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The Top Pre Classic Moments - 1990s

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Eugene Diamond League - Nike Prefontaine Classic   May 28th 2014, 1:56pm
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In honor of the 40th running of the Prefontaine Classic, a panel of track and field aficionados generated a ranking of the Top 40 Moments in Pre Classic history. The Top 40 Moments are more than a collection of the best athletes to compete at the Pre Classic; these moments are about competition, breaking historical records, and excitement! These are the moments that we remember as the best of the Pre Classic in its first 40 years.

The Top 40 Moments will be available in the 2014 Pre Classic program (and listed in full on PreClassic.com after the meet). Below are all the nominated moments from which the Top 40 were selected, in chronological order.

Top Pre Classic Moments - 1970s - 1980s - 1990s - 2000s - 2010s - Top 40 All-time


The Top Pre Classic Moments - 1990s 
(in chronological order)

 

1990 Men’s 5000 – Joe Falcon finished the last laps by himself, almost 5 seconds ahead of Doug Padilla.  Falcon ran 13:20.49.

 

1990 Men’s 10,000 – Alberto Salazar won his first and only Pre Classic race.  He did so in a steady rain and generally out for the count with 5 laps to go.  But he made up ground and used the Hayward Field crowd’s energy to pull ahead with 2 laps to go and win by over 4 seconds in 29:09.22.

 

1991 Men’s Hammer – Lance Deal raised his own meet record to 257-4 (78.44).

 

1991 Women’s Mile – An historical collection of talent lined up, but after 3 laps (3:30.6) a wild kicker’s race began with Suzy Hamilton and PattiSue Plumer in the lead.  At the beginning of the backstretch, Maria Mutola, an 18-year-old Olympian from nearby Springfield HS, made a bid for the lead, but Hamilton and Plumer wouldn’t let her by.  That trio traded strides for the next half lap.  At the top of the homestretch, there was so much contact that Mutola threw her arms up in protest, but never recovered.  Plumer sprinted after Hamilton, and at the finish they bumped, exchanged elbows, and locked arms as Plumer crashed to the track, just inches behind Hamilton (4:32.99 to Plumer’s 4:33.04).  The epilogue: Plumer hurt her hip and never ran to that level again; Hamilton earned her first of 6 Pre titles; and Mutola would never lose again at Pre, ringing up 17 straight Pre titles, the most ever.

 

1992 Men’s 3000m Steeplechase – Mark Croghan won by over 2 seconds in 8:21.55, the 3rd-fastest in meet history at the time.

 

1992 Men’s Long Jump – Joe Greene broke a meet record previously held by Mike Conley, Mike Powell, and Arnie Robinson.

 

1992 Men’s Hammer – Lance Deal broke the meet record twice and ended up with the five longest throws in meet history.  His best was 264-10 (80.72), the 4th-longest ever by an American, and he won by over 30 feet as he won for the 5th-straight year.

 

1992 Women’s 800 – 19-year-old Maria Mutola won her first Pre Classic title, becoming only the second woman to break 2 minutes at the meet (just behind world record holder Jarmila Kratochvilova).  Her time of 1:58.67 was the fastest outdoors in the world at the time.  (age record?)

 

1992 Women’s 2000 – Annette Peters overtook Mary Slaney in the homestretch to win in 5:38.08 over Slaney’s 5:39.19, both well under the meet record.  It was one of Slaney’s rare defeats in the Pre Classic.

 

1993 Men’s 3000m Steeplechase – Marc Davis ran the 2nd fastest time in meet history in 8:20.14.

 

1993 Men’s 5000 – Todd Williams ran the fastest time by an American in 4 years.  His time of 13:20.13 won by more than 4 seconds.

 

1993 Men’s 400m Hurdles – Kevin Young won by well over 2 seconds to lower the meet record to 48.59.

 

1993 Men’s Pole Vault – Sergey Bubka’s first appearance in Eugene was indeed memorable.  After equaling the meet record of 19-2¼ (5.85), he asked for the bar to be set at a world-record 20-1¾ (6.14).  While he didn’t clear it, his last two attempts were oh-so-close.

