{"id":403,"date":"2010-09-27T11:14:00","date_gmt":"2010-09-27T18:14:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=403"},"modified":"2010-09-27T11:14:00","modified_gmt":"2010-09-27T18:14:00","slug":"top-breakthrough-americans-of-2010","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=403","title":{"rendered":"Top Breakthrough Americans of 2010"},"content":{"rendered":"<div style=\"float:left;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/view.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/sports\/prefontaine-classic\/image\/9284486?term=kara+patterson\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/view.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/image\/9284486\/prefontaine-classic\/prefontaine-classic.jpg?resize=380%2C218\" border=\"0\" width=\"380\" title=\"Prefontaine Classic\" height=\"218\" oncontextmenu=\"return false;\" ondrag=\"return false;\" onmousedown=\"return false;\" alt=\"EUGENE, OR - JULY 03: Kara Patterson of USA throws the javelin during the IAAF Diamond League Prefontaine Classic on July 3, 2010 at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey\/Getty Images)\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<div style=\"clear:left;height:0px;overflow: hidden;\"><\/div>\n<p><script type=\"text\/javascript\" src=\"http:\/\/view.picapp.com\/\/JavaScripts\/OTIjs.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>At the end of every season, the awards start pouring out. Typically everyone identifies their Athletes of the Year, and Performances of the Year. There are also awards for Collegiate Athletes (Bowerman) and lists of the top athletes. Between now and the end of the calendar year I will also be taking a look at the various top athletes of 2010. Some will be conventional (such as Athletes of the Year), but I also want to take a look at some non standard classifications. So I am going to start with the athletes that I considered to be the athletes that I feel had the top breakthrough seasons among American athletes. <\/p>\n<p>By \u201cBreakthrough\u201d I mean those athletes that achieved a new level of performance \u2013 in some cases moving up near the top of their event globally. Not just new PR\u2019s but also consistency of performance. And all improved to the point where I think they are in a position to help the US in their medal search over the next couple of seasons. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Chris Solinsky \u2013 5000 \/ 10000<\/h3>\n<p>Talk about a breakthrough to the top level. An American Record 26:59.59 over 10,000 in his first race of the season. Then three times under 13:00 in the 5,000 becoming #2 all time American at 12:55.53. More importantly he was 3rd in Zurich, 5th in Stockholm and 6th in Oslo \u2013 competing well against the best in the world. Now if he can just develop a kick to go with his strength and power I have no doubt he can give the African\u2019s a race they won\u2019t forget. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Kara Patterson &#8211; Javelin<\/h3>\n<p>An American Record 66.67m (218\u2019 8\u201d) in the javelin at nationals and Patterson set sail on an outstanding European season. Patterson had 9 throws over 200 feet this summer, and a Diamond League victory over Spotakova in Eugene. She was also second in Monaco, London, Gateshead and third in Berlin \u2013 becoming a serious player in the javelin \u2013 perhaps a potential medalist. As I see her heading into Daegu\/London\/Berlin as one of our best hopes in the field. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Andrew Wheating \u2013 800 \/ 1500<\/h3>\n<p>I watched Wheating make the Olympic squad in \u201808, but my gut said that was going to be his best finish of the year. And sure enough, he was out early in the rounds in Beijing. In \u201809 he won an NCAA title over 800 \u2013 but that was basically the end off his season. Ah, but this year. An NCAA 800\/1500 double. A bit of a break from a long NCAA season. Then in limited international action we get a 3:51.74 mile at Pre, a 3:30.90 in Monaco, a 1:44.62 in Paris, and a 1:44.56 in London! And suddenly he\u2019s starting to look like a young Jim Ryun. I use that name on purpose because as much as I\u2019m fairly sure he has 1:43.xx in his immediate future, I think he can run 3:29 or maybe even 3:28 as well \u2013 and he can kick!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Morgan Uceny \u2013 800 \/ 1500<\/h3>\n<p>I have to admit that when she won the US indoor 1500 title this past winter I had no clue who she was \u2013 sorry Morgan. I know who she is now though! She\u2019s the gutsy young lady that\u2019s always near the front somewhere, biding her time, and going with the big guns until she can\u2019t go any more. And with that philosophy she\u2019s gone from previous bests of 2:00.01 \/ 4:06.93 to 1:58.67 \/ 4:02.40 and a serious competitor in every race she\u2019s in. Which is why I like her so much. She\u2019s not afraid to get in their and fight. She\u2019s tough, she goes after it. And she\u2019s someone that I can see having a strong shot at being at least a finalist in one of the upcoming majors. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Ryan Bailey \u2013 100 \/ 200<\/h3>\n<p>As odd as it sounds we need another top flight sprinter in our stable. Tyson is consistent, Spearmon is back from injuries, and Dix is right there when we can get him on the track. But we\u2019re used to being at least two or three deep in sprinters with a shot to at least make a final if not capable of getting on the podium. And we\u2019ve been lacking there since the days of Greene\/Williams\/Gatlin\/Crawford. Now it looks like we may have another top notch man in Ryan Bailey. 