Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW RVTD's Saturday bus service resumes this Saturday ... Ticket availability ... Snow in July? Crater Lake could see some this weekend ... RVTD's Saturday bus service resumes this Saturday ... Ticket availability ... Snow in July? Crater Lake could see some this weekend ... US OLYMPIC TRIALS Taking charge to earn a berth Former SOU star Avila held meet on last day to qualify for trials Comment By Staff reports DailyTidings.com By Staff reports Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 8:07 PM By Staff reports Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 8:07 PM » RELATED CONTENT Eric Avila --> WHO: Won three NAIA national titles (in cross country, the 1,500 meters and distance medley relay) as a senior at SOU, graduating in 2014. WHAT: Is one of 30 entrants in the 1,500 at the U.S.... » Read more X Eric Avila WHO: Won three NAIA national titles (in cross country, the 1,500 meters and distance medley relay) as a senior at SOU, graduating in 2014. WHAT: Is one of 30 entrants in the 1,500 at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, beginning Thursday night, July 7. • SOU runner Hixon named CCC Male Athlete of the Year • SOU's sweet 16 heads to nationals • Four Raiders up for SOSC honors • SOU cross country teams aim to make splash at nationals » Social News Eric Avila had three days to achieve the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials qualifying time in the men's 1,500 meters, but there was a hitch: There were no meets for him to compete in. So the former Southern Oregon University national champion and his coach put on their own. “Honestly, I was kind of freaking out,” said Avila, who graduated from SOU in 2014 as arguably the school's most accomplished men's runner. “But then part of me was like, I have nothing to lose.” The venture was successful, and he gained a spot in Thursday night's 1,500-meter event at Hayward Field in Eugene. Avila beat the clock in that impromptu meet June 26 — the last day to submit a trials time — at Whyte Track and Field Center at Oregon State University. He ran 3 minutes, 38.30 seconds, which was just off the qualifying standard of 3:38.00 but was fast enough to get him into the 30-man field. Only 15 of the runners in Thursday night's first round, which starts at 7:21 p.m., met the qualifying time. The next 15 fastest were accepted to fill out the field. The 1,500 semifinals are at 4:12 p.m. Friday and the finals are at 5:21 Sunday, the last event of the trials. Avila had incredible success during his time at Southern Oregon Univ. He ended his collegiate career a 6-time All-American, a 4-time NAIA champion, a school record holder in the 1,500 and 5,000 and broke the 4-minute mile barrier his last race as a collegian. “Everything was shooting up; 100 miles up to the sky,” Avila said. Upon graduation from SOU, Avila moved from Ashland to Eugene and turned pro. A month after winning the NAIA 1,500 title, he placed 10th at the U.S. Track and Field Outdoor Championships with a time of 3:41.29, his personal best until two weeks ago. It was not until the 2015 Mt. SAC Invitational that Avila knew something was wrong. The second day of the meet he ran the 1,500 and finished third in 3:41.35, which was OK to him at the time. The red flag appeared the next day when he ran the 800. “I remember running the first 100 meters, and I saw spots,” Avila said. “I finished, and I barely ran under 2 minutes.” He decided he needed to see a doctor. The diagnosis was iron-deficiency anemia. “Last year was really hard, and I started questioning a lot of things,” said Avila, a member of Team Run Eugene and sponsored by Hoka One One. “I told (SOU head coach Grier Gatlin) that it felt like studying for a test that I put a lot of energy into, getting back the grade and it's a zero. You're like, 'What!' It just didn't make sense in my mind. It was demoralizing.” There was a 14-month window to make the trials qualifying time. Avila, recovered from his illness, was down to the final nine days when he made his push. He entered a meet June 18 in Seattle, but a windy, bad-weather day and an off performance — which Avila attributed to going out too fast — resulted in him dropping out during the last lap. Five days later in Portland, heavy rain and a pace that was too slow hurt him, but Avila managed a time of 3:41.34 and went from 13th place to fifth during the last lap. “I knew during the last six weeks or so that I was in good enough shape to do it,” he said. The Portland race, the Stumptown Twilight, was won by reigning world champion Matt Centrowitz Jr., who has the fastest trials qualifying time of 3:30.40. “My last lap was faster than his,” said Avila, “so I thought if I ran smarter I could take at least a couple seconds off. I mean, I almost PR'd (personal record'd) and ran like an idiot, tactically.” But he was still on the outside looking in at the trials. While driving home, Avila and his coach, Ian Dobson, considered other last-chance meets, but they weren't feasible. One was in Philadelphia, another in Toronto. The next morning, Dobson elected to try to put on his own. In three days. They needed a venue with a proper timing system, certified officials, enough runners and a “rabbit” to establish the requisite pace. Oregon, Willamette and Lane Community College balked at the idea. Oregon State track coach Kelly Sullivan thought he could make it happen. “My job was just to collect the athletes,” said Avila. “So I'm messaging anyone I can on Facebook — and we're talking elite athletes, only 15 to 20 in the country who can run the pace we needed.” He reached Daniel Herrera, a 3:57 miler from UCLA living in Portland, and Oregon's Sam Prakel, a 3:56 miler who was fifth in the NCAA Championships. Avila got the five runners necessary to make it official, and two events, the 800 and steeplechase, were added to a make it a meet. Avila drove from Eugene to Corvallis that Sunday with one objective: make the trials. “The weather was perfect, the gun went off and everyone just got behind me,” he said. “It was pretty weird. There was no one in the stands and just like 20 people on the track screaming at us.” Racing for the third time in nine days, he beat the clock with but hours remaining for trials entries. If all goes well tonight and beyond, he'll race three times in four days. Now he's competing against humans. “I'm not a huge time-trial guy,” said Avila. “I think the rounds will favor me because I'm used to it and think I'm a pretty strong athlete. I'm a racer, not a time-trialer. If I'm there, everything else goes out the window. “I guess I'm just confident in my own tactics, so I'm happy we can throw out the clock.” He's already shown he can beat it, in more ways than one. The Southern Oregon University Sports Information Department provided the material for this story. Freelance writer Isaac Gibson also contributed. By Staff reports DailyTidings.com By Staff reports Posted Jul. 6, 2016 at 8:07 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... Business Name address Location, ST | website.com Find Southern Oregon Attractions Bars Restaurants Beauty Salons Entertainment Doctors Medical Specialists Contractors Education Lawn Services Lawyers Shopping Travel Tanning Used Cars Wedding Services ▼ Add your business here + Events Calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Mobile Site Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2016 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. DailyTidings.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501