FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (August 13, 2019) - Over the summer of 2019 NAU graduates
Brooke Andersen and Lopez Lomong have been lighting up the national and international stage. Andersen recently took home the silver medal in the Women's Hammer Throw competition at the 2019 Pan American Games in Lima, Peru. Just a few weeks prior Lomong won the Men's 5000m and 10,000m races at the 2019 U.S. Track & Field Outdoor National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.
Andersen's mark of 71.07m put her on the podium with fellow U.S. thrower Gwen Berry, who placed first with a toss of 74.62m. Andersen also currently holds a tie for the worlds eighth ranked position in that event. She is one of three U.S. women's throwers to currently be among the top-10 ranked in the world in the hammer throw. Earlier this summer Andersen threw for a mark of 76.75m during a competition in Rathdrum, Idaho.
Three days after placing first in the Men's 10,000m Final, 34-year-old Lopez Lomong kicked his way to victory yet again in the 5000m Final. The Bowerman Track Club veteran darted past Olympic silver medalist Paul Chelimo in an electrifying battle over the homestretch that saw Lomong cross the finish line first at 13:25.53, only milliseconds ahead of Chelimo, who ran for a time of 13:25.80. During the final lap Chelimo and Lomong battled through the homestretch where Lomong used the same late race robustness that earned him the 10,000m title. His final lap was clocked in at 53 seconds.
Lomong became the first athlete to take home the top spot in both races since Galen Rupp did so seven years ago.
Both athletes are striving for a spot on the podium in their respective events in Tokyo for the 2020 Summer Olympics. If the summer of 2019 has been any indication of their potential, next summer could see the two NAU graduates achieving that goal.
