WASHINGTON (July 10, 2025) – Howard University Department of Athletics rolls on with another senior spotlight series, sitting down with four-time All-NEC selection Kendall Jackson (Pearland, Texas), who was interviewed by rising sophomore legal communications major Tanbrance Berry.
 
Q: What is your favorite course while attending Howard?
A: My first year at Pebble Beach. It was a paradise. I was not only able to interact with all the Howard administration, our donors and sponsors, but also with Stephen Curry (NBA Champion). After winning the 2022 NBA Finals, he could have been anywhere in the world, but he made sure to come out and visit us.
 
Q: What are your plans post-grad?
A: My goal is to play on the LPGA Tour. Initially, I thought you had to immediately declare pro after graduation. But unlike football or basketball, there is no “draft” for professional golf. You have to make it out of Q school, so that is what I am focusing on right now.
 
Q: What has been your biggest contributor to your accolades?
A: The tournaments Coach Sam Puryear (Howard Director of Golf) has us compete. For example, I have had the opportunity to compete in the Jackson T. Stephens Cup all four years, and I am the only player, male or female, HBCU or PWI, to do so. The better the tournaments you play in, the better you get. So, being able to play with the best of the best has definitely been a contribution.
 
Also, the support from my coaches, Callaway, Under Armour and the Curry brand.
 
Q: What advice would you give a young black golfer thinking about attending Howard to play at the collegiate level?
A: My advice would be to give yourself grace because that is one thing I am still working on. I got stuck in my own way and did not allow myself to be like, “Hey, Kendall, look at what you’ve accomplished the last four years, not just what you’re doing this season.” All golfers are flawed for being perfectionists or being too hard on themselves, so give yourself grace, be patient, learn and grow from adversity takes time.
 
Q: How did you balance life being a student-athlete?
A: There is no balance (lol). When I think of balance, it is a perfectly even scale and that is not the case. There is going to be times that assignment is going to get turned in late and other times where I am not going to make that practice. So, just making sure you are not prioritizing too much over the other.
 
Before the season, you need to make sure you are communicating with your professors ahead of time because life moves on without you in college. If you miss school, they are not going to wait for you to come back. This past season, I missed eight Mondays in a row but I communicated with my professors. I still graduated on time, Magna Cum Laude. So, just make sure you are being patient, giving yourself grace and not prioritizing one over the other because you are both (student and athlete) and you want to succeed at both.
 
Q: What is your favorite golf memory?
A: After the NEC (Northeast Conference) Championship my junior year, Coach P had told me, “KJ, when we get back, I’m going to need you to take like four days off.” If your coach is saying you need to take some days off to recoup, then you are in a rough patch. The last event of that year, the 2024 PGA Works Collegiate Championship, I told myself I was going to relax and just have fun. I got off to a great start on day one, solid finish day two and won the tournament on the very last put. Unfortunately, we lost as a team, but my teammates were still there to support my win. They poured Gatorade on me and everybody was just celebrating. Curry even reached out to me later that night, congratulating me, which was so surreal.
 
Q: Is there anything else you would like to highlight?
A: Our docuseries, “Why Not US: Howard Golf,” is on Hulu and ESPN+. Being a part of that, especially as a sophomore, and being able to watch it back junior year, was so amazing. Telling the genesis of Howard Golf and our individual stories was incredible. We were even able to have a couple of bloopers and deleted scenes.
 
Q: How does it feel to be a part of an HBCU program making history in golf?
A: It feels good to help change the narrative and show that Howard University golf is here to stay and that HBCU golf is excelling.
 
About Jackson

• Personal:
  

  • Hometown: Pearland, Texas
  • Major: Leisure Studies

• Academic Achievements at Howard:

  • NEC Spring Academic Honor Roll

• Athletics Achievements at Howard:
  

 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.

