LONDON – Three Aggies competing in first round action on the morning session of the second day of the 16th IAAF World Championships each advanced to the semifinals of their respective events. The Texas A&M trio included Fred Kerley in the 400m, Simone Facey in the 100m and Donavan Brazier in the 800m.
In the lone final involving Texas A&M during the evening session, Fabrice Lapierre finished 11th in the long jump with a mark of 26-0 ¼ (7.93). Lapierre needed a 26-10 (8.18) performance to reach the final three rounds of the competition when the field of 12 was trimmed to eight.
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South Africa's Luvo Manyonga claimed long jump gold as he produced a leap of 27-10 (8.48) with American Jarrion Lawson runner-up at 27-8 ¼ (8.44). Another South African, Ruswahl Samaai, earned bronze with a 27-3 ¾ (8.32).
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Racing at 10:45 a.m. in the first heat of the opening round of the 400m, Kerley cruised the first 250m of the race. Then he progressively slowed a bit on the homestretch, keeping an eye on the competition as he won the heat in 44.92 seconds.
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"The first round was smooth, now I just need to get ready for tomorrow and get back on the track," noted Kerley. "I shut down a little earlier than normal in this round, with around 150m to go, and just looked around at my opponents. My main goal is to qualify for the finals."
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Rain fell during the opening round of the women's 100m as Facey advanced on time to the semifinals as her 11.29 (-0.1 wind) placed her fourth in the heat. Facey was fourth among the six time qualifiers advancing to Sunday's semifinal.
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"The important thing is that I'm in the semifinal, that's the first thing," stated Facey, who qualified for her first 100m at a senior World Championships this season. "The race, overall, was a little flat. I wasn't as aggressive as I wanted to be in the first 30 meters. I know in the semifinal it will be better for me."
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Brazier won the sixth and final heat of the 800 in a controlled 1:45.65 as he bettered Ethiopia's Mohammed Aman (1:45.81) and Guy Learmonth of Great Britain (1:45.90) among the three who earned auto qualifiers to the next round. Poland's Marcin Lewandowski advanced on time with his fourth-place 1:46.17.
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"I think it looked easier making it through that round since I ran from the front," said Brazier, who led the field through splits of 25.15 (200m), 51.90 (400m), and 1:18.48 (600m). "Running from the front is probably your best bet, but I don't know if I'll do it every time.
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"Today we had a heat with guys from 1:43 to 1:49, so if you go out in 51 to 52 on the first lap you're going to get rid of most of the racers right then."
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Following his Aggie senior season, which included a pair of NCAA and SEC titles, and winning the USATF title as a professional, Kerley donned a USA singlet for the first time in his career as he toured the London track in the qualifying round.
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"It's a blessing when you get to represent your country," said Kerley. "It was smooth racing in the morning, but this is the first time I've had to be up this early to prepare to run a round of the 400m. I feel blessed with the performance."
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Overall, the time of 44.92 by Kerley was the fifth best in the opening round, where the top three finishers in each of the six heats advanced along with the next six fastest times. The top time was 44.55 by Isaac Makwala. United States teammates joining Kerley in the semifinal included LaShawn Merritt (45.00), Wil London (45.10) and Gil Roberts (44.92), who were all runner-up in their respective heats.
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Following Kerley in the first heat of the 400m were Lalonde Gordon of Trinidad & Tobago (45.02) and Belgium's Kevin Borlee (45.09). Heat winners also included defending world champion Wayde Van Niekirk (45.27), Baboloki Thebe of Botswana (44.82), Bahamas Steven Gardiner (44.75), Isaac Makwala of Botswana (44.55) and Nathan Allen of Jamaica (44.91).
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Facey qualified in the 100m and 200m for Jamaica and is also in the relay pool for the 4x100. In her heat of the 100m she finished behind Brazil's Rosangela Santos (11.04), Mujinga Kambundji of Switzerland (11.14) and Michelle-Lee Ahye of Trinidad & Tobago (11.14).
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"The weather was a little off today, but everybody is running in the same conditions," noted Facey. "So, I just have to focus on what I need to do. I didn't get automatic qualification, but I'm in the semifinal and that is the important thing.
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"It's been a great season so far, I'm finally putting things together. I'm here, and once you're here it's a big accomplishment. I'm just grateful to be here and looking forward to the next race."
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Brazier's first round time ranked second overall as his 1:45.65 only trailed a 1:45.53 by Netherland's Thijmen Kupers. They were followed by Brandon McBride of Canada (1:45.69), Kenya's tandem of Kipyegon Bett (1:45.76) and Ferguson Rotich (1:45.77) along with Kevin Lopez of Spain (1:45.77).
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"I was more confident and the crowd helps bring in a level of excitement," noted Brazier. "It's kind of crazy to race with that much crowd noise for the whole race. It helps make it a World Championship experience.
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"The main strategy was to just stay out of trouble. I've worked hard to be here, so I didn't want to put myself in a bad situation. Some people had fallen in the earlier heats so I just wanted to be safe."
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Similar to Kerley, this is the first time for Brazier to represent the United States on this level of competition.
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"It's the first time I've worn the US logo, so it was a very proud moment," said Brazier. "I'm so happy my family got to see the race today. My parents flew out all the way from Michigan to watch me, so I hope I did them proud."
