April 1, 2026. The 2026 USATF Masters Indoor Championships were held from Thursday, February 19th to Sunday, February 22nd at the Convention Center in Albuquerque, NM. This article reports on the Middle Distance Events: 3000 Meters [Thursday]; 1 Mile [Saturday]; and 800M [Sunday]. Albuquerque, like Denver, is a Mile high city. That means it is a tough venue for middle distance runners who want to run fast. Even though the fields had World champions and American record holders, no records were set. Runners focused on getting a gold medal in their most important event or, in some cases, earning as many medals as possible and for those on contending teams, accruing as many points as possible. Those who were fit to challenge records this winter, made their attempts at other events, where altitude was not a concern. Note: Canadian athletes often participate but they do not win medals. Hence, in a race where a Canadian finishes in the top 3, I list the 4th place finisher as well because they won the bronze medal.
WOMEN
70-89
W85 Mimi Mortimer won the W85 1 Mile championship unopposed. Mortimer was the oldest women's middle-distance competitor!
W80 Nancy Berger achieved the classic middle-distance double, winning the Mile on Saturday and the 800M on Sunday. Berger enjoyed a seven second margin of victory over Rosemary Schwartzbard in the W80 Mile, taking the lead after the first two laps and grinding it out. It was the same in the 800M except that the speedy Berger enjoyed an eight second margin over Schwartzbard. But Schwartzbard had started with a win in Thursday's 3000M, enjoying a two-minute victory margin over Angela Staab.
W75 Sabra Harvey also claimed the classic Mile/800M double gold. In the 1 Mile, Harvey, the 2017 Masters Athlete of the Year, led all the way. Her Red Lizard teammate, Jeanette Groesz, followed closely but Harvey kept her lead, winning by two seconds. Harvey had no peers in the 800M, winning by over a minute! On Thursday, Groesz had an equally dominant win in the 3000M; she won with 6 minutes to spare!
W70 Canada’s Clara Northcott kicked past Amy McCormack on the final lap to win the 3000M in 15:16.25. McCormack, as first American, won the gold medal in 15:17.91. Tracey Bernett also doubled in the Mile and 800M, winning gold in both. Bernett enjoyed two close wins. She pulled away from Amy McCormack on the final lap to win the W70 Mile by 1.75 seconds in 7:41.05. In the 800M, Bernett and Canada's Clara Northcott trailed McCormack until the backstretch of the final lap. Bernett moved into the lead. Northcott moved past McCormack on the final turn and surged to the tape. But Bernett held on for the win, in 3:33.79, and the double gold!
W85 3000M No entries; 1 Mile M Mortimer 16:34.0; 800M No entries
W80 3000M R Schwartzbard 25:21.38, A. Staab 27:51.92; 1 Mile N Berger 12:35.22, R Scwartzbard 12:42.68, K Frable 13:59.18; 800M N Berger 5:53.78, R Schwartzbard 6:01.98, A Staab 6:48.64.
W75 3000M J Groesz 15:15.67, Andrea McCarter 21:33.53; 1 Mile S Harvey 7:25.20, J Groesz 7:27.70, A McCarter 11:15.31; 800M S Harvey 3:14.96, P Kelly 4:19.61, A McCarter 458.57.
W70 3000M C Northcott CAN 15:16.25, A McCormack 15:17.91, M Diver 19:53.72, H Myers 23:21.78; 1 Mile T Bernett 7:41.05, A McCormack 7:42.80, C Northcott CAN 7:48.77, M Diver 10:15-.05; 800M T Bernett 3:33.79, C Northcott 3:34.78, A McCormack 3:37.58, M Diver 4:41.96.
55-69
W65 Mireille Silva enjoyed a 3000M victory margin of over a minute on Debbie Lee. Silva led wire-to-wire, adding ot her lead with each passing lap. Lee made another solid effort in the 1 Mile but ran against Lesley Hinz, who had no trouble; Hinz won by over a half minute. In the 800M it was another story; Nancy Simmons led from the gun; she sped to an 11-second victory over Julie Hayden, with Hinz finishing third. In this W65 division, a different athlete won each of the three middle distance events.
W60 Michelle Rohl won triple middle-distance gold medals! Her 3000M effort scored a minute and thirteen second win over Canada's Makie Ohler to kick things off on Thursday. Judy Stobbe kept closer to Rohl in the Mile, but Rohl pulled away early to win by twenty seconds.