The Princeton Men’s Water Polo Team, four-time Northeast Water Polo Conference champions, has revealed its 2025 schedule. Head coach Dustin Litvak highlighted the goal to continue the team’s success despite losing ten players from the Class of 2025. The Tigers are set to face top college teams and international professional clubs in a challenging early season exhibition series. The season kicks off on September 3 with an exhibition against FTC, a Hungarian team, and features prominent matchups including the Princeton Invitational and season finales against rivals Brown and Harvard.

By the Numbers

• First game against FTC on September 3, 2025.
• Six teams to compete in the Princeton Invitational from September 5-7.
• Regular season finale against Brown on November 8, 2025.

State of Play

• Increased competition with NAIA teams and international clubs included in the schedule.
• Focus on player development and team cohesion following significant roster changes.

What’s Next

The Tigers aim to qualify for the NCAA tournament and vie for a National Championship. The team will focus on building chemistry and overcoming early-season challenges to strengthen their postseason chances.

Bottom Line

Princeton Men’s Water Polo is gearing up for a demanding schedule, tested by elite competition and aiming to maintain its championship legacy while developing new talent for future success.

Walt Murphy’s News and Results Service  (wmurphy25@aol.com)

This Day in Track & Field–July 9

1912–Much has been written about the problems the U.S. men have had in the 4×100 relay in international competition, so it seems fitting that things didn’t go well the first time the event was held at the Stockholm Olympics. An American lineup of Ira Courtney, Frank Belote, Clement Wilson, and Carl Cooke won its semi-final race in 42.2  to smash the World Record, but the team was disqualified for a passing violation. Great Britain won the final in 42.4, while Germany,  which finished a close 2nd in the same time, was also disqualified  for a passing violation. Germany  had set the first IAAF-approved World Record  of 42.3 in its semi-final the previous day (7-8).

            Gaining some revenge  for his loss in the “regular” Javelin (7-6), Finland’s Juho Saaristo won the “both hands” version with a combined distance of 358-11 (109.42). His best throw of  200-1 (61.00) was better than Eric Lemming’s winning distance a few days earlier. Lemming finished 4th in this event.

Results: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1912_Summer_Olympics

1948—Barney Ewell (10.33) beat Mel Patton (10.45) to win the 100-meters on the first day of the U.S. Olympic Trials, which were held at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Hurdles specialist Harrison “Bones” Dillard (10.50) edged Ed Conwell (10.53) to gain the 3^rd spot on the U.S. team.

            The significance of Dillard’s  performance took on added importance the next day after he failed to make the team in the 110-hurdles in one of the biggest surprises in Olympic Trials history. Dillard went on to win the gold medal in the 100, the “wrong event”. at the London Olympics later in the year.

            Willie Steele won the Long Jump (26-2 [7.97} and went on to win Olympic gold in London.

(Followup on July 10)

Results/Notes: https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/1948.pdf

1949–Future Hall-of-Famer Fortune Gordien set the first of his four World Records in the Discus with his throw of 185-3 (56.46) in Lisbon, Portugal.

            Gordien, a 3-time Olympian (and 2-time medalist: bronze-’48, silver-’56), was a 3-time NCAA Champion while at the University of Minnesota (1946-1948) and led the Gophers to the 1948 NCAA team title (he was also 2nd in the Shot Put that year). He was also a 6-time U.S. Champion in the Discus (1947-50, 1953-1954).

Acting Career: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0329899/

Hall of Fame Bio(1979): https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/fortune-gordien

1960–A year after suffering a back injury in a car accident, Rafer Johnson regained the World Record in the Decathlon from the Soviet Union’s Vasiliy Kuznetsov by scoring 8,683 points at the U.S. Championships in Eugene, Oregon (also served as the U.S. Olympic Trials). Johnson went on to win the gold medal at the Rome Olympics later in the year (Kuzentsov won the bronze medal).

