by Graeme Shirley
UCSD, La Jolla, CA - (July 27, 2003) - 61-year-old Nadine O'Connor's 2.80m (9' 2¼") clearance in the pole vault, breaking her listed world record by 17 cm, led a series of superior perfomances in the West Regional Masters T&F Championships.
Other top performers included: Jim Selby winning six championships in the M75 division (men age 75-79) at 100 meters, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, and 2000m steeplechase; Shirley Matson (62) with a 5:36.29 in the 1500m and 19:56.51 in the 5000m run; Kettrell Berry (22.41) winning an M40 200m final with all the runners breaking 24 seconds; Doug Smith (63) doubling at 100m (13.21) and 200m (26.73); Kathy Bergen (14.48) and Nadine O'Connor (14.73) battling it out for the W60 100m title; and George Mathews winning three titles in the weight throws (including the longest throw of all age groups in the 56-lb superweight), in his last two days in the M55 age group.
The West Regional Championships are one of seven such championships conducted throughout the U.S. by USA Track & Field, and determine the champions for the region containing California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and Hawaii. The Championships are conducted in five-year age-groups, beginning at age 30. The oldest competitor was 90-year-old Bert Morrow.
Complete results and a menu to the individual events are at the West Regional site.
