MICHAEL RAWSON
SPORTS EDITOR
At the Mangrum Track & Field Invitational, Brian Clay didn’t intend to blow the field out of the water, but the crowd believed he would. Anthony Harbor wouldn’t have any of that. After all, he intended to impress fellow athletes from his alma mater, too.
Clay, the reigning Olympic gold medalist in the Decathlon, and a graduate of Azusa Pacific University, arrived with athletes from the school on Saturday, saying he “just needed to get a meet in.” Clay competed in the discus throw, an event he holds the decathlon record in, as well as the 110-meter hurdles alongside Anthony Harbor. Harbor, who graduated from CSUSM last year, ran stride for stride with Clay, hurdling over the obstacles in unison—but just far enough behind to see Clay finish ahead of him at 14.10 to his 14.24.
“It was the first three hurdles,” Harbor said. “He was way more explosive than I was. He had a better center of gravity. He’s a great athlete.”
London awaits Clay in 2012, and with the summer games in sight, the two-time medalist (he won the silver in 2004) has been training rigorously to regain his fitness after a devastating hamstring injury ended his World Championship bid in 2009.
“[The 110-meter race] was sloppy, but it’s the first race, so you don’t expect much more than that. You can’t expect too much. You’ve just got to get your feet wet.”
When sloppy running equals first place at a competitive college track meet, another Olympic gold medal seems reasonable. Clay didn’t even win the discus throw, which might be his best event, placing second behind Azusa Pacific freshman Beckwith Brad. But Clay wasn’t there to win, anyway.
“Hearing the gun for the first time, getting in the [discus throwing] ring and not having a foul for the first time…that kind of stuff can kind of play with you a little bit, so you just want to get in there and deal with it mentally and emotionally,” he said.
For those who were there to win, there were plenty of opportunities. CSUSM sophomore Krystle Osby flew past the field to win the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.23, with sophomore teammate Aimee Rassavong finishing third. The Cougar women dominated the pole vault, with Calah Ayer, the winner with a 3.19 meter jump, followed by teammates Kelsey Monticalvo, Meghan Freund and Natalie Eisenberg gathering a clean sweep of the 1-4 spots.
The one-mile invitational run polished off the evening and contained a field of only five runners hand-picked for a close race. CSUSM’s Brett Campfield went toe-to-toe with BSK Running Club’s David Edwards before finishing less than a second behind, with the crowd cheering wildly behind the athletes.
The day belonged to Clay, though. Everyone on the premises knew it, and had they not known he was there when they arrived, they were soon informed of his presence over the loudspeakers in the announcer’s emphatic voice. Clay brought a small crowd to the discus throw, a sight usually unseen at college Track & Field meets. When the champion took his mark on the hurdles track, the crowd buzzed and flashbulbs exploded. For Harbor, it meant an opportunity to represent for the home crowd.
“This is my school,” Harbor said, a gleam in his eye. “You have to make it look easy, even though it’s not.”
Photos courtesy of Michael Rawson