Meet Director Tom Jordan Predicts a Fast Pace for the Men's Mile
Returning to historic Hayward Field, where he broke the national high school record in the mile two years ago, Alan Webb will race in this Saturday's Bowerman Mile at the Prefontaine Classic Grand Prix. Webb became one of the sport's most recognizable athletes when he ran a blistering 3:53.43 in the 2001 Pre Classic to erase Jim Ryun's 37-year-old high school record. After a year at the University of Michigan, Webb turned pro at the age of 19, and broke 4-minutes indoors for the second time this past season. Outdoors, his racing has been low-key, as he tries to recapture the form that made him so famous two years ago.

Said meet director Tom Jordan, "The expectations on Alan every time he runs are simply huge. The Bowerman Mile should be just the right kind of race for him. The pace will be fast and steady, and no knowledgeable fan will assume he is going to win in a field of this caliber." Case in point, favorite Bernard Lagat ran a world-leading 3:34.13 on May 17th in Portland, which is the equivalent of a mile under 3:52.0. Following in Webb's footsteps, in this year's race are two of the fastest prep milers in the country, Steve Magness of Texas and Mike McGrath of Oregon. Both have legitimate shots at breaking the 4-minute barrier, with Magness already having run the equivalent of a 4:02.99 mile this season.

2000 Olympic Champion Noah Ngeny Leads a Field of Talented Milers
Start with the No. 2, No. 4, and No. 8 milers in the world from last year, as ranked by Track & Field News magazine, add in the reigning Olympic Champion, plus a half-dozen other athletes with a lifetime best under 3:54, and two high school runners with legitimate chances to break the 4-minute barrier, and you have a classic Bowerman Mile field in the Prefontaine Classic on May 24th.

Led by a contingent of Kenya's strongest milers--Bernard Lagat (#2 in the world), Cornelius Chirchir (#4), Laban Rotich (#8), and Noah Ngeny (2000 Olympic Champion)--the field is guaranteed to be fast and competitive. Lagat has a lifetime best of 3:47.28, and an even faster personal best at 1500 meters (3:26.34, equal to a mile under 3:43!). Chirchir, Rotich and Ngeny all have run metric equivalents of sub-3:50, and Ngeny, of course, won the Olympic gold medal at 1500 meters in Sydney, defeating Pre Classic meet recordholder Hicham El Guerrouj, who will not be coming to the Pre Classic this year in order to prepare for a world-record attempt at 5000 meters in early June. Morocco will still have a representative in the meet, however, as Abdelkader Hachlef, currently No. 8 on the IAAF World Rankings list, will compete.

U.S. Olympian Michael Stember, 2002 U.S. outdoor champion Seneca Lassiter, and 2003 U.S. indoor champion Jason Lunn lead the American contingent, while national recordholders Hudson De Souza of Brazil (3:51.2) and Kevin Sullivan of Canada (3:50.26) have both recorded strong races outdoors this season.

As much attention as the race up front will get, the back of the pack will be of interest, too. The fastest high school miler in the nation, Steve Magness, and Oregon's Mike McGrath, who just surpassed Steve Prefontaine on the State's all-time mile list, have both been issued invitations to compete in the Bowerman Mile. Magness has run the 1600-meter equivalent of a 4:02.99 mile, leading the race wire-to-wire. On May 3rd, McGrath ran a gutty 4:05.28 for second place in the Bill McChesney Jr Twilight Mile, despite being buffeted by strong winds and rain. Both will aim to break 4-minutes as preps, a feat last accomplished in high-school record style (3:53.43) by Alan Webb in the 2001 Prefontaine Classic.