Broe Hits Olympic Qualifying Time to Seal Trip to Athens
7/30/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track & Field
LONDON, Great Britain -- Two weeks after winning the 5,000-meter run at the U.S. Olympic Trials, University of Michigan men's track and field volunteer assistant coach Tim Broe hit the necessary Olympic 'A' qualifying time at the Norwich Union London Grand Prix on Friday (July 30) to guarantee his trip to the 2004 Summer Olympic Games.
Broe recorded a personal-best 13:18.61 -- bettering the 'A' standard by 2.89 seconds and shaving 5.52 seconds from his previous best -- to place seventh among the international field. As the lead pack of four began to pull away late in the race and the 14-man field was strung out around the track, Broe was forced to run the last five laps almost entirely by himself. The U-M coach did not fall far off the pace, however, crossing the finish line just 0.73 seconds out of sixth place and 5.87 seconds behind fifth.
Despite capturing his second consecutive U.S. 5,000-meter title at the U.S. Olympic Trials (July 16), Broe still needed to hit at least a 'B' qualifying standard prior to Aug. 9 to ensure his final selection to the U.S. roster. By running the Olympic 'A' standard, Broe also ensured the selection of Olympic Trials runner-up Jonathon Riley.
Broe -- along with sophomore Nick Willis (Lower Hutt, New Zealand/Hutt Valley HS) and former U-M standout Kevin Sullivan -- will represent the Maize and Blue at the 2004 Olympic Games, scheduled for Aug. 13-29 in Athens, Greece. The track and field competition will begin on Wednesday, Aug. 18, and the first round of the men's 5,000-meter run is scheduled for Aug. 25.
Michigan Results
5,000-meter Run 1. Haile Gebrelassier, Ethopia 12:55.51 2. Craig Mottram, Australia 12:55.76 3. Abderrahim Goumri, Morocco 12:59.04 4. Boniface Songok, Kenya 13:00.62 5. Alistair Cragg, Ireland 13:12.74 6. Mohamed Amyn, Morocco 13:17.88 7. Tim Broe, USA 13:18.61 8. Abiyote Abate, Ethopia 13:21.78 9. Chris Thompson, Great Britain 13:24.60 10. Bernard Kipyego, Kenya 13:29.75 11. Abdi Abdirahman, USA 13:30.85 12. Bernard Chepkok, Kenya 13:38.55 13. Matt Lane, USA 13:39.72 14. Michael Aish, New Zealand 13:43.63 -- Martin Keino, USA DNF -- David Kiplak, Kenya DNF -- Cathal Lombard, Ireland DNF -- Andrew Graffin, Great Britain DNS -- Jonathon Roley, USA DNS
Contact: Leah Howard (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