Johnson’s Marks

100                   10.6

LJ                     7.55/24-9  1/4

SP                     15.85/52-0

HJ                     1.78/5-10

400                   48.6

110h                 14.5

DT                    51.97/170-6

PV                    3.97/13-1/4

JT                     71.10/233-3

1500                 5:09.9

Johnson and Kuznetsov had  traded the World Record back and forth since 1955

1950 scoring tables       1984 scoring tables

7985 Johnson  1955     7608

8014  Kuznetsov  1958 7653

8302  Johnson  1958    7789

8357  Kuznetsov  1959 7839

8683  Johnson  1960    7981

Hall of Fame Bio(Charter Member-1974): https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/rafer-johnson

https://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016405.html

1960–Wilma Rudolph tied the American Record of 11.5 in the 100m and set a new American Record of 22.9 in the 200 at the U.S. Championships in Corpus Christi, Texas. Rudolph secured her status as a legend in the sport by winning three gold medals at the Rome Olympics later in the year(100,200,4×100).

Hall of Fame Bio(1974-Charter Member): https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/wilma-rudolph

Bio Video: http://www.biography.com/people/wilma-rudolph-9466552

https://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016444.html

1972–Steve Prefontaine ran 13:22.8 on the final day of competition at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene to break his own American Record of 13:29.6 that he set in April. Also making the team were George Young (13:29.4) and Len Hilton (13:40.2).

18-year old Dwight Stones won the High Jump (7-3 [2.21]) to become the youngest member of the U.S. team. Joining Stones on the trip to Munich would be Ron Jourdan and Chris Dunn, both of whom also cleared 7-3. World Record holder Pat Matzdorf finished 5th. Stones would win the first of his two Olympic bronze medals in Munich.

Wayne Collett won the 400-meters in 44.1, the fastest ever run at low altitude, beating John Smith (44.3) and Vince Matthews (44.9). Finishing 4th was World Record holder Lee Evans, the 1968 Olympic gold medalist.

Matthews and Collett would finish 1-2 in Munich, with Smith pulling up in the final with an injury.

Thomas Hill and Willie Davenport finished 1-2 in the 110-Meter Hurdles (13.5w for both), with favored Rod Milburn barely grabbing the 3^rd spot on the team over Charles Rich, Jerry Wilson, and Tommie Lee White (all 4 ran 13.6w). Milburn would win the gold medal in Munich, with Hill taking the bronze.

The Marathon went through the streets of Eugene before finishing inside Hayward Field, and Frank Shorter and Kenny Moore crossed the finish line together (2:15:57.8) to take the first two spots on the team, while Jeff Galloway (2:20:29.2), who had already qualified for the team in the 10,000, allowed 6’-6” Jack Bacheler (2:20.29.2) to slip by him to take the 3^rd berth on the team (Shorter, Bacheler, and Galloway were teammates on the Florida Track Club).

Shorter, of course, won Olympic gold in Munich while Moore, who finished 4^th, made a great contribution to the sport with his long tenure as a writer for Sports Illustrated.

Many veteran fans who were at the meet still claim it was the best U.S. Olympic Trials ever.

Results/Notes: https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/1972.pdf

Sports Illustrated Vault: https://vault.si.com/vault/1972/07/17/the-high-and-the-mighty

Shorter Remembers: http://www.runnersworld.com/olympic-trials/frank-shorter-talks-about-the-marathon-trials

Mike Fanelli’s Report: https://trackandfieldnews.com/tracktown-usas-first-trials-turns-50/

Footnote: To counter the “Go Pre” fervor that had gripped Eugene during the Trials, a group of fun-loving conspirators, Pre fans all, unveiled their “Stop Pre” shirts right before the start of the 5000-Meters (Gerry Lindgren had worn one while warming up before the race!). While many fans were upset by the sacrilegious gesture, Pre got the joke and actually wore one of the shirts during his warmdown after the race! 50 years later, copies of the shirt are being sold online and in stores!  (Google “Stop Pre” for more images)

1980–With no Olympics to look forward to, thanks to the U.S. boycott, Mac Wilkins, the 1976 gold medalist, took some consolation in moving his American Record in the Discus up to 232-10 (70.98) in Helsinki, Finland.  Despite not competing at the Moscow Olympics, Wilkins was still ranked #1 in the world by Track & Field News.

