Ashton Eaton competed under wraps, nursing a sore hamstring. Nevertheless his 8291 score at the 94th USA decathlon nationals was good enough to earn a 3rd consecutive title. Before the 1500m he learned that his fiancé, Canadian heptathlete Brianne Theissen, won the Canadian national crown earlier in the day in Monkton, New Brunswick, There were more angles than a billiards tournament at the finish of the decathlon 1500. It was apparent who had placed 1-2-3-4 but not so clear (because of the world championship A and B standards) who had made the US world champs team which will compete in Moscow in August. A dramatic 1500m finish for 3 of the key players turned predictions and expectations upside down and altered the make-up of the USA world champs squad. Trey Hardee had earned a wild card for his 2011 win in Daegu and Eaton was on the team for his win here. He had the “A” standard of 8200 points….actually the world record score from last summer counted. In the end Gunnar Nixon, although he missed the world’s auto standard here by a scant 2 points found himself on the team because Jeremy Taiwo sprinted an entire lap to make up 21 seconds on Gray Horn, who stumbled and fell 20 meters from the finish. Taiwo had moved from 5th to 3rd in the final two events and, because he placed 3rd and also had the “A” standard (8289 from the recent NCAAs) he too punched a ticket to Moscow. more
