Expect Fast Times At Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener

Christmas comes early for distance fans.

The collegiate track & field season kicks off in a big way this weekend with the Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener emanating from the Boston University Track and Tennis Center.

From The USTFCCCA InfoZone: Meets & Results | Records & Lists

How big? Try 78 All-Americans from the recently completed NCAA Cross Country seasons entered in the 5000-meter races alone. That’s nearly 25 percent of athletes honored for their top-40 efforts at the NCAA DI, NCAA DII or NCAA DIII Cross Country Championships.

We’ve seen some incredible performances over the years at this meet, too.

Seven of the top-10 performers in collegiate history in the Women’s 5000 Meters clocked their marks right after the cross country season: Katie Izzo (No. 2, 15:13.09), Weini Kelati (No. 4, 15:14.18), Ednah Kurgat (No. 5, 15:11.78), Courtney Wayment (No. 7, 15:15.46), Sharon Lokedi (No. 8, 15:15.47) and Katelyn Tuohy (No. 9, 15:15.92). Izzo fell just short of Emily Sisson’s collegiate record of 15:22.22 in 2019.

Six of the top-10 performers in collegiate history in the Men’s 5000 Meters registered their best effort right after the calendar flipped to December: Ky Robinson (No. 4, 2022), Alex Maier (No. 5, 13:11.80), Drew Bosley (No. 6, 13:13.26), Wesley Kiptoo (No. 8, 13:14.74), Nico Young (No. 9, 13:25.25) and Brian Fay (No. 10, 13:16.77). Lawi Lalang’s 13:08.28 from 2012 still reigns.

Only three athletes from NCAA DII and NCAA DIII turned in all-time top-10 efforts at this meet over the years: Awet Beraki of Adams State (No. 6, 13:39.57) for NCAA DII; Elias Lindgren of Williams (No. 6, 14:00.54) and Annika Urban of Emory (No. 7, 16:29.14) for NCAA DIII.

Look for that to change with Fiona Smith of Saint Benedict toeing the line in the Women’s 5000 Meters. Smith, who capped an undefeated season on the grass circuit with a routine victory at the NCAA DIII Cross Country Championships, is in fine form and could potentially challenge Parley Hannan’s division record of 16:05.36, set on that same track back in February 2020.

Organizers have the quicker sections of the Women’s 5000 Meters scheduled to begin around 4 pm ET on Saturday, followed by the faster sections of the Men’s 5000 Meters at 5:30 pm ET.