Hall of Fame Bio: https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/mac-wilkins

T&F News Rankings: http://trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/rankings

1982–Mary Decker (Slaney) ran 4:18.08 for the Mile in Paris to better her own 2-week old American Record of 4:21.46. She would later improve the record to 4:16.71 in 1985.

Hall of Fame Bio: https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/mary-slaney-decker

1986–Canada’s Ben Johnson (9.95) won the 100-meters at the inaugural Goodwill Games in Moscow, beating Nigeria’s Chidi Imoh (10.04) and Carl Lewis (10.06).

Medalists: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athletics_at_the_1986_Goodwill_Games

2004—Meb Keflezighi (27:36.49), who had already made the U.S. team in the Marathon in February, qualified in a 2^nd event after winning the 10,000-meters on the opening day of the U.S. Olympic Trials (July 9-18) in Sacramento, California. Also making the team for Athens was Abdi Abdirahman (27:55.00) and Dan Browne (28:07.47), who had also made the team in the Marathon. “Meb” would win the silver medal in the Marathon in Athens.

Results/Notes: https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/2004.pdf

2011—Since his recent success has been in the Shot Put, it’s easy to forget that Ryan Crouser used to be pretty good in the Discus. It was on this day that the recent Barlow H.S.(OR) grad threw the prep platter (1.62kg/3.58lb) 237-6 (72.40) at the Super Open meet in Portland, Oregon, to set the current U.S. High School Record.

He continued to throw the Discus in college, earning 3 All-American honors while competing as a Texas Longhorn, but hasn’t competed in the event since 2016. He has a best of 209-8 (63.90).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R79Jn9l3ypQ

2016—41-year old Bernard Lagat (13:35.50) surprised even himself by winning a tactical 5000-meters at the U.S. Trials in Eugene to qualify for his 5^th Olympic team. Hassan Mead (13:35.70) was 2^nd and Paul Chelimo (13:35.92), who would go on to win the silver medal at the Rio Olympics, edged Eric Jenkins (13:35.98) for the 3^rd spot on the team.

Lagat could hardly contain his joy as he celebrated in front of an adoring Hayward Field crowd. He had originally hoped to make the U.S. team in the 10,000-meters on July 1, but had to drop out of the race. Some thought that might be his last appearance on the track before turning his attention to the roads, but Lagat obviously felt differently.

      “Last year at (the) Prefontaine Classic I was sick and so I did not finish the race and I was really ashamed of it. The other day in the 10K I did not finish the race and I felt the same thing I did at the Prefontaine Classic. But I said I am not going to end running in Eugene that way. This is a track town and I can’t really leave that image on everybody. So this is the image I wanted to leave and I was super excited when I won the race tonight.”

      When asked to explain his success at his advanced age (for a runner), Lagat said after the race, “I train with young guys and I don’t believe that I’m old. If you believe that you’re old, you’re going to run like an old man. They push me every single day and at the end of the day, they tell me, ‘Man you make us really feel bad.’ Because I don’t give up. I train hard with them. What you saw today is exactly what we do in Tucson.”

      The Men’s 200-meters provided a glimpse of the past, present and future in the event. Veteran Justin Gatlin, who had already qualified for his 3^rd Olympic team with his earlier win in the 100-meters, won the quick final over LaShawn Merritt (19.75-19.79), with Ameer Webb (2000) clinching the 3^rd place on the team.

      Finishing 4-5 were recent high school graduates Noah Lyles, who set a U.S. prep record of 20.09, and Michael Norman, who moved to =3^rd on the All-Time H.S. list with his time of 20.14.

      Those two are now among the best sprinters in the world. Lyles is the 3-time reigning World Champion at 200-meters and American Record holdeer (and won the gold medal in the 100-meters at the 2024 Olympics), while Norman, who spent two years competing for USC, set a Collegiate Record of 43.61 for 400-meters at the 2018 NCAA Championships after setting an unofficial World Record of 44.52 at the NCAA Indoor Championships. And he won the 400 at the 2022 World Championships.

