Long Island has an
active program which has produced some of the country's finest
race walkers, including many Olympians, dating back to the
1960s. 2004 Olympic Team members Tim Seaman, Teresa Vaill and
Curt Clausen compete for USATF-LI registered clubs and Dave
McGovern and Gary Westerfield are world-renowned coaches and
authors. The professionally designed course at the Dennison
Building office complex in Hauppauge is the site of weekly
workouts as well as National and International Championships.
Walk-USA hosts group workouts (open to all) Tuesday evenings at
the Dennison Bldg. in Hauppauge at 7:00 PM. Contact
Gary Westerfield
for details.
Dave and Loretta McGovern conduct (free) weekly group workouts
in Locust Valley on Wednesday evenings at 6:00pm.
Most USATF-Long Island track and field meets and many road
races, including the USATF-Long Island Grand Prix, contain
racewalks or racewalking divisions. Please consult the USATF-LI
race calendar for upcoming events.
For information on other Long Island Racewalking opportunities,
contact USATF-LI Racewalk Chair
Dave McGovern
USATF-LI
Racewalker Maria Michta won her first USATF Indoor 3,000m
Championship on February 28th in Albuquerque, NM. Racing
conservatively given Albuquerque's nearly mile-high altitude,
Michta passed 2004 Olympian and Walk-USA teammate Teresa Vaill
near the 1,500m mark. With 800m to go, Michta passed 2008
Olympian Joanne Dow, clinching the won with a 13:51 clocking to
Dow's 14:01.
In the men's 5,000m racewalk, Babylon High School alumnus and
two-time Olympian Tim Seaman captured his 43rd career national
race walk title in 20:57.47.
Results:
Women
1 Maria Michta Walk USA 13:51.33
2 Joanne Dow unattached 14:01.53
3 Teresa Vaill Walk USA 14:09.42
4 Lauren Forgues unattached 14:11.78
5 Erin Bresnahan Walk USA 14:23.87
Men
1 Tim Seaman NYAC 20:57.47
2 Patrick Stroupe unattached 21:19.90
3 Benjamin Shorey unattached 22:06.36
4 Tyler Sorensen Pleasanton Heat 22:13.42
5 Matthew De Witt Parkside AC 23:12.22
McGovern qualifies for unprecedented 7th consecutive Olympic
Trials
USATF-LI Racewalk Chair Dave McGovern placed 5th at the USA
Track & Field 50 Kilometer Racewalk Championship in Surprise, AZ
on February 7th. In addition to qualifying to represent the US
at the World Cup of Racewalking in Chihuahua, Mexico in May,
McGovern also qualified to compete in the 2012 Olympic Trials,
becoming the first track and field athlete to qualify for seven
consecutive US Olympic Trials.
World Class
Racewalking Top Team in the USA!
Kudos to Locust Valley-based World Class Racewalking's men's and
women's teams who won both team titles at the USATF 5k Racewalk
Championships on October 3rd in Kingsport, TN.
The men's team consisted of:
Dave McGovern, 44, 2nd overall 23:57
Chris Schmid, 62, 3rd overall 25:30 (In the performance of the
day, in my opinion!)
Ian Whatley, 50, 6th overall (and slowed considerably by a bout
of anemia) 25:38
The women were:
Darla Graff, 42, 7th overall 28:53
Vicki Pritchard, 50, 9th overall 29:35
Donna Graham, 50, 15th overall 31:25
and Paula Graham, 46, 34:18
Congrats, ladies and gents!
Congratulations are in order for several USATF-Long Island
athletes who competed at the USATF Championships in Eugene, OR
in June. The NYAC's Tim Seaman won the men's 20k in 1:26:14;
Walk-USA's Teresa Vaill and Maria Michta were 1&3 in the women's
20k in 1:37:12 and 1:41:16 respectively. In the Junior races,
Molly Josephs was 5th in 1:00:09.
Long Island walking clubs:
To view results,
highlight the event and click.
Please check the USATF-LI calendar
for all upcoming events.