2009\u2019s Jr College 100 champ and record setter (10.05) and 200 runner up, Bailey showed flashes of potential brilliance in 2010 getting his PR\u2019s down to 9.88 \/ 20.10. Bailey is that big, tall, strong sprint I\u2019ve been waiting to come along to supplement all of the \u201csmurfs\u201d we have in camp. The discouraging and encouraging thing about Ryan\u2019s season is that his improvement came amidst a season of various injuries that kept sending him back to recover. If we can keep him healthy, at worst he could be a fourth man for the 4&#215;1 and at the best perhaps a double finalist in a major \u2013 paring well with Gay Spearamon and Dix.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Chaunte Howard Lowe \u2013 High Jump<\/h3>\n<p>Another American Record setter in 2010, Lowe jumped a sensational 6\u2019 8.75\u201d. Interestingly enough the same height one Blank Vlasic jumped late in the year to set her own PR \u2013 placing Howard Lowe squaraely in the mix of the high jump! Something she proved many times over this year as she and Vlasic met on multiple occasions. The Croatian winning, but typically on fewer misses. Along with Kara Patterson, Howard Lowe became one of those rare top level field event performers that we desperately need in order to dramatically improve our medal count from recent global majors. She was over 6\u2019 6\u201d eleven times this year. Now she just has to make Vlasic blink, as she\u2019s definitely become a gold medal contender. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Leonel Manzano \u2013 800 \/ 1500<\/h3>\n<p>Sometimes when it rains it pours, and this year after waiting years for some middle distance help to come along we got a double dose in 2010 as Leonel Manzano was right there with Andrew Wheating on the improvement meter. Manzano equaled Wheating\u2019s best time of 1:44.56 in Berlin. Which caught me by surprise because I\u2019ve never thought of him as an 800 meter runner \u2013 silly. In what I considered his specialty he ran 3:32.37 in Brussels, and 3:50.64, and showed an amazing ability to kick off of strong paces! Imagine that, we develop two middle distance runners that can stay with the pace AND kick in the same season! Manzano was a joy to watch and I eagerly wawait the 2011 season to see what he will do in Daegu \u2013 because he\u2019s finished in the top two at nationals two seasons in a row now and I have to believe that he is going to make the team for Worlds. <\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>There were some others that improved tremendously, but we didn\u2019t get to see them much if at all in Europe and against top level competition. Like hurdler Johnny Dutch (47.60), sprinter Curtis Mitchell (19.99) and quarter miler Tavaris Tate (44.86). While I believe they will show further improvement, those listed above didn\u2019t just improve on the clock or the tape measure, they also showed they could go the distance against tough competition. Which makes them my Top Breakthroughs for 2010. I enjoyed watching them this year, and look forward to seeing them take their shots at the podium in the upcoming set of majors in Daegu, London and Berlin. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>At the end of every season, the awards start pouring out. Typically everyone identifies their Athletes of the Year, and Performances of the Year. There are also awards for Collegiate Athletes (Bowerman) and lists of the top athletes. Between now and the end of the calendar year I will also be taking a look at the various top athletes of 2010. Some will be conventional (such as Athletes of the Year), but I also want to take a look at some non standard classifications. So I am going to start with the athletes that I considered to be the athletes that I feel had the top breakthrough seasons among American athletes. By \u201cBreakthrough\u201d I mean those athletes that achieved a new level of performance \u2013 in some cases moving up near the top of their event globally. Not just new PR\u2019s but also consistency of performance. And all improved to the point where I think they are in a position to help the US in their medal search over the next couple of seasons. &nbsp; Chris Solinsky \u2013 5000 \/ 10000 Talk about a breakthrough to the top level. An American Record 26:59.59 over 10,000 in his first race of the season. Then three times under 13:00 in the 5,000 becoming #2 all time American at 12:55.53. More importantly he was 3rd in Zurich, 5th in Stockholm and 6th in Oslo \u2013 competing well against the best in the world. Now if he can just develop a kick to go with his strength and power I have no doubt he can give the African\u2019s a race they won\u2019t forget. &nbsp; Kara Patterson &#8211; Javelin An American Record 66.67m (218\u2019 8\u201d) in the javelin at nationals and Patterson set sail on an outstanding European season. Patterson had 9 throws over 200 feet this summer, and a Diamond League victory over Spotakova in Eugene. She was also second in Monaco, London, Gateshead and third in Berlin \u2013 becoming a serious player in the javelin \u2013 perhaps a potential medalist. As I see her heading into Daegu\/London\/Berlin as one of our best hopes in the field. &nbsp; Andrew Wheating \u2013 800 \/ 1500 I