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| Michelle Rohl #2 laps two runners on her way to her 1 Mile win in the 60-64 division at the 2026 USATF Masters Indoor Championships in Albuquerque NM. Photo posted on Facebook by Michael Rohl. |
It was more of the same in the 800M, where Rohl enjoyed a twenty-three second victory margin over Michelle Allen.
W55 Kara Parker claimed the longer 3000M-1 Mile double. Parker cruised to the W55 3000M win, enjoying a two-minute victory margin over Dyan Thompson. Parker was closely trailed by Lisa Valle in the Mile the whole way. Parker crossed the finish line a fraction of a second ahead, of Valle for the win. Diane De Oliveira, who finished third in the Mile behind Parker and Valle, stormed back to win the W55 800M on Sunday. Valle led early but DeOliveira passed her on the 3rd lap and surged away on the backstretch of the final lap
W65 3000M M Silva 14:30.20, D Lee 15:36.84, M Lowe Mayhugh 17:10.24; 1 Mile L Hinz 6:59.26, D Lee 7:35.96, M Lowe Mayhugh 8:37.98; 800M N Simmons 2:46.05, J Hayden 2:57.05, L Hinz 3:05.47 .
W60 3000M M Rohl 11:49.13, M Ohler CAN 13:02.30, T Klein 13:23.11, C Blakely-Cameron 13:42.61; 1 Mile M Rohl 5:45.44, J Stobbe 6:05.9, M Ohler CAN 6:46.20; 800M M Rohl 2:39.21, M Allen 3:02.70, C Thomas 3:07.19.
W55 3000M K Parker 11:59.35, D Thompson 14:06.82, C Patla 15:07.91; 1 Mile K Parker 6:06.88, L Valle 6:07.19, D DeOliveira 6:31.51; 800M D DeOliveira 2:51.85, L Valle 2:55.19, R Vigil 3:10.09.
30-54
W50 Abby Dean claimed the first win of the weekend in this division, enjoying a solid 11-second win over Brenda Wiliams in the 3000M. Williams was within a few strides for the first 11 laps. But then the gap started to grow, slowly and steadily to the finish. Williams got her revenge in an exciting Saturday race. She stayed on Dean's heels through the first seven laps. Williams kicked past Dean to gain the win by just over a second! Barbara Bass was ten seconds back in third. The speedsters took over in the 800M. Bass led for the first lap but then Antonia Georgieva passed her and held the lead all the way to the finish, enjoying a 1.5 second gap over bass. Stella Barry closed fast to finish just 0.26 seconds behind Bass.
W45 Dana Hayden enjoyed a dominant 3000M win on Thursday. She was content to follow Heather Davel Langreck for the first seven laps. After passing, Hayden slowly built a gap, winning by 26 seconds in the end. In the 1 Mile on Saturday, Hayden led Langreck and Jessica Hruska for the first several laps. Just before they had two laps to go, Hayden tired and Hruska sped past with Langreck trailing. But Langreck came back and passed Hruska just before they sounded the bell. Hruska could not match Langreck's pace, trailing her across the finish line by seven seconds. Hayden picked up third place points. Hayden was back on track in the 800M, picking up the less common 3000M-800M double. Hayden took over the lead after the first lap and held it all the way to the finish for a solid seven second win over Laura Mitchell.
W40 Surprisingly, no one contested the 40-44 division in the 3000M. Victoria Collins won the 1 Mile unopposed in 5:33.86. The 800M was well contested. Maria Phelps trailed Andrea Myers for the first three laps, but stormed by her on the final lap, forging a seven second victory margin over Andrea Myers. Katie Page was another four seconds back in third.
W35 Nicole Rhodes earned the 3000M-1 Mile double. In the 3000M, Rhodes trailed Shayna Weir for the first seven laps, pulling away over the last two laps to finish seven seconds ahead. Rhodes won the 1 Mile unopposed in 5:52.61. The only entrant in the 800M did not start.
W30 Mary Baldwin picked up the 3000M-1 Mile double by winning the 3000M unopposed in 11:07.12 and beating Mary Zoldak by a half minute in the 1 Mile on Saturday. Kimberly Chapman-Natewa and Amanda Valentine battled in the 800M. Six seconds behind when they sounded the bell for the final lap, Chapman-Natewa set out to catch Valentine. It came down to the wire with Chapman-Natewa getting the win by 0.7 seconds!
