Olympic Trial 800-meter Run First Round Results
Eugene, OR - Messiah College alumnus Patrick Roach took part in the
USATF Olympic Trials of the 800-meter run tonight at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.-- more than 2,700 miles from his hometown in central Pennsylvania.
Roach, running as a member of
S.W.I.F.T. racing, completed the event with a time of 1:50.11 to finish 30th of 31 finishers. Roach's performance was seventh in his number-four heat of the event.
With his performance, Roach did not qualify to move into the semifinals of the 800-meter run on Saturday, Juny 23. Nevertheless, his participation in the event is a tremendous accomplishment as he is only the third former Messiah student-athlete ever to compete at that level. (See where Roach stands among
former Falcons who have competed at the Olympic level.)
"It was great to line up with the best in the country, especially at Hayward Field," Roach said. "Walking onto the track and hearing the crowd roar is an unforgettable experience. My goal for the last three years was to get here, compete, and see what happened at the end of the race. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough at the end tonight."
Tyler Mulder of Nike/Oregon TC Elite finished in a time of 1:46.81 to take first place in the number-two heat and overall in the event. His teammate with Nike/Oregon TC Elite, Nicholas Symmonds, finished third overall with a time of 1:46.94, with Ryan Martin of UCSB finishing second overall with a time of 1:46.92.
Roach was taking part in the competition
thanks to a lifetime best performance (1:46.58) at the John Jay Memorial PA Distance Festival a few weeks ago.
