7 American Records Fall the Final Day of the Indoor Championships

LOUISVILLE — The final day of competition at the USATF Masters Indoor Championships at the Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Center saw seven age group American records and a tied world record as athletes from across the country duked it out for team and individual titles.

Competition was off to a hot start as Christel Donley (Unattached) tied Florence Meiler’s high jump world record in the women’s 85-89 division. The 88-year-old cleared .92m to take the crown over her now co-record holder, Meiler.

Kay Glynn (Unattached) tacked another American record on to her impressive showing at the Championship to kick off day three. The 70-year-old leapt 8.11m in the fifth round to better the existing record of 7.90m and become the first woman in the 70-74 division to surpass 8m in the triple jump. Momentum from the fifth-round record propelled her to 8.34m in the sixth and final round, just a centimeter shy of the world record.

Carol Finsrud (Texas Throwers Club) snagged the American record in the women’s 65-69 shot put with a 9.45m throw on her second attempt. Her throw bettered the existing American record by 9 centimeters.

93-year-old Vance Genzlinger (Philadelphia Masters) and 96-year-old Richard Soller (Unattached) dueled it out in the men’s 90-99 round of the 200m. Soller had a comfortable lead over Genzlinger through the first 150 meters, but Genzlinger kicked it into gear in the final straightaway to cut the gap to Soller in half. Soller finished his lap around the oval in 93.70 to Genzlinger’s 95.96.

An 18-year-old American record fell in the men’s 85-89 200m as Robert Whilden Jr. (Houston Elite) sprinted to a 34.74 finish. His nearest competitor was Robert Williamson Jr. (Potomac Valley Track Club), who finished in 40.02. The previous record, set by Roderick Parker, was 35.17.

Antoine Echols (Centennial State Track Club) made the American record his own in the men’s 40-44 200m. With Sean Burnett (Southwest Sprinters Track Club) on his tail, Echols dipped under 22 with a 21.97 finish to better the 28-year-old American record of 22.19, set by William Collins in 1995.

The women’s 60-64 4x400m American record stood no chance against Leandra Funk, Lorraine Jasper, Adriene Lewis, and Julie Hayden. The quartet toed the line with a the 5:16.99 existing record in the back of their heads. The team blew that mark away, clocking a stunning 5:05.77.