watched Wheating make the Olympic squad in \u201808, but my gut said that was going to be his best finish of the year. And sure enough, he was out early in the rounds in Beijing. In \u201809 he won an NCAA title over 800 \u2013 but that was basically the end off his season. Ah, but this year. An NCAA 800\/1500 double. A bit of a break from a long NCAA season. Then in limited international action we get a 3:51.74 mile at Pre, a 3:30.90 in Monaco, a 1:44.62 in Paris, and a 1:44.56 in London! And suddenly he\u2019s starting to look like a young Jim Ryun. I use that name on purpose because as much as I\u2019m fairly sure he has 1:43.xx in his immediate future, I think he can run 3:29 or maybe even 3:28 as well \u2013 and he can kick! &nbsp; Morgan Uceny \u2013 800 \/ 1500 I have to admit that when she won the US indoor 1500 title this past winter I had no clue who she was \u2013 sorry Morgan. I know who she is now though! She\u2019s the gutsy young lady that\u2019s always near the front somewhere, biding her time, and going with the big guns until she can\u2019t go any more. And with that philosophy she\u2019s gone from previous bests of 2:00.01 \/ 4:06.93 to 1:58.67 \/ 4:02.40 and a serious competitor in every race she\u2019s in. Which is why I like her so much. She\u2019s not afraid to get in their and fight. She\u2019s tough, she goes after it. And she\u2019s someone that I can see having a strong shot at being at least a finalist in one of the upcoming majors. &nbsp; Ryan Bailey \u2013 100 \/ 200 As odd as it sounds we need another top flight sprinter in our stable. Tyson is consistent, Spearmon is back from injuries, and Dix is right there when we can get him on the track. But we\u2019re used to being at least two or three deep in sprinters with a shot to at least make a final if not capable of getting on the podium. And we\u2019ve been lacking there since the days of Greene\/Williams\/Gatlin\/Crawford. Now it looks like we may have another top notch man in Ryan Bailey. 2009\u2019s Jr College 100 champ and record setter (10.05) and 200 runner up, Bailey showed flashes of potential brilliance in 2010 getting his PR\u2019s down to 9.88 \/ 20.10. Bailey is that big, tall, strong sprint I\u2019ve been waiting to come along to supplement all of the \u201csmurfs\u201d we have in camp. The discouraging and encouraging thing about Ryan\u2019s season is that his improvement came amidst a season of various injuries that kept sending him back to recover. If we can keep him healthy, at worst he could be a fourth man for the 4&#215;1 and at the best perhaps a double finalist in a major \u2013 paring well with Gay Spearamon and Dix. &nbsp; Chaunte Howard Lowe \u2013 High Jump Another American Record setter in 2010, Lowe jumped a sensational 6\u2019 8.75\u201d. Interestingly enough the same height one Blank Vlasic jumped late in the year to set her own PR \u2013 placing Howard Lowe squaraely in the mix of the high jump! Something she proved many times over this year as she and Vlasic met on multiple occasions. The Croatian winning, but typically on fewer misses. Along with Kara Patterson, Howard Lowe became one of those rare top level field event performers that we desperately need in order to dramatically improve our medal count from recent global majors. She was over 6\u2019 6\u201d eleven times this year. Now she just has to make Vlasic blink, as she\u2019s definitely become a gold medal contender. &nbsp; Leonel Manzano \u2013 800 \/ 1500 Sometimes when it rains it pours, and this year after waiting years for some middle distance help to come along we got a double dose in 2010 as Leonel Manzano was right there with Andrew Wheating on the improvement meter. Manzano equaled Wheating\u2019s best time of 1:44.56 in Berlin. Which caught me by surprise because I\u2019ve never thought of him as an 800 meter runner \u2013 silly. In what I considered his specialty he ran 3:32.37 in Brussels, and 3:50.64, and showed an amazing ability to kick off of strong paces! Imagine that, we develop two middle distance runners that can stay with the pace AND kick in the same season! Manzano was a joy to watch and I eagerly wawait the 2011 season to see what he will do in Daegu \u2013 because he\u2019s finished in the top two at nationals two seasons in a row now and I have to believe that he is going to make the team for Worlds. &nbsp; There were some others that improved tremendously, but we didn\u2019t get to see them much if at all in Europe and against top level competition. Like hurdler Johnny Dutch (47.60), sprinter Curtis Mitchell (19.99) and quarter miler Tavaris Tate (44.86). While I believe they will show further improvement, those listed above didn\u2019t just improve on the clock or the tape measure, they also showed they could go the distance against tough competition. Which makes them my Top Breakthroughs for 2010. I enjoyed watching them this year, and look forward to seeing them take their shots at the podium in the upcoming set of majors in Daegu, London and Berlin.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pa3DCY-6v","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":406,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=406","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":0},"title":"My Vision For the World Championships","author":"CHill","date":"October 5, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Yes, I know it\u2019s October and we just had the opening ceremonies for the Commonwealth Games.