WIESBADEN, Germany — Ramstein’s Jacob Palmer didn’t get the records he was looking for, but he still took home two gold medals in the European Track and Field championships Saturday.
Most eyes were on Palmer as he challenged DODDS-Europe records in the 110-meter high hurdles and the 300-meter intermediate hurdles. The best he could do was post the second-fastest time of the season in the 300s (39.50 seconds). He won the 110s in 14.77.
Palmer also won a silver medal in the 4x100 relay as Ramstein finished a close second behind Würzburg.
The temperature made breaking records hard, Palmer said.
“The sun is really the thing zapping everyone’s energy,” he said. “The main thing is to stay out of the sun when you’re not competing.”
One of the most exciting races was the boys 1,500.
A searing finish by Alconbury’s Stephen Ayres left Ramstein’s Kenny Grosselin and Black Forest Academy’s John Fox in the dust in the last 150 meters.
Ayres, 18, said once he fell behind to third place he was worried he wouldn’t be able to catch up in time. That’s when he got his kick.
“They were probably five to 10 meters ahead of me. I remember seeing Kenny looking back over his shoulder at me, that’s when I started sprinting,” Ayres said. “When I passed him I could tell by the look on his face that he couldn’t keep up. I don’t know how, but I got another kick during the straightaway. I was going dead out and I could hear John Fox breathing and running behind me. It was awesome. I finally got him.”
Ayres’ time was 4:07.58.
In the girls 100, Brittany Cornish of Frankfurt International School beat out favorite Sheronica Henton of Hohenfels with a time of 12.86.
“I thought there was no way I was beating her because she did so well the day before. I couldn’t make it in the time she did,” Cornish said.
Some favorites came in as expected, such as Wiesbaden’s Kat Pizarro in the 400, with a winning time of 60.04. Pizarro also won the 200 with a time of 26.48.
But other races went down to the wire.
During the boys 800, Wiesbaden’s Marquis Eubanks took the gold in 1:58.64, but not without a fight. In fact, the race was so close two runners tied for sixth, less than four seconds off Eubanks’ winning time.
In the field events, London Central’s Nicole Lassetter and Bitburg’s Chris Eubanks were chosen as MVPs.
Lassetter, who won the shot put on Friday, captured the discus competition on Saturday with a throw of 121 feet, 6 inches.
Eubanks won the discus on Friday with a throw of 147 feet, 2 inches. He was second in the shot put on Saturday. Mannheim’s Melvin Jackson won the shot with a toss of 53 feet, 8 inches.
In running events, MVPs were Pizarro and Palmer.