W25 Amanda Pasko was unopposed in the 800M but ran a fine 2:25.84 nonetheless. Phelps, in W40, was the only runner with a faster time.
W50 3000M A Dean 12:21.24, B Williams 12:32.44, Y Whitestone 14:09.72; 1 Mile B Williams 6:19.24, A Dean 6:20.37, B Bass 6:30.55; 800M A Georgieva 2:57.57, B Bass 2:59.10, S Barry 2:59.36.
W45 3000M D Hayden 11:26.99, H Davel-Langreck 11:53.25, J Page 14:15.45; 1 Mile H Davel-Langreck 5:39.58, J Hruska 5:46.90, D Hayden 6:01.07; 800M D Hayden 2:40.76, L Mitchell 2:48.35, B Novak 3:00.07.
W40 3000M No entries. 1 Mile V Collins 5:33.86; 800M M Phelps 2:25.07, A Myers 2:32.63, K Page 2:36.82.
W35 3000M N Rhodes 12:12.13, S Weir 12:19.29; 1 Mile N Rhodes 5:52.61;
W30 3000M M Baldwin 11:07.12; 1 Mile M Baldwin 5:34.78, M Zoldak 6:08.03; 800M K Chapman-Natewa 2:36.48, A Valentine 2:37.18.
W25 800M A Pasko 2:25.84
MEN
75-94
M90 Colben Sime started things off right with an unopposed 3000M victory Thursday in the 3000M, winning in 27:33.34. The next two days, Sime had to chase Inocencio Cantu, the M85 and M90 World Record holder in the Mile. Cantu claimed the classic Mile/800M double, two minutes ahead of Sime in the Mile, and 51 seconds ahead in the 800M.
M85 Timothy Joslin claimed the gold medal in the 3000M Thursday night, with 80 meters to spare. Roland Cormier collected the silver medal, with Joe Cordero 5 minutes back in third. Cormier had no trouble collecting the win in the Mile; he finished over three minutes ahead of Cordero. Robert Paulen and Robert Randall battled for the M85 800M Gold, with Paulen pulling away for a four second victory. Cordero picked up his second bronze medal to go with his silver in the 3000M.
M80 Gary Ostwald collected the 3000M-1 Mile double, ahead of Masters Hall of Famer, Gary Patton. Ostwald enjoyed a 20-meter gap on Patton at the end of the 3000M and a hundred meters at the end of the Mile.
Patton finished the weekend off on a high note, nipping Ostwald at the finish line for the 800M win. Ostwald got double gold and a silver! Patton earned double silver and a gold!
M75 3000M Jerry Learned competed in all three events, taking the 3000M/1 Mile Double Gold. He started things off with a dominant win in the 3000M. Learned finished well over a minute ahead of Tim Wigger, who left Donald Loew ten seconds further back in third. The Mile was a different story. It was the classic battle between the distance runner who tries to take the kick out of a speedier runner with a kick. Learned led the whole way with Wigger just a stride or two back. When they hit the top of the final straightaway, Wigger made his move and passed Learned. It looked like the kicker had it in the bag. But then Learned threw in his own late surge, pulled even with Wigger and crossed the finish line four-hundredths of a second in front. That surprise at the line gave Learned his double and made Wigger more determined than ever to win the 800M on Sunday.
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| Tim Wigger #1 Jerry Learned #4 and the rest of the M75 Field in the 800M Run at the USATF Masters Indoor Championships in Albuquerque NM. Photo credit: Blake Wood. |
Wigger took it out fast and Learned did not close the gap until the halfway point. But Learned never pulled even with Wigger, who accelerated again heading down the backstretch. Wigger enjoyed a three second victory, while Learned held off Larry Rink to add a silver to his two golds. But Wigger had the 800M gold!
M90 3000M C Sime 27:33.34; 1 Mile I Cantu 11:52.53, C Sime 13:56.07; 800M I Cantu 5:27.29, C Sime 6:19.13.