      Former Florida teammates Will Claye (57-11 [17.65]) and Christian Taylor (57-1/4 [17.39]) finished 1-2 in the Men’s Triple Jump, with Chris Benard (56-5  ¾ [17.21]) edging another former Gator, Omar Craddock (56-3  ¾[17.16]), to grab the 3^rd spot on the team. The first two positions would be reversed at he Rio Olympics, with Taylor winning gold and Claye the silver. 

       Making the team was sweet redemption for Claye, who had finished 3^rd in the Long Jump earlier in the Trials, but his legal best during the season was 1 centimeter short of the Olympic qualifying standard.

      Said Claye, “The long jump situation was definitely an emotional roller coaster. I felt that for a day or two and it definitely put me in a bad place, in all honesty. And it took my family and my friends and all the prayers and text messages and my coach and my agent; they all spoke to me and just tried to clear my mind a bit. I just sat in my room and I couldn’t believe it. I just missed the standard by 1 cm.”

      Oregon’s own Devon Allen (13.03), the recent NCAA winner here at Hayward Field, thrilled Duck fans again with a clear win in the 110-meter hurdles. The battle for the next two Olympic berths was brutal, with Ronnie Ash (13.21) and Jeff Porter (13.21) earning the trip to Rio over World Record holder Aries Merritt (13.22) and 2011 World Champion Jason Richardson (13.28). Merritt, the 2012 Olympic gold medalist, missed out on being a 3-time Olympian by a mere .03s, having finished .02s out of 3^rd place at the 2004 Trials.

      Texas A&M’s Maggie Malone was another NCAA Champion returning to Hayward Field, winning the Women’s Javelin with a throw of (199-7 [60.84]). Also making the team were American Record holder Kara Winger (189-11 [57.90]/her 3^rd team), and 4^th-placer Brittany Borman (185-8 [56.60]), who made her 2^nd team. Runnerup Hannah Carson (190-11 [58.19]) didn’t have an Olympic qualifier. Also returning to the Olympics would be Malone and Winger.

Results/Notes: https://trackandfieldnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/2016.pdf

Men’s 5000-Last Lap: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNUEO-kjZe4

https://www.si.com/olympics/2016/07/09/bernard-lagat-us-olympic-trials-win-5000-meters-results-video

www.letsrun.com/news/2016/07/41-year-old-bernard-lagat-wins-crazy-mens-5000-2016-us-olympic-trials-mens-5000-african-born-runners-go-1-2-3/

U.S. Olympic Trials History (Through 2021)

https://trackandfieldnews.com/usa-olympic-trials-history/

U.S. Championships History: https://trackandfieldnews.com/u-s-national-championships-history/

Past U.S. Champions: https://www.flipsnack.com/USATF/usatf-outdoor-champions/full-view.html

2020—In one of the many improvised events that took place during the Covid-shortened 2020 season, the Weltklasse-Zurich Inspiration Games saw athletes competing against each other virtually in different cities around the world.

(Zurich, Bradenton-Florida, Walnut-California, Lisbon, Karlsruhe-Germany, Aubiere-France, Papendal-Netherlands, Karlstad-Sweden)

The athletes appeared on split screens, as engineers did their best to synch up the footage to make it appear as if the athletes were actually riunning against each other. A technical challenge for sure, but fans welcomed the effort during these strange times.

Sprinters faced strong headwinds in California and Florida.

Allyson Felix (16.82), running at Mt.SAC, “won” the women’s 150 over Shaunae Miller-Uibo (17.52), who was in Bradenton,FL. Watching Felix from the sidelines was her young daughter Camryn,  who wore a t-shirt that read “Future Olympian”!

