McGregor Notches Olympic "A" Qualifier at Stanford

Team USA Minnesota's Katie McGregor took care of some important business in clocking a 3rd place, 31:37.82 10,000 meters at the the Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational in Palo Alto, California on Sunday.

Her time met the 2008 Olympic "A" qualifying standard of 31:45.00 for the 10,000. It also bettered the 2007 World Championships qualifying standard.

"It was a good night and I feel really good," McGregor said in a media release. "I wanted to get my qualifying time. Now I have that done and I don't have to worry about it. I only have to worry about getting in the top three at USA Outdoor Nationals to make the 2007 World Outdoor team, and getting into the top three at the U.S. Track Trials to make the 2008 Olympic team."

McGregor's successful run came two weeks after a bad outing in the 5000 at the Mt. SAC Relays when she went out with the hot pace set for Shalane Flanagan's 5000m American record there.

"I have been gearing all my training this year for the 10,000," McGregor said. "I didn't have a very good 5000 meter race at Mt. SAC on April 13 to open my outdoor season but now I have the reassurance that I am doing the right stuff for what I am focusing on. It goes to show that when you have a bad race, you just need to stay confident in your training."

Jen Rhines won the Cardinal 10,000 in 31:17.31.

"I went out at a pace that I knew I could handle because I wanted to run my own race and get my standard for the Olympic Games," the 2005 USA 10,000 meter champion said. "I didn't go out with the leaders but I was in the top five women from the start. From two miles on everyone was spread out and I was on my own for the rest of the way. I ended up catching one of the girls in the last 2k and I thought about reeling in the second place runner [Kim Smith] but then I didn't want to race. "

McGregor, who placed fourth in the 10,000 meters at the 2004 U.S. Olympic Track Trials, had a chance to go to Athens that year after the first place trials finisher Deena Kastor declined her spot in the event in favor of the marathon. McGregor was short of the qualifying standard, however, and was unable to find a competitive 10,000 in the late summer to achieve the needed mark.

"I'm really excited about achieving my qualifying time because now I can start racing," McGregor said.

Carlson Struggling ... McGregor's Team USA Minnesota teammate Andrew Carlson is still searching for the form he had prior to the rib injury that kept him from racing at the World Cross Country Championships in March. Carlson dropped out of the Cardinal men's 10,000 at four miles.

"Between this race and last weekend's 5000 at Oregon [where he finished 13th in 13:57.60], it has become apparent that the time he missed due to the cracked rib has set him back," Team USA Minnesota's Pat Goodwin told DtB. "He's going to spend the month of May getting in a good block of training and will be back out competing after that - just needs to catch up from the training he missed due to the injury."

Carlson will likely run the 5000m at the USA Championships in June. He has a meet-qualifying mark in that event from last year -- his PR 13:32.71 -- but had hoped to convert the his long distance road racing success into a fast 10,000m mark.

The Gophers' Antonio Vega got an NCAA provisional qualifying mark of 29:04.13 at Stanford.

Photo courtesy of Team USA Minnesota.