M85 3000M T Joslin 21:52.56, R Cormier 22:19.20, J Cordero 27:49.49; 1 Mile R Cormier 10:59.86, J Cordero 14:03.81, R Randall 14:06.04; 800M R Paulen 6:18.80, R Randall 6:22.80, J Cordero 6:37.97.
M80 3000M G Ostwald 13:27.15, G Patton 13:33.06, N Frable 21:52.31; 1 Mile G Ostwald 6:48.07, G Patton 7:16.64, H Lieberman 9:59.72; 800M G Patton 3:01.29, G Ostwald 3:02.98, Saleh Talib 4:11.69
M75 3000M J Learned 13:55.34, T Wigger 15:05.85, D Loew 15:15.19; 1 Mile J Learned 6:54.43, T Wigger 6:54.47, I Jimenez 7:11.26; 800M T Wigger 3:07.14, J Learned 3:10.16, L Rink 3:11.27.
55-74
M70 Jack Pottle earned the 3000M-1 Mile double gold. Pottle set the early pace in the 3000M. Rick Becker, with a pacemaker newly installed this past fall, took the lead with three laps to go, but could not pull away from Pottle. With a lap to go, Pottle made a move that Becker could not answer, pulling away to win by eight seconds! In the Mile, George Hennahan and Pottle trailed John Stolz through the first five laps. With three laps to go, Hennehan moved to the lead, with Pottle following. As in the 3000M, Pottle made a strong move with a lap to go and pulled away from Hennehan for a win with six seconds to spare! That was a nifty double for Pottle! Stolz and Hennehan battled in the 800M. But this time it was Stolz prevailing, with a margin of three seconds.
M65 David Westenberg enjoyed double gold in 3000M and the Mile. In the 3000M, Westenberg led from the gun. Blake Wood followed closely for the first two laps. On the third lap, a gap started to appear. Westenberg grew it steadily in the 4th lap and Wood was never able to close it. Westenberg cruised in for the win over Wood, with five seconds to spare.
It was much the same story in the Mile except that Wood could not hold second. Westenberg sped to a nine-second win over Timothy Conheady, with Kevin Paulk four seconds back in third. Westenberg did everything he could to win a third gold in the 800M. But this time, after Westenberg set the pace from the gun, Bill Zink was able to blast past at the bell, with Paulk in his wake. Zink got the win by two seconds over Paulk. Westenberg held off a fast-closing Robert Whittaker to add a bronze to his two golds.
M60 This division was unusual in that Benoit Hogue, a top Canadian middle distance runner, actually won all three events. But, as a Canadian citizen, was not eligible to win any medals. Rick Lee, the top Marathoner and Ultra Marathon runner, in the last weeks before moving up to M65, could not keep pace with Hogue. He earned double gold nonetheless. Lee led all Americans by a half minute in the 3000M, with Timothy Vigil in second. Vigil stayed closer in the Mile but Lee still enjoyed a solid seven-second victory. Vigil enjoyed the silver medal; Christopher Yorges finished two seconds back in the bronze medal position. Hogue again led wire-to-wire in the 800M, winning by 1.24 seconds. Jeff Conway came from behind on the bell lap, claiming second and first American and therefore, the gold medal at the line. Yorges was just 0.55 seconds behind Conway. Lee got a bronze to go with his two golds by finishing third American.
M55 Charles Novak had a little too much for Todd Straka. Novak earned the Mile-800M double gold with Straka getting double silver. In the Mile, Novak set the pace, with Straka just a couple of strides back. Novak accelerated on the bell lap and Straka could not get any closer than Novak's final two second victory margin. It was much the same in the 800M except that Novak enjoyed a bigger winning margin, seven seconds. Neither competed in the 3000M. Michael Resterhouse enjoyed a solid win. Jonah Lovendahl was 70 meters back in second.
M70 3000M J Pottle 11:53.23, R Becker 12:01.41, B Cummins 12:40.48; 1 Mile J Pottle 6:00.12, G Hennehan 6:06.61, J Stolz 6:13.46; 800M J Stolz 2:42.04, G Hennehan 2:45.68, S Chantry 2:47.98.
M65 3000M D Westenberg 11:36.10, B Wood 11:41.74, G Kersh 12:02.56; 1 Mile D Westenberg 5:45.35, T Conheady 5:54.53, K Paulk 5:58.7; 800M B Zink 2:32.53, K Paulk 2:34.69, D Westenberg 2:36.84.