Viewers gasped when Noah Lyles crossed the finish line in the 200m in Florida and the clock flashed 18.91 (corrected to 18.90), well under Usain Bolt’s World Record of 19.19. To his credit, Steve Cram, who shared announcing duties with Colin Jackson, immediately exclaimed upon seeing the time, “That cannot be right!”. And, of course, he was right—Lyles’ blocks had been set 15-meters short of where they should have been!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VctqSI-27Zs

W150: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zK4QazZvl0M

M200: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBKZFOsTCQY

Born On This Day*

Maurica Carlucci-Powell  45 (1980)  Director of T&F and X-Country at the University of Washington. Husband Andy

                    is the Head Coach, focusing on daily operations

               Couple previously coached at Oregon for 13 years. Massachusetts natives competed for Stanford before

                    embarking on a coaching career.

               http://gohuskies.com/news/2018/6/18/track-field-maurica-andy-powell-take-over-uw-track-program.aspx

Kara Goucher  47 (1978)  Silver medalist in the 10,000-meters at the 2007 World Championships

               2-time U.S. Olympian—2008 (5000-8^th,10,000-8^th), 2012 (Marathon-10^th)

               2-time NCAA Champion-Colorado (2000-3000,5000)

               PBs:4:05.14 (’06),4:33.19i (’09),8:34.99 (’07), 14:55.02 (’07), 30:55.16, 66:57 (’07/#4 A-T U.S./all

      conditions), 2:24:52)

  Currently a member of NBC’s broadcast team

Podcast:  Nobody Asked Us With Des (Linden) and Kara https://www.youtube.com/@nobodyaskedus

Recently diagnosed with Runner’s Dystonia. She addresses the condition and her TV career in this podcast:

https://aliontherunblog.com/2022/06/09/525-kara-goucher/

              https://www.outsideonline.com/2398643/kara-goucher-leadville

               Married to Adam Goucher (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_Goucher)

Author: The Longest Race

https://www.amazon.com/Longest-Race-Inside-Deception-Running/dp/1982179147

               http://www.karagoucher.com/

               http://www.denverpost.com/2017/04/04/kara-goucher-anti-doping-whistle-blower/

              Wiki Bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kara_Goucher

              Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karagoucher/?hl=en

 Twitter: https://twitter.com/karagoucher?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

Gulnara Samitova-Galkina-Russia 47 (1978)  2008 Olympic gold medalist—Steeplechase

Bronze medalist at the 2009 World Championships

Also the bronze medalist in the 1500-meters at the 2004 World Indoor Championships

Set 3 World Records in the Steeplechase—9:08.33 (2003), 9:01.49 (2004), 8:58.81 (2008/Olympic final)

Other global placings

OG-2004 (5000-6^th), 2008 (5000-11^th), 2012 (SC-DNF)

WC-2007 (SC-7^th)

PBs: 2:00.29 (2009), 4:01.29 (2004), 4:20.23 (2007), 5:31.03 (2007), 8:41.72i (2004), 14:33.13 (2008),

8:58.81 (2008/#14 All-Time)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulnara_Samitova-Galkina

https://worldathletics.org/athletes/russia/gulnara-galkina-14299161

https://worldathletics.org/news/news/world-record-obliterates-memories-of-osaka-fo

WR Progression: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3000_metres_steeplechase_world_record_progression

Derek Mills  53 (1972)  1996 Olympic gold medalist—4×400; 1995 World Champion—4×400

               3-time NCAA Champion (Georgia Tech)—400m (‘94/’91-7^th, ’92-3^rd,’93-3^rd); 4×400 (’92-43.9r,’94-45.1r,’93-

                    44.0r-3^rd); PBs: 45.59i (’95), 44.13 (’95). 2:59.95 (’92)

  Wife is former LSU All-American Heather Van Norman…stepson is NFL star Odell Beckham, Jr.

