OTC Elite’s Simpson and van Ingen Finish on Top in the Mile

Seattle, Wash. — Six Oregon Track Club Elite athletes took a break from the cool winter conditions to race in the University of Washington Invitational at the Dempsey Indoor Facility on Saturday.

OTC Elite head coach Mark Rowland used the meet to put variety in the athletes’ training routine, and he got the added benefit of seeing four newcomers make their OTC racing debuts.   

First to open the 2013 season for the Elite were Tyler Mulder and Erik van Ingen in the mile. van Ingen crossed the line in the fastest time of the day in just a sliver over four minutes — 4:00.80. Less than a second behind van Ingen was Mulder who finished third in 4:01.56. An 800-meter specialist, it was Mulder’s first time competing in the mile. His fastest metric-mile was a 3:42.53 at the 2012 Oregon Relays.  

Jemma Simpson followed up with the fastest women’s mile of day with a time of 4:37.96. Like Mulder, Simpson also concentrates on the 800. She was followed be OTC teammates Lauren Johnson and Aisha Praught, who finished third and fourth — with marks of 4:39.76 and 4:40.71 — respectively. 

The final result of the day for OTC came from Hassan Mead in the men’s 3,000. Mead, who has been preparing for the upcoming USA Cross Country Championships, finished third in 8:00.54 — behind Nike’s Leonard Korir and Donn Cabral. According to Rowland, the 3,000-meter race was meant to add a little diversity to Mead’s training for the 12k championship race on February 2^nd in St. Louis.

For complete results, photos and tweets about the meet check out www.OTCElite.com.