WORLD NO. 1 KOMEN RETURNS
FOR BOWERMAN MILE
Eugene, Oregon--At last year's Prefontaine Classic, Daniel K. Komen of
Kenya electrified a sold-out crowd by running the fastest-ever mile on
American soil, 3:48.28. Komen returns for the Bowerman Mile on June
8th, but without the distinction of having run the fastest mile of the
year in 2007. That goes to Alan Webb, whose American Record 3:46.91
in Europe fulfilled the promise he displayed back in 2001, when he
broke Jim Ryun's venerable high school mark at the Pre Classic.
Komen and Webb are just two of the athletes in a field that could look
very much like an Olympic final. Consider: Rachid Ramzi, the 2005
World Championships gold medalist and 2007 silver medalist; Alex
Kipchirchir, ranked No. 1 in the Mile in 2006 by Track & Field News
magazine; Tarek Boukensa, ranked No. 3 in the world in 2007 by
T&FN; Mehdi Bala, ranked No. 4 in the world last year; Shadrack
Korir, ranked No. 7; and Asbel Kiprop, ranked No. 9. Combined with
Komen's No. 1 ranking, Ramzi's No. 5, and Webb's No. 6, that means the
Bowerman Mile will have the No. 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 9 ranked milers
from last year. And where's No. 2, Bernard Lagat? He's in the Pre
Classic 2-Mile!