Here to Tokyo? 17 Minnesotans to watch in the Olympic track and field trials

Over the next two weekends in Eugene, Ore., The top three finishers in each event will make the U.S. team for next month's Tokyo Olympics

June 18, 2021 at 5:51PM
Among the Minnesotans at the U.S. Olympic trials are steeplechase runner Obsa Ali (left), shot putter Maggie Ewen and distance runner Hassan Mead. (Star Tribune and AP photos/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

When: Friday-Monday and June 24-27

Where: Hayward Field, Eugene, Ore.

What's at stake: The top three finishers in each event will make the U.S. team for next month's Tokyo Olympics, provided they meet the Olympic qualifying standard in the required time period.

TV/streaming: NBC will show live coverage of finals Friday and Saturday (9 p.m.), Sunday (8 p.m.) and Monday (7 p.m.). In the trials' second half, finals will be shown live on NBCSN and on the Peacock streaming service on June 24 (8 p.m.) and June 25 (4 p.m.), and on NBC on June 26 (8 p.m.) and June 27 (6 p.m.).

Qualifying rounds of select field events will be on NBCSN and Peacock on Friday (6 p.m.), Saturday (7 p.m.) and Monday (6 p.m.).

All events also will be live streamed on NBCOlympics.com.

MINNESOTA CONNECTIONS

The top women's qualifier with Minnesota ties is Maggie Ewen of St. Francis, the bronze medalist in shot put at the 2019 U.S. championships. Ewen was fourth at the 2019 world championships, and her qualifying mark of 19.32 meters ranks fourth in the field.

Several runners in women's distance events also have state connections, including Gophers senior Abby Kohut-Jackson and former Gopher Madeline Strandemo (3,000-meter steeplechase); Emma Bates of Elk River (10,000); and Heather Kampf, a Minneapolis resident and former Gopher who trains with the Minnesota Distance Elite group (1,500). Former St. Paul resident Gwen Jorgensen, the gold medalist in women's triathlon at the 2016 Olympics, is entered in the 5,000 and 10,000.

Athletes with local ties on the men's side include 2016 Olympians and former Gophers Hassan Mead of Minneapolis and Ben Blankenship of Stillwater. Mead (5,000) and Blankenship (1,500), who train with Oregon Track Club Elite, both finished fourth in those events at the 2019 U.S. outdoor championships and competed at the 2019 world championships, with Mead placing 11th in the 5,000.

In the 3,000 steeplechase, Mason Ferlic of Roseville has the third-fastest qualifying time, and former Gopher Obsa Ali ranks seventh. Gophers senior Alec Basten, the 2021 NCAA runner-up in the steeplechase, also is entered. Joe Klecker, a state high school champion for Hopkins, is the seventh-fastest qualifier in the 5,000 and 10,000. Roshon Roomes of Woodbury and former Gopher Shane Streich of Janesville are entered in the 800.

The men's field events include Payton Otterdahl of Rosemount, who has the fourth-best qualifying mark in the shot put; former Gopher Sean Donnelly, with the second-best qualifying mark in the hammer throw; and Marcus Gustaveson, a former football and track athlete at Concordia-St. Paul competing in the discus.

about the writer

about the writer

Rachel Blount

Reporter/Columnist

Rachel Blount is a sports reporter for the Minnesota Star Tribune who covers a variety of topics, including the Olympics, Wild, college sports and horse racing. She has written extensively about Minnesota's Olympic athletes and has covered pro and college hockey since joining the staff in 1990.

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