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Sara Hall is Building Momentum in 2010, and Ready for the USA Indoor Track & Field Championships
Note: The 2010 USA Indoor Track & Field Championships are Saturday and Sunday, February 27-28 in Albuquerque, NM; the meet will be televised by ESPN2 on Sunday, February 28, from 7:00 - 9:00 pm (Eastern Time).By Chris Lotsbom
(c) 2010 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.
February 24, 2010
The last month and a half has been extra special for Sara Hall (photo at right by www.photorun.net at the 2010 USA Cross Country women's 8K) of the Mammoth Track Club. Besides setting
an indoor personal best in the mile and nearly setting another in the 3000m, the 26 year-old placed sixth at the USA Cross Country Championships in Spokane, WA, earning a trip to the IAAF World Cross Country Championships on March 28 in Bydgoszcz, Poland. But before she books her flight to Poland, Sara Hall will compete at this weekend's USA Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, NM, racing in both the 1500m and 3000m. A top-2 finish in either event would put her on yet another national team.
Beginning at the Millrose Games in January, Sara Hall set a personal best in the mile, where she finished in 4:31.50, just two hundredths of a second behind winner Hannah England of Great Britain. A week later in Boston, she missed a 3000m personal best by two seconds at the Reebok Boston Indoor Games, running 8:55.17.
Using the Millrose and Boston Indoor Games as tune-up races for this weekend's national championships, Sara Hall wanted to get back into the swing of racing on the track, especially the 200m indoor oval.
"It was good to remind myself of the tactics of indoor racing, and how it can be hard to get around people," she said in a telephone interview on Monday, February 22. "It was a good reminder going into these next races. But I love competing, and it was a good chance to start off the season on an exciting note."
This recent stretch of fast performances has helped Sara Hall bounce back from what was a rough summer track season last year, where she finished 18th--and last--at the USA Outdoor Championships in the women's 5000m.
"It's been really great to have support from the key people in my life; they have encouraged me, and helped me build that confidence back after a disappointing outdoor year," she said.
If Sara qualifies for the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Doha, Qatar, next month, she would discuss with her coach, Terrence Mahon, what will happen next: competing at the World Indoor Championships, World Cross Country Championships or both.
"I would definitely consider both," commented Sara Hall, who finished second at 3000m in last year's USA Indoor Championships. "It will come down to which one I feel I can compete better in for the United States. I'm not sure at this point, but I would [probably] be more of a contender on the track. I will leave [the decision] off until after nationals, to take a look at everything and see what feels most comfortable at that point."
But no matter what happens this weekend, Sara Hall is just happy to be competing back at the top level.
"I feel really blessed to be doing this and enjoying it," she said "The sport can have its ups and downs, and so I am definitely thankful for having the momentum that I have right now."
Sara Hall is married to 2008 Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall. See their Web site www.ryanandsarahall.com to learn more about the Halls and their dog, Kai. Sara also uses Twitter@sarahall3: Snowing pretty hard out, opting to delay the treadmill run for an hour, getting breakfast in Stellar Brew coffee shop instead. --February 24, 2010