Photo by: James Lang-USA TODAY Sports
Allen Stays Composed to Reach Semifinals
08/15/16 | Football, Track and Field
RIO DE JANEIRO — When you're making your Olympic debut and the skies open up and start dumping rain, it's good to be a Duck.
"I'm from Oregon, so it didn't bother me too much," said Devon Allen, the UO two-sport star, after completing his first-round heat of the 110-meter hurdles Monday night at soggy Olympic Stadium.
No, the rain wasn't a problem for Allen, who was awarded second place even though he shared the same time of 13.41 seconds with heat winner Konstadinos Douvalidi of Greece.
Neither was the grand stage of the nearly 47,000-seat stadium an issue. Allen said performing there was nothing compared to playing in front of 91,000 fans at the Rose Bowl, which Allen did as a redshirt freshman on the Ducks' football team in the College Football Playoff semifinals to cap the 2014 season.
"Of course I was nervous, I'm a young kid getting ready to run my first race in Olympic history," he said.
When asked to compare the two events, he said he experienced "probably the same amount of nerves, which is why I didn't take a knee on that first play like I should have."
While not as extreme as blowing out his ACL, which he did on that first play of the Rose Bowl, Allen did make some mistakes in his opening run Monday. He knocked down several hurdles before reaching the finish line, as he showed a propensity to do earlier this spring. Still, Allen recorded the seventh-fastest time of the day to reach Tuesday's semifinals, scheduled for 4:40 p.m. PT; the final will be contested about two hours later.
Though Allen qualified outright for the semis as one of the top four in his heat, the runner had to wait longer than expected before the full field semifinalists were confirmed. The IAAF decided to hold an additional qualifying heat for non-qualifying athletes from the first two heats of the day, as a concession for making them race in pouring rain that led to a delay between Heat 2 and Heat 3.
"Everything was wet, not just our hands, but everything," said Hungary's Balazs Baji, who used a lane cone to take cover from the rain before racing to second in Heat 2 in 13.52 seconds. "I had to assume where the hurdles were. The raindrops — I had to close my eyes so many times."
Heat 3 of five was delayed to let the storm subside. After about 15 minutes, the downpour had turned to a drizzle. The track was still wet when Allen's Heat 4 was introduced; upon being introduced, Allen signed the numbers three, two, one and six for cameras, in what he said was a shout out to his Ducks football teammates watching back in Eugene.
Then he stepped into his blocks. Neither the water — nor the ensuing false start of France's Wilhelm Belocian and his extended dramatics before leaving the track — fazed Allen.
The UO two-sport star, who entered these Games with the top time in the nation and second best time in the world, lived up to his billing. He will get to fly another day.
"I'm from Oregon, so it didn't bother me too much," said Devon Allen, the UO two-sport star, after completing his first-round heat of the 110-meter hurdles Monday night at soggy Olympic Stadium.
No, the rain wasn't a problem for Allen, who was awarded second place even though he shared the same time of 13.41 seconds with heat winner Konstadinos Douvalidi of Greece.
Neither was the grand stage of the nearly 47,000-seat stadium an issue. Allen said performing there was nothing compared to playing in front of 91,000 fans at the Rose Bowl, which Allen did as a redshirt freshman on the Ducks' football team in the College Football Playoff semifinals to cap the 2014 season.
"Of course I was nervous, I'm a young kid getting ready to run my first race in Olympic history," he said.
When asked to compare the two events, he said he experienced "probably the same amount of nerves, which is why I didn't take a knee on that first play like I should have."
While not as extreme as blowing out his ACL, which he did on that first play of the Rose Bowl, Allen did make some mistakes in his opening run Monday. He knocked down several hurdles before reaching the finish line, as he showed a propensity to do earlier this spring. Still, Allen recorded the seventh-fastest time of the day to reach Tuesday's semifinals, scheduled for 4:40 p.m. PT; the final will be contested about two hours later.
Though Allen qualified outright for the semis as one of the top four in his heat, the runner had to wait longer than expected before the full field semifinalists were confirmed. The IAAF decided to hold an additional qualifying heat for non-qualifying athletes from the first two heats of the day, as a concession for making them race in pouring rain that led to a delay between Heat 2 and Heat 3.
"Everything was wet, not just our hands, but everything," said Hungary's Balazs Baji, who used a lane cone to take cover from the rain before racing to second in Heat 2 in 13.52 seconds. "I had to assume where the hurdles were. The raindrops — I had to close my eyes so many times."
Heat 3 of five was delayed to let the storm subside. After about 15 minutes, the downpour had turned to a drizzle. The track was still wet when Allen's Heat 4 was introduced; upon being introduced, Allen signed the numbers three, two, one and six for cameras, in what he said was a shout out to his Ducks football teammates watching back in Eugene.
Then he stepped into his blocks. Neither the water — nor the ensuing false start of France's Wilhelm Belocian and his extended dramatics before leaving the track — fazed Allen.
The UO two-sport star, who entered these Games with the top time in the nation and second best time in the world, lived up to his billing. He will get to fly another day.
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