Goucher Training in the Houston Heat

Kara Goucher's road to Beijing is passing through Houston, Texas.

The Duluth native who has qualified in both the 5000 and 10,000 meter events at the Olympic Games, is training in the Space City in an effort to replicate Beijing's hot, humid conditions. Alberto Salazar, her coach, has brought Goucher (pictured), her 10,000m teammate Amy Begley, and men's 10,000m qualifier Galen Rupp to Houston from their training base in Portland, Oregon.

Kevin Pates of the Duluth-News Tribune caught up with Goucher recently and filed THIS story about the temporary move to Houston.

“We want to do some of our harder workouts in the same uncomfortable conditions that we will face at the Olympics," Goucher told Pates. "Although I’d love to stay home for this week, I know that this will make us more prepared for Beijing."

The Portland Oregonian also published THIS story about the group's training in Houston.

Goucher's competition in Beijing begins on August 15 with the 10,000m final. The 5000m preliminaries are scheduled for August 19. The 5000m final is set for August 22.

Photo by Paul Merca.