Hayward Field will host its largest assemblage of track and field athletes since the Prefontaine Classic last June and until the NCAA Championships this May.
With over 1,000 athletes expected to compete, the 2001 Oregon Invitational looks to be the Oregon men’s track and field team’s most exciting event of the season thus far.
Twenty-seven teams and hundreds of unattached athletes will compete in the annual meet. The meet is so large that it will be divided into three sessions. The 10,000-meter run will take place tonight at 8 p.m., followed by the remaining events on Saturday. The top eight entrants in each event will compete in the Saturday evening session with the remaining athletes competing in the day session.
Several collegiate leaders will compete Saturday, including Oregon’s own John Stiegeler in the javelin. Joining Stiegeler will be Pac-10 qualifier Adam Jenkins and sophomore Nick Bakke.
Other favorites to win NCAA titles are Idaho’s Joachim Olsen, the 2000 NCAA champion in the shot put, and Utah State’s James Parker in the hammer throw. Junior John Bello is seeded seventh behind Olsen in the throwing events while sophomore Adam Kriz is seeded fourth in the hammer throw.
Oregon’s Jason Boness will battle collegiate leader Charles Klinger of Weber State in the high jump. Klinger has cleared seven feet, seven inches this season while Boness, the 2000 Pac-10 Champion, has a lifetime best of 7-5.
“I’m looking forward to the competition,” Boness said. “I’m looking for an NCAA provisional bar of 7-2 1/2. After I get that, I’ll go for the win.”
Highlighted unattached athletes include a trio of Japanese long-distance runners, led by 2000 Olympian Toshinari Takaoka. Senior Michael Kasahun is seeded fourth behind the Japanese trio in the 5,000-meters. The race will be Kasahun’s first 5,000 of the season.
Former Duck Piotr Buciarski returns to the Hayward Field pole vault pit this weekend. The Warsaw, Poland, native was a three-time all-American and two-time Pac-10 Champion in the pole vault.
Competing for the last time until the Pac-10 multi-event championships will be decathlete Santiago Lorenzo. The junior from Buenos Aires, Argentina, has already qualified for the NCAA Championships in the decathlon and will compete in the 400-meters, 110-hurdles and in the pole vault.
“The hurdles and pole vault are more technique events while the 400 is conditioning,” Lorenzo said. “Doing them will really help me in the decathlon.”
Joining Lorenzo in the pole vault will be junior Cody Howell, sophomore decathlete Jason Slye and freshman NCAA provisional qualifier Trevor Woods, who will be going after an automatic mark on Saturday.
“The ultimate goal is to get to the NCAAs,” Woods said. “I want to clear 17-8 or 18 this season.”
Juniors Ross Krempley and Simon Kimata should compete in an interesting 800-meters. Kimata is getting back into his groove following a stress fracture injury he suffered in junior college. Both racers will look to break the 1 minute, 50 second barrier Saturday.
Rounding out the Oregon contingent is football player Samie Parker in the sprints. The wide receiver was a Pac-10 qualifier last season, but has been hampered by injuries sustained in spring football drills.
The day session kicks off at 10 a.m. with the women’s 5,000-meters and ends with the women’s steeplechase. The evening session begins with the 4×100-meter relays.