the Olympic team.
DONOVAN BERGSTROM, steeplechase (Ogden) — Like O'Neill, he moved to Ogden six years ago to train under Hislop. He won the NCAA championships while attending Wisconsin. Bergstrom has missed considerable training this summer because of a stress fracture in his foot.
JEREMY TOLMAN, steeplechase (Weber State/Uintah High) — An up-and-coming steeplechaser, Tolman redshirted the collegiate season and qualified for the trials with a time of 8:34.
COURTNEY (PUGMIRE) MELDRUM, steeplechase (BYU) — Meldrum had a baby less than a year ago and still hasn't returned to form. She qualified for the trials based on her victory in the steeplechase in the '96 trials. The steeplechase was an exhibition event at the time and still is; it won't become an Olympic event until 2004, which is unfortunate for BYU, whose athletes have won six straight U.S. championships in the event, three of them thanks to Meldrum.
ELIZABETH JACKSON, steeplechase/5,000-meter run (BYU/East High) — Jackson, a senior, is the defending U.S. steeplechase champion. Her best time is 10:06 in the steeplechase and Shane believes, "She has a chance to break the world record of 9:57."
KARA ORMOND, steeplechase (BYU/Orem High) — Jackson is considered by some to be the best steeplechaser in the country, but Ormond, her teammate, has beaten her three times this year. Ormond has a best time of 10:20.
TARA HAYNES, steeplechase (BYU/Orem High) — Still another BYU runner who will contest the steeplechase, Haynes' best time is 10:38.
MELANIE (CLARK) STEERE, 800-meter run (BYU/Kearns High) — Steere, a Kearns High grad, ran a personal-record 2:03 to place fifth in the NCAA championships. Only Olympian Julie Jenkins has run faster for BYU. She'll likely have to break two minutes to make the Olympic team.
MARTY HERNANDEZ, 10,000/5,000-meter runs (BYU) — Hernandez finished her college career by placing second to BYU teammate Tara Northcutt at the NCAA meet at 10,000 meters. She might contest both distance races at the trials. She'll likely have to run in the 31-minute range to make the team, which is two minutes faster than her best.
JEFF SIMONICH, 5,000-meter run (Utah/Tooele High) — Simonich, a four-time all-American who is serving as a graduate assistant coach at Utah, met the qualifying standard last year by running a time of 13:44. He hasn't broken 14 minutes this year, but his coach, Mike Jones, says "that's because he's peaking for this meet."
JEANA BINGHAM, high jump (BYU) — Bingham, a junior from Gilbert, Ariz., placed fourth in the NCAA meet this spring and has a career-best of 6-1. She'll need a big personal record to make the team.
ALICIA BRIMHALL, hepathlon (BYU) — Brimhall has placed as high as eighth at the U.S. championships, but she is coming off a back injury and still hasn't returned to form.
HOLLY GIBBONS, 400 hurdles (BYU/Bear River High) — Only a junior, Gibbons already has qualified for the trials and has a best time of 57.55. She'll have to cut a whopping three seconds off her time, however, to contend for an Olympic berth.
JULIE (BENNION) MURDOCK, 400 hurdles (BYU/Highland High) — Murdock, like her former BYU teammate Gibbons, will have to improve her time of 57 seconds dramatically to make the team.
SHAE BAIR, pole vault (Utah State) — Bair, a junior from Blackfoot, Idaho, has cleared 13-9 1/4.
BECKY JACKSON, pole vault (BYU/Highland High) — Jackson, who just completed her college eligibility, has scaled 13 feet.
KYLE GROSSARTH, 400 hurdles (BYU) — Grossarth graduated a year ago, but has continued to run well. He'll have to knock almost two seconds off his best of 49.82 to make the team.
E-MAIL: drob@desnews.com