#54 - Michtrack At The Olympics - Baldwin Makes Top 10!

Inside This Issue

• Heath Baldwin Rocks The Deca

• Mixed Relay Thoughts

• Other Things

Baldwin: Top 10 On Earth

With only Heath Baldwin on the field for us today, it was a quiet day for team Michigan. The Kalamazoo Hackett alum had started the day in 11^th place with 4366 points. Even with several of his best events on the schedule for today, moving up in the standings would be an uphill battle according to the forecasters. Yet he ended up 10^th with a score of 8422. He is the third Michigander to compete in the Olympic decathlon. The first, Kenneth Doherty (Detroit Western), won bronze in the ’24 Olympics. Paul Terek (Livonia Franklin) finished 21^st in 2004, and Steven Bastien (Saline) was 10^th in ’21. Baldwin’s score is the best of all. Here’s a look at his day 2:

110 Hurdles: Running in the final heat seeded with the fastest hurdlers, he finished 6^th in 14.04. (PR 13.71, Trials 13.77)

Discus: In group B, Baldwin opened up with a 135-4 (41.24), then went 140-11 (42.96). On his final toss he improved to 143-4 (43.66). Not a PR, but just a centimeter shorter than he threw at the Trials. (PR 147-11/45.10, Trials 143-3/43.67)

Pole Vault: He started with a clearance at 14-1.25 (4.30). At 14-9.25 (4.50) he needed two tries. At 15-5 (4.70), he again needed two. But he just couldn’t get over the next bar at 15-9 (4.80). (PR 15-11.5/4.86, Trials 15-11/4.85)

Javelin: This is perhaps Baldwin’s strongest individual event. And we know the conditions were good, with Niklas Kaul of Germany throwing 255-2 (77.78), the farthest ever in an Olympic decathlon. Baldwin opened with a modest 201-5 (61.40), then hit a good one with his 222-5 (67.79) on the second try. It was more than three feet better than his best Trials effort. By the time he stood at the head of the runway for his final attempt, a driving rain had commenced. He finished with a 206-7 (62.97). Points-wise, he moved up to 8^th overall. (PR 233-0/71.02, Trials 218-9/66.69)

1500: Baldwin closed his 1500 race with a solid kick, clocking 4:40.67, again bettering what he had done in the Trials. (PR 4:38.80, Trials 4:41.87)

For a first-time Olympian, this was indeed a fantastic effort, as well as a great learning experience for the future. We hope to see many more years of Heath Baldwin in the sport.

The Mixed Relay

Seeing a World Record 3:07.41 in the mixed 4 x 400 yesterday, and then seeing the Netherlands narrowly miss that mark with their impressive 3:07.43 in the rain, has got me thinking. Now that we are seeing more and more of these races, what is the Michigan high school state record?

Before you think otherwise, I’ll say it: the definitive answer is not on Athletic.net. A person can pull up a list of the best mixed 4x4s there, but I think there are still some that are not even being categorized correctly by meet managers, and so they’re not turning up in the right place on A-net. Another thing to remember is that there are relay meets that were racing mixed 4x4s long before the event got popular internationally (and long before A-net existed). It will take some digging to sort out the best, but it’s something we’re looking forward to doing at Michtrack.

Other Things

A Motor City Triumph: Congratulations to Jasmine Moore for winning the bronze medal in the triple jump! It was a brilliant performance in difficult conditions. Her Detroit connections are legit. As I recall she competed one summer for the Motor City TC, the club that helped her parents become track stars themselves. Her father was coached by Robert Lynch, her mother by Richard Ford. Her mom, the former Trinette Johnson of Cass Tech, set the still-standing state indoor record in the long jump with her 19-6.5 in 1989 before heading off to Florida State. Her dad, Earl Moore, was a hurdler at Murray-Wright who later competed for Western Michigan. It was heartwarming to see them both on the stadium screen, hugging their daughter. They have a lot to be proud of, far beyond her athletic accomplishments.

That 100 finish? Called it. (insert smug patting-myself-on-the-back emoji here)