  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek_Mills

               1992 4×400: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-sLHhD5IAWs

               NCAA History: trackandfieldnews.com/index.php/archivemenu/13-lists/1028-a-history-of-the-ncaa-championships

Pauline Davis—Bahamas  59 (1966)  One of the original “Golden Girls” from the Bahamas

               2000 Olympic gold medalist—200,4×100 (1996-Silver,4×100); 4-time Olympian

               1999 World Champion—4×100; Silver medalist in the 400 at the 1995 World Championships

               1989 NCAA Champion—400m (Alabama); 17-time All-American

               Other NCAA Placings: 100 (’86-3^rd, ’87-5^th,’88-2^nd); 200 (’86-3^rd,’87-4^th,’88-2^nd,’89-3rd); 4×100 (’87-3^rd);

                    4×400 (’86-2^nd, ’89-8^th); Indoors:55 (’86-3^rd,’87-5^th, ’88-2nd,’89-2^nd); 200(’88-1^st, ’89-2^nd)

               PBs: 10.97 (2000),22.38 (2000),49.28 (1996), 41.92 (National Record)

               Wiki Bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pauline_Davis-Thompson

               Belated Gold: http://www.espn.com/olympics/trackandfield/news/story?id=5277604

               http://www.bahamasolympiccommittee.org/_m1722/Olympians/Pauline-Davis-Thompson-

               https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/64988

Deceased

Ben Eastman 91 (1911-Oct.6, 2002) 1932 Olympic silver medalist—400m

1934 U.S. Champion-800m

2-time IC4A Champion-880y (Stanford/1931,1932)

Former World Record holder: 500m, 600y, 800m, 880y, Mile Relay

Inducted into the National Hall of Fame in 2006

http://www.olympedia.org/athletes/78359

https://www.9news.com/article/news/olympian-blazin-ben-eastman-91-dies-of-pneumonia/73-345496729

https://www.usatf.org/athlete-bios/ben-eastman

https://gostanford.com/honors/stanford-athletics-hall-of-fame/ben-eastman/200

https://www.ebay.com/itm/361986089387

Sim Iness  65 (1930-May 23,1996)  1952 Olympic gold medalist—Discus

2-time NCAA Champion (USC/1952,1953/2nd-1950)

Set a World Record of 190-0 (57.93) in the 1953 NCAA Final.

https://www.olympedia.org/athletes/78589

            Wiki Bio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sim_Iness

http://siminess.com/

Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHv24HzRBto

O.J. Simpson  76 (1947-April 10, 2024) 1967 NCAA Champion (USC)—440y-relay—Set a WR of 38.6 (100y-6^th)

               (Earl McCullouch, Fred Kuller, O.J. Simpson, Lennox Miller)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._J._Simpson

               http://articles.latimes.com/1987-06-17/sports/sp-4512_1_years-ago-today

               https://www.si.com/vault/1967/06/26/610079/smoking-performance-at-a-nosmoke-affair      

Mount Union senior third baseman Chris Viamonte has been named to the 2025 American Baseball Coaches Association-Rawlings NCAA Division III Gold Glove Team.

Croatia is trying to build on its glorious 2024 and fourth place in this year’s World Aquatics World Cup.

Croatian captain Marko Bijac said before yesterday’s opening media conference: “I believe we had very good preparations for these World Championships; we didn’t have any big injuries in the team and we are ready to start the tournament. We are aware that it will be very difficult to defend the gold. We will do our best, starting, of course, with the first game against China, then after Montenegro and Greece — we have a difficult group. Then after we will go game after game and see how far we can go this time.”

Spain won the European crown last year and this year’s World Cup while its junior men are fresh from the U20 title in Zagreb, and the women are Olympic champion. Much pressure will be on Spain in what was to have been the post-Felipe Perrone era but instead, the high-scoring Perrrone has made himself available for his incredible 13^th and last World Aquatics Championship tilt.

Spain, without Perrone, stood up to the challenge in Podgorica, Montenegro in April. A win over Germany set it up for 19-14 over Croatia and 15-14 against Greece in the final.

Alvaro Granados will relish teaming up with the maestro once again as he threw eight goals against Hungary in the divisional series in January and in the finals series, fired in seven against Croatia and four past Greece in the gold-medal decider to be named MVP.

Serbia is proudly regrouping after its historic triple Olympic success last year and Italy has a point to prove when it was denied inclusion in the 2025 World Cup because of its protest at the Paris Olympic Games earning a six-month suspension.