M60 3000M B Hogue CAN 10:30.97, R Lee 11:00.57, T Vigil 11:31.55, N Powell 11:42.40; 1 Mi B Hogue CAN 5:11.79, R Lee 5:27.20, T Vigil 5:34.04, C Yorges 5:36.43; 800M B Hogue CAN 2:24.09, J Conway 2:25.33, C Yorges 2:25.48, R Lee 2:29.35.
M55 3000M M Resterhouse 10:56.28, J Lovendahl 11:14.33, M Cutrona 12:12.37; 1 Mile C Novak 5:02.97; T Straka 5:05.10, S Sievert 5:24.71; 800M C Novak 2:12,18, T Straka 2:19.64, D Gill 2:22.53.
45-54
M50 Nicholas Conway turned in a dominant 3000M-1 Mile double. He finished 50 seconds ahead of Brantley Lutz on Thursday. Two days later, he won the 1 Mile with 80 meters to spare. Aaron Brogan, in second place, had almost as much of an advantage on Colby Haase, who finished third. The only Male athlete with a better time than Conway competed in the 25-29 division. Brogan came back a day later to earn a gold medal of his own in the 800M. Wayne Hardy got things started with a speedy 32-second first lap but Brogan and Joshua Scherer closed on Hardy on the second lap. Brogan accelerated past Hardy heading into the bell lap, with Scherer right on his heels. Scherer could not close on Brogan as he sped to a fine win with two seconds to spare!
M45 Jay Stephenson finished five seconds ahead of Philip Keller on Thursday in the 3000M. Keller led for the first 5 laps. Stephenson passed and gradually built a small lead and held the five second gap all the way to the finish. Stephenson clocked the second fastest 3000M on the day. Brian Sullivan finished a half minute further back in third. Sullivan reversed the tables on Keller in the Mile, though. Running in second much of the way, with a lap and a half to go, Sullivan surged past the early leader, Adrian Herrera; he took Jeremy Ruston and Keller with him. But Sullivan threw down a terrific acceleration to win with two seconds to spare. Keller was able to pull past Ruston on the final straightaway to take the silver medal, a fraction of a second ahead of Ruston. In the 800M, Moses Washington took it out hard, with James Coates following closely and a small gap back to Ruston and Chuck Schneekloth. On the backstretch of the third lap, Ruston moved forward to challenge Washington, but Washington held him off. Coates accelerated at the bell past Ruston and challenged Washington! Washington had enough in the tank to hold him off and win by 0.38 seconds. Schneekloth's kick pulled him past Ruston into third, another 0.59 seconds back!
M50 3000M N Conway 9:10.99, B Lutz 10:01.55, S Lopez 10:26.28; 1 Mile N Conway 4:37.91, A Brogan 4:54.33, C Haase 5:09.38; 800M A Brogan 2:09.92, J Scherer 2:11.97, W Hardy 2:14.8.
M45 3000M J Stephenson 9:26.24, P Keller 9:30.97, B Sullivan 9:58.31; 1 Mile B Sullivan 4:48.84, P Keller 4:50.86, J Ruston 4:51.25; 800M M Washington 2:08.29, J Coates 2:08.67, C Schneekloth 2:09.26
25-44
M40 Sam Sharp almost got the 1 Mile-800M double but fell just short. As usual both races were dandies. On Saturday, in the Mile, Sharp played it perfectly. He set the pace from the start reducing it from a 9-man race to a 4-man race. He gradually increased the pace, but he could not drop Brett Anderson. At the bell, Sharp accelerated again, but Anderson gradually closed and went for the win off the turn. But Sharp still had a kick in him as he held off Anderson by 0.02 seconds in a dead heat at the finish line! In the 800M. Jeffrey Egglestone flew into the lead on the backstretch of the first lap, running smoothly. He covered the first 400M in 60 seconds flat. But Sharp and Matthew Boldoni shrunk the gap over the next lap and a half. Sharp and Boldoni surged past Egglestone off of the last turn. But Bordoni had the better kick, edging Sharp by 0.67 seconds. But Egglestone did not fade at all, finishing a mere 0.38 seconds behind Sharp! Sharp had to settle for a gold and a silver, but had the thrill of competing in such tight races. The 3000M on Thursday played out differently. David Proudfoot ground his age division adversaries down. In a race that covered all age divisions from 25-29 up to 40-44, Jared Murphy, from 30-34 set a hard pace from the start which Proudfoot did not attempt to match. But Proudfoot gradually closed the gap to Murphy. Four minutes into the race, Proudfoot passed Murphy and started setting the pace, with Murphy closely following. Over the next few laps, Proudfoot led Murphy around the oval as Proudfoot left his 40-44 rivals behind him. Proudfoot won 40-44 with almost a hundred-meter lead on Chris Brown, who finished second.