 

1994 Men’s Pole Vault – Sergey Bubka defended his title and raised the meet record to 19-6¼ (5.95).  He tried three times at a world record 20-1¾ (6.14) but did not clear, although one was close.

 

1995 Men’s 200 – Michael Johnson beat Carl Lewis in a passing of the baton for the ages.  MJ prevailed in the homestretch and lowered the meet record by over 0.3 seconds to 20.15, while Lewis was also under the old standard at 20.47.

 

1995 Men’s 400 – Derek Mills ran his fastest-ever and destroyed the meet record in 44.13, leading Darnell Hall (44.37) and Butch Reynolds (44.91) also under the old meet record.  The vanquished also included Danny Everett, Quincy Watts, and Jason Rouser; all six would claim Olympic Gold in their careers.

 

1995 Men’s Mile – Steve Holman unleashed one of his memorable kicks to win in 3:52.89, breaking the meet record that had stood for 12 years.  Behind him, 12 others broke the magical 4:00 barrier.

 

1995 Men’s 2-Mile – Bob Kennedy outdueled Todd Williams by 0.05 seconds, winning in a memorable meet record of 8:14.53.  They became the No. 2 and 3 Americans ever at the distance.

 

1995 Women’s 1000 – Maria Mutola won an event for the fourth year in a row, winning the 1000 for the third time in 2:32.33.  More than a second back was Suzy Hamilton running an American record 2:33.93.

 

1995 Women’s 100m Hurdles – Gail Devers demolished the meet record as five others broke or tied the 15-year-old meet record.  Devers was well over 0.3 better than the rest in running 12.84 into a stiff 2.2mps wind.

 

1996 Men’s 800 – Johnny Gray won for the first time in 13 years, and this time he not only set a meet record but also became the first sub-1:45 runner in meet history (1:44.62).  Not far behind was the second, Germany’s Nico Motchebon (1:44.90).

 

1996 Women’s 3000 – In a star-studded lineup, Sonia O’Sullivan shined the brightest by lowering Mary Slaney’s meet record to 8:39.33.  Among the vanquished were American stars Amy Rudolph, Libbie Johnson, Lynn Jennings, Annette Peters, and Slaney herself.

 

1997 Men’s 3000 – Bob Kennedy won by over 8 seconds in a meet record 7:39.22.

 

1997 Women’s 800 – Maria Mutola made it 7 for 7, winning the 800 in 1:57.57 to break the 12-year-old meet record of Jarmila Kratochvilova (1:58.01).  Also under the record was Jearl Miles-Clark in 1:57.98.

 

1998 Men’s 100 – Maurice Greene crushed a stellar field to win in a wind-aided 9.79.

 

1998 Men’s 200 – Maurice Greene used a stirring homestretch to win in a wind-aided 19.88, beating Obadele Thompson, Michael Johnson, and even hurdler Allen Johnson.

 

1998 Men’s Mile – Daniel Komen battled difficult winds to lower the meet record by over a second to 3:50.95, just 0.09 off the fastest ever outdoors in U.S. history.

 

1998 Men’s 5000 – Luke Kipkosgei battled strong winds and lowered the meet record to 13:07.83.

 

1998 Men’s 110m Hurdles – Allen Johnson won for the 2nd time in 3 years, this time lowering his own meet record to 13.12.

 

1998 Men’s Pole Vault – Jeff Hartwig cleared 19-5 (5.92), 2nd best in meet history behind only Sergey Bubka.  He had one close attempt at become the first American over 6 meters (19-8¼).

 

1998 Men’s Shot – John Godina became the event’s first repeat winner in 22 years.  He also broke Pete Shmock’s 22-year-old meet record at 69-7½ (21.22).

 

1998 Men’s Hammer – Lance Deal won his 9th Pre Classic title in record fashion with a heave of 265-4 (80.88)

 

1998 Women’s Long Jump – Marion Jones added almost 2 feet to the meet record, jumping 23-11¾ (7.31), her longest ever.

 

1999 Women’s 200 – Marion Jones blistered a loaded field to win by over half a second and lower the meet record by almost a full second in 21.81.

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