Head coach Sandro Campagna said: “I don’t think the absence in the World Cup affects the team’s performance in Singapore. We took advantage of the winter period to do a lot of tests with the new rules. Italy will always be a team that will fight for medals.” 

The Groups

Group A: Italy, Romania, Serbia, South Africa.
Group B: Australia, Hungary, Japan, Spain.
Group C: Brazil, Canada, Singapore, United States of America.
Group D: China, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro.

One would suspect that Australia and Italy would fight for Group A; Netherlands and USA for Group B, Greece and Hungary for Group C and Spain and France for Group D.

Possible Winners

Looking at 2025 form, Spain, Greece, Hungary, Croatia and Montenegro have to be in the hunt. Serbia and back-from-suspension Italy and United States of America must have a look in as the latter has seven Olympic players coming to Singapore.

Group B looks most interesting with Japan beating Australia in Paris after the Aussie Sharks racked up some huge scalps. The non-European Group C should throw up an interesting pair for the quarterfinal hunt.

Historically Speaking

In 21 editions, Hungary and Italy have four titles each with Hungary having the most overall medals with seven silvers and one bronze for 12. Imagine, Hungary playing in 11 finals and only winning four! Italy has four silvers and a bronze for nine overall.

Spain has 10 medals — three gold, four silver and three bronze. Dual winners were Serbia (2-1-1), USSR (2-1-1) and Yugoslavia (2-1-3). The only single winner is Serbia & Montenegro from 2005, as well as one bronze (2003).

Notable for their absence is any country outside Europe. USA and Australia have knocked on the door with USA fourth in 2009, 1991 and 1986 and Australia fourth in 1998. Cuba was fourth in the second edition in 1975. But they are the only non-European teams to knock on the door.

This Decade

Because of the unusual nature of the Covid and post-Covid pandemic, there have been three World Aquatics Championships already this decade — 2022 Budapest, 2023 Fukuoka and 2024 Doha. Singapore will be the third consecutive Asian venue — all sandwiched by Budapest championships. Spain has gold and two bronzes; Italy has two silvers; Greece has silver and bronze; while the other two medals went to  champions Hungary and Croatia. Beaten medal finalists were Croatia, Serbia and France.

New Rules

Singapore 2025 will contain the new rules for men and women with men being affected with a reduced pool size from 20m to 25m; the timing where possession time has been trimmed to 28 seconds from the normal 30 and the regaining of the ball from a corner or exclusion in front of goal moving from 20 seconds to 18 seconds. Other changes include the number of players per team out to 15, with only 13 on the game roster each time, and one challenge per match for each team. If a challenge is lost there is no other chance. If it is won, there is one more chance, only.

Leading Players To Watch

Australia: Nic Porter, Luke Pavillard, Nathan Power.
Croatia: Konstantin Kharkov, Loren Fatovic, Josip Vrlic.
Greece: Stylianos Argyropoulos, Konstantinos Kakaris, Dimitrios Skoumpakis.
Hungary: Krisztian Manhercz, Adam Nagy, Vendel Vigvari.
Italy: Francesco di Fulvio, Edoardo Di Somma, Nicholas Presciutti.
Montenegro: Dusan Matkovic, Nikola Moskov, Strahinja Gojkovic.
Serbia: Dusan Mandic, Nikola Jaksic, Strahinja Rasovic.
Spain: Unai Aguirre, Alvaro Granados, Felipe Perrone.
United States of America: Hannes Daube, Ryder Dodd, Max Irving.

First-Day Programme

Match 1. 09:00. Group A, Serbia v South Africa.
Match 2. 10:35. Group C, Canada v United States of America.
Match 3. 12:10. Group D, China v Croatia.
Match 4. 13:45. Group C, Brazil v Singapore.
Match 5. 16:00. Group B, Spain v Japan.
Match 6. 17:35. Group B, Hungary v Australia.
Match 7. 19:10. Group D, Montenegro v Greece.
Match 8. 20:45. Group A, Romania v Italy.

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The Stevenson boys swimming and diving team will see a new face in Joe Gibson as head coach for the upcoming 2025-2026 season. 
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