M35 Stanley Payton worked hard for his 3000M-1 Mile double! In the 3000M, Payton started strong but his pace gradually flagged over the last few laps. Bryon Malang came on at the end but could not chase Payton down! The final gap was less than a second. On Saturday, Payton dueled Malang again, along with Daniel Hunter. Payton again set the pace, but Hunter stayed right on his heels, with Malang a few strides back. On the backstretch of the final lap, Hunter gathered himself and surged past Payton. But Payton did not panic, maintained his stride and unleashed a kick at the top of the straightaway that pulled him past Hunter to claim victory with 0.82 seconds to spare. That gave Payton two golds. He just needed one more for the Triple! But in the 800M on Sunday, Payton ran into a force named Travis Thompson who could not be denied. Thompson sprinted to a 27 second first lap, leaving Payton in second, but more than a dozen meters back. Thompson kept the pedal down the whole way, never giving Payton a chance to close. Thompson took the win with the only sub-2:00 800M on the day! Payton concentrated on getting the silver to go with his two gold medals. He enjoyed a 40-meter lead on Brian Doxey as he crossed the finish line in 2nd.
M30 Jared Murphy was unopposed in this division's 3000M. As noted above, Murphy had a spirited competition with M40's Proudfoot. Murphy won that battle as well as claiming the M30 win. In the Mile on Saturday, Murphy had little more trouble than in the 3000M. He led wire to wire, winning by a good 50 meters. Jarrett Moore finished second, well ahead of the third place finisher, Osiell Soto. In the 800M on Sunday, Moore had a chance to show his speed. Donnie Johnson took the field through the first 400 meters in 1:10, with Moore a few strides back. At the bell, Johnson still had a few strides on Moore. But Moore gathered speed and pulled even with Johnson off the final turn, inched in front and held it to the line, winning by 0.38 seconds! Soto closed well to finish two seconds back in third.
M25 Michael Sims earned the coveted triple in the 25-29 division. Sims finished third overall in the 25-44 3000M race but won the 25-29 division handily. Lawrence Grubbe finished second, almost five minutes back. The 1 Mile was more competitive, but Sims was still the class of the field, setting a pace that no one else in his division could match. Sims won by over fifty meters. Chase Green finished well to take second. In the 800M, Sims let Amani Richardson set the early pace but took the lead on the third lap and never looked back. Sims had eight seconds on Richardson by the time he crossed the finish line, claiming his third middle distance gold!
M40 3000M D Proudfoot 9:37.96, C Brown 10:01.33, L Holman 10:37.53; 1 Mi S Sharp 4:42.47, B Anderson 4:42.49, J Armijo 4:46.48; 800M M Bordoni 2:00.18, S Sharp 2:00.85, J Egglestone 2:01.23.
M35 3000M S Payton 10:07.33, B Malang 10:08.29, B Duggan 10:44.41; 1 Mile S Payton 5:00.99, D Hunter 5:01.81, B Malang 5:03.76; 800M T Thompson 1:56.83, S Payton 2:04.92, B Doxey 2:11.14.
M30 3000M J Murphy 9:34.38 1 Mile J Murphy 4:42.28, J Moore 4:54.70, O Soto 5:13.03; 800M J Moore 2:14.18, D Johnson 2:14.56, O Soto 2:17.21.
M25 3000M M Sims 9:52.90, L Grubbe 14:46.68; 1 Mile M Sims 4:37.54, C Green 4:51.13, K Shutt 5:05.27; 800M M Sims 2:06.65, A Richardson 2:14.62, K Shutt 2:18.19
With the Indoor Championships behind them, a few set off to different meets to try for records. Others head to the roads for a bit. All look forward to the USATF Masters Outdoor Championships, July 16-19 in Geneva, Ohio.


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