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2017 IAAF World Championships – Schedule for Texas A&M Athletes
(London time listed first, followed by Central time)
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Sunday, August 6
     7:10 p.m.     1:10 p.m.          W 100m   Semi             Simone Facey
     7:40 p.m.     1:40 p.m.           M 400m   Semi             Fred Kerley
     9:15 p.m.     3:15 p.m.           M 800m   Semi             Donavan Brazier
     9:50 p.m.     3:50 p.m.          W 100m   FINAL           (Simone Facey)
In the lone final involving Texas A&M during the evening session, Fabrice Lapierre finished 11th in the long jump with a mark of 26-0 ¼ (7.93). Lapierre needed a 26-10 (8.18) performance to reach the final three rounds of the competition when the field of 12 was trimmed to eight.
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South Africa's Luvo Manyonga claimed long jump gold as he produced a leap of 27-10 (8.48) with American Jarrion Lawson runner-up at 27-8 ¼ (8.44). Another South African, Ruswahl Samaai, earned bronze with a 27-3 ¾ (8.32).
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Racing at 10:45 a.m. in the first heat of the opening round of the 400m, Kerley cruised the first 250m of the race. Then he progressively slowed a bit on the homestretch, keeping an eye on the competition as he won the heat in 44.92 seconds.
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"The first round was smooth, now I just need to get ready for tomorrow and get back on the track," noted Kerley. "I shut down a little earlier than normal in this round, with around 150m to go, and just looked around at my opponents. My main goal is to qualify for the finals."
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Rain fell during the opening round of the women's 100m as Facey advanced on time to the semifinals as her 11.29 (-0.1 wind) placed her fourth in the heat. Facey was fourth among the six time qualifiers advancing to Sunday's semifinal.
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"The important thing is that I'm in the semifinal, that's the first thing," stated Facey, who qualified for her first 100m at a senior World Championships this season. "The race, overall, was a little flat. I wasn't as aggressive as I wanted to be in the first 30 meters. I know in the semifinal it will be better for me."
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Brazier won the sixth and final heat of the 800 in a controlled 1:45.65 as he bettered Ethiopia's Mohammed Aman (1:45.81) and Guy Learmonth of Great Britain (1:45.90) among the three who earned auto qualifiers to the next round. Poland's Marcin Lewandowski advanced on time with his fourth-place 1:46.17.
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"I think it looked easier making it through that round since I ran from the front," said Brazier, who led the field through splits of 25.15 (200m), 51.90 (400m), and 1:18.48 (600m). "Running from the front is probably your best bet, but I don't know if I'll do it every time.
Â
"Today we had a heat with guys from 1:43 to 1:49, so if you go out in 51 to 52 on the first lap you're going to get rid of most of the racers right then."
Â
Following his Aggie senior season, which included a pair of NCAA and SEC titles, and winning the USATF title as a professional, Kerley donned a USA singlet for the first time in his career as he toured the London track in the qualifying round.
Â
"It's a blessing when you get to represent your country," said Kerley. "It was smooth racing in the morning, but this is the first time I've had to be up this early to prepare to run a round of the 400m. I feel blessed with the performance."
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Overall, the time of 44.92 by Kerley was the fifth best in the opening round, where the top three finishers in each of the six heats advanced along with the next six fastest times. The top time was 44.55 by Isaac Makwala. United States teammates joining Kerley in the semifinal included LaShawn Merritt (45.00), Wil London (45.10) and Gil Roberts (44.92), who were all runner-up in their respective heats.
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Following Kerley in the first heat of the 400m were Lalonde Gordon of Trinidad & Tobago (45.02) and Belgium's Kevin Borlee (45.09). Heat winners also included defending world champion Wayde Van Niekirk (45.27), Baboloki Thebe of Botswana (44.82), Bahamas Steven Gardiner (44.75), Isaac Makwala of Botswana (44.55) and Nathan Allen of Jamaica (44.91).
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Facey qualified in the 100m and 200m for Jamaica and is also in the relay pool for the 4x100. In her heat of the 100m she finished behind Brazil's Rosangela Santos (11.04), Mujinga Kambundji of Switzerland (11.14) and Michelle-Lee Ahye of Trinidad & Tobago (11.14).
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"The weather was a little off today, but everybody is running in the same conditions," noted Facey. "So, I just have to focus on what I need to do. I didn't get automatic qualification, but I'm in the semifinal and that is the important thing.
Â
"It's been a great season so far, I'm finally putting things together. I'm here, and once you're here it's a big accomplishment. I'm just grateful to be here and looking forward to the next race."
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Brazier's first round time ranked second overall as his 1:45.65 only trailed a 1:45.53 by Netherland's Thijmen Kupers. They were followed by Brandon McBride of Canada (1:45.69), Kenya's tandem of Kipyegon Bett (1:45.76) and Ferguson Rotich (1:45.77) along with Kevin Lopez of Spain (1:45.77).
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"I was more confident and the crowd helps bring in a level of excitement," noted Brazier. "It's kind of crazy to race with that much crowd noise for the whole race. It helps make it a World Championship experience.
Â
"The main strategy was to just stay out of trouble. I've worked hard to be here, so I didn't want to put myself in a bad situation. Some people had fallen in the earlier heats so I just wanted to be safe."
Â
Similar to Kerley, this is the first time for Brazier to represent the United States on this level of competition.
Â
"It's the first time I've worn the US logo, so it was a very proud moment," said Brazier. "I'm so happy my family got to see the race today. My parents flew out all the way from Michigan to watch me, so I hope I did them proud."
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2017 IAAF World Championships – Schedule for Texas A&M Athletes
(London time listed first, followed by Central time)
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Sunday, August 6
     7:10 p.m.     1:10 p.m.          W 100m   Semi             Simone Facey
     7:40 p.m.     1:40 p.m.           M 400m   Semi             Fred Kerley
     9:15 p.m.     3:15 p.m.           M 800m   Semi             Donavan Brazier
     9:50 p.m.     3:50 p.m.          W 100m   FINAL           (Simone Facey)