Thompson Runs For Team USA

By MORDECHAI YADEGAR

The Progress

Moapa Valley High School class of 2011 alumnus Josh Thompson is back at it yet again. The world-class distance runner finished another season last week by competing in the 1500 meter race against the world’s best in the World Track and Field Championships held in Eugene, Oregon.

As the only U.S. athlete to make the finals in the event, Thompson took 12th place in the July 19 race.
Thompson runs professionally for the Bowerman Track Club as a middle distance runner.
It was a challenging road this season that led Thompson to the finals last week. On Saturday, June 25, Thompson took on the nations top runners to compete for a spot representing Team USA at the finals in Eugene. It was an amazing and tactical race. Throughout the entire 1500 meters no one pulled away and they all stuck together.

Bell lap with 400 meters to go is when the pace picked up and Thompson took off. With around 200 meters to go he started to make a move with his monster kick and came across the line placing third with a qualifying time of 3:46.07.

Thompson was now once again representing Team USA for a chance to win gold with team mates Cooper Teare and John Gregorek.

In a recent interview with The Progress, Thompson talked about what it was like knowing he had made it into the World Championships. “It was an exciting feeling!” he said. “I’ve been working hard at this for a long time and a sense of pride came over me as I knew I made the world team and was going to represent the United States. It made all my long and strenuous training days worthwhile!”

To begin the action in Eugene, on Saturday, July 16, forty-two runners were split into three heats. Thompson was placed into heat three.

It was another tactical race but Thompson turned on the jets with another monster kick to finish in second with a qualifying time of 3:39.10. This advanced him to the semi-finals which took place the following day.

In the semi-final round, twenty four athletes were placed into two heats. The first five in each heat would automatically qualify. But the next two fastest times would qualify also. Josh was placed into the second heat for a last chance to make it to the finals.

The gun went off and the runners were already off to a faster pace than heat one. Josh was holding on to the pack. The runners started to give everything they had with the final 400 left.

Josh ended up placing 7th in his heat but with a new season’s best time of 3:35.55. Although he wasn’t in an automatic qualifying spot, his time was just fast enough for him to advance to the finals.

Two days later on June 19 it was time for the finals and it was down to only a dozen finalists who were going for gold. Thompson, as the lone U.S. runner who made the race, was now head to head with the best 1500 meter runners in the world.

Asked after the race how Thompson had felt toeing the line with the world’s best, he replied, “It’s an experience like none other. Running with them, knowing that I am one of the best as well, is quite a feeling! Racing against medalists and guys who have made history is awesome.”

The final race began and Josh was out of the gates and immediately in the front of the pack. The pace of the race was very fast and almost on track for a new world record. Thompson was holding on but slowly faded back. He finally crossed the line in 12th with a time of 3:35.57.

Heavily favored Norwegian, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, was upset by Jake Wightman from Great Britain in the race with a time of 3:29.23. Ingebrigsten got the silver finish at 3:29.47. Mohamed Katir of Spain took bronze at 3:29.90.

Thompson was clear that we will be seeing more of him in the future. “I’m training, work doesn’t end,” he said. “I have more races to come and many years left to compete and make teams!”