\u00a0 But with the majority of top line athletes missing from the Commonwealth, my mind can\u2019t help but fast forward to the next gathering of the world\u2019s best athletes \u2013 the World Championships in Daegu.\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 5 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 5 comments","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=406#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"BERLIN - AUGUST 23:  South Korean dancers perform during the Closing Ceremony during day nine of the 12th IAAF World Athletics Championships at the Olympic Stadium on August 23, 2009 in Berlin, Germany.  (Photo by Martin Rose\/Bongarts\/Getty Images)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/view1.picapp.com\/pictures.photo\/image\/6136639\/12th-iaaf-world-athletics\/12th-iaaf-world-athletics.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":471,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=471","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":1},"title":"The Athletes are Better, Why Not the Sport","author":"CHill","date":"April 15, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The level of performance of elite track and field athletes at the top end is better than ever. The all time lists are littered with athletes that are competing right now! Starting with Bolt, Gay, Jeter, Rudisha, Liu, Robles, Bekele, Isinbayeva, Vlasic, Friedrich, Walker, Demus, and so so many others.\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"http:\/\/1.bp.blogspot.com\/_S_Z7Psv_OD4\/TID--nXAs3I\/AAAAAAAAAok\/SuMXLFr0kd8\/s1600\/David+rudisha+sept.bmp","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1720,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=1720","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":2},"title":"How Do We Rank Track &#038; Field&#8217;s Athletes?","author":"CHill","date":"December 1, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"As I said previously it's that time of year - awards \/ ranking season. And as tends to happen, the first set of awards on the table have already stoked the fires of debate - and that's a good thing. Can never have enough conversation about track and field! So\u2026","rel":"","context":"With 8 comments","block_context":{"text":"With 8 comments","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=1720#comments"},"img":{"alt_text":"Me for Blog pic","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/trackchill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/10\/Me-for-Blog-pic_thumb.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2889,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=2889","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":3},"title":"Grand Slam Has Arrived","author":"CHill","date":"April 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"We're finally outdoors, after spending the winter undercover. Don't get me wrong, the championship portion of indoors was fun to watch, but at the end of the day nothing compares to the 400m oval! Of course it's still a very long season, especially with the World Championships being moved to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Grand Slam Track\"","block_context":{"text":"Grand Slam Track","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?tag=grand-slam-track"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/trackchill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/cropped-28F68D3F-210D-490A-8260-59203E516A2A-1-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2367,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=2367","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":4},"title":"How About a Real World Championships?","author":"CHill","date":"January 23, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"It's funny that one of the first things written about the sport in 2019 is about the addition of mixed relays to the World Relays event and to the World Championships. Funny, ha ha, in that they are being added ostensibly to make the events more interesting for \"fans\".\u00a0 How\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"World Championships\"","block_context":{"text":"World Championships","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?tag=world-championships"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/trackchill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Sprinter-Shadow_thumb-115x150.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":2894,"url":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?p=2894","url_meta":{"origin":403,"position":5},"title":"Mid Point of Grand Slam","author":"CHill","date":"May 7, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Grand Slam Track has completed its first two meets, with two left to go. As this is the half way point I thought that it would be a good time to give a preliminary assessment given that all of the previous comments being made were done without actually seeing the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Grand Slam Track\"","block_context":{"text":"Grand Slam Track","link":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/?tag=grand-slam-track"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/trackchill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/D0794A39-830F-4616-91FE-11987CB04C88-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=403"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/trackchill.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}