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By Don Ryan, AP |
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| Colorado's Jenny Barringer finished her collegiate career with wins and records but hopes that the World Championships in August can begin a new chapter in her career. |
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In the 11 months since she elected not to turn pro and instead return to Colorado as a distance runner, Jenny Barringer has set six collegiate records and won two NCAA titles.
Yet in what she calls a "storybook" final year of her collegiate career, her signature race was a loss.
Barringer, 22, took on the pros in the 1,500 meters in the June 7 Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore. Kicking furiously, she just missed nipping Ethiopia's Gelete Burka and finished second in 3 minutes, 59.90 seconds, setting a collegiate record while improving her personal best by almost nine seconds. In her fifth attempt at the distance, she became the youngest U.S. woman — and fourth overall — to break the four-minute barrier.
"The race at Prefontaine changed my life and my career as projections go for my future," says Barringer, the U.S. recordholder in the 3,000 steeplechase who will compete in the event at the Aug.15-23 world championships in Berlin.
"I went to a place of competition within myself that needed to be found and needed to come out. I just totally let go of splits and was competitive.
"The whole last couple of months of indoor and outdoor track, I've had this edge at the end of races, this aggressiveness and competitiveness that I think I've been developing for years. It's really just come to the surface this year. It's like you find an extra tool in the shed to use."
A three-time NCAA champ and two-time U.S. champ in the steeple, Barringer finished ninth last year in the Beijing Olympics, setting the U.S. record of 9:22.26. She's a more experienced and fitter runner than she was in Beijing, leading some to think she could contend for a medal at worlds.
"She's running better than ever now," Colorado coach Mark Wetmore says. "So is the world. It's a young event, so each year it takes some steps. Probably 9:22 won't be ninth this year. But we're pretty sure she's ready to run a nice chunk faster than that. I would certainly like to see her in the top four or five with a lap to go. She's a very good closer and courageous in that situation."
After winning NCAA and U.S. titles and running at Prefontaine in a three-week span, Barringer spent a week relaxing with her family in the Orlando area. She has returned to training, planning to line up two European races before Berlin, including a 5,000 in Stockholm on July 31.
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