Colorado University Athletics
Former Buffs Set To Compete At IAAF World Championships
July 28, 2017 | Track and Field, Alumni C Club, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — Four former University of Colorado track standouts will compete at the IAAF World Championships beginning Friday, Aug. 4, in London.
For two of them, Jenny Simpson and Emma Coburn, their latest appearance on the world stage will be nothing new.
Simpson, who will turn 31 in late August, will run the 1,500 in her fifth World Championships; she also has three Olympics appearances on her resume´. The 26-year-old Coburn will be competing in her third World Championships in the steeplechase; she also has two Olympics appearances under her belt.
A third former Buff, 31-year-old Sara Vaughn, will be making her first appearance at a World Championships after she stunned the field at the recent U.S. Championships with a third-place finish in the 1,500. Competing for American Samoa will be former Buffs sprinter Jeremy Dodson.
Simpson, who has been a presence on the world stage for a decade after a standout career at CU, will be aiming for her third medal in the World Championships. She claimed gold in the 1,500 in Daegu, South Korea, in 2011, and added a silver in the 1,500 to her collection at the 2013 Worlds in Moscow.
Now, after winning her first Olympic medal, a bronze last summer in Rio, she's aiming to use her international experience to help her add another medal.
"The biggest difference between training for my first world championship and now onto my fifth is that there are few things that can catch me off guard by now," Simpson said earlier this month. "I've experienced a lot throughout the years. I've had unexpected fortune and also training through what seemed like insurmountable trials and everything in between. I know that my consistency and endurance are what have gotten me to the most competitive starting line many times, and all of that training and a big competitive ego have had me cross the finish line sooner than others."
But Simpson also admits one thing never changes, no matter how many times she lines up in a big meet.
"What doesn't change are the crazy nerves," she said. "I get so nervous still!"
For Coburn, the confidence gained in racing regularly on the international stage is perhaps the biggest difference.
"So much has changed in the six years since my first World Championships," Coburn said. "Preparing for London this year is different than preparing for Daegu simply because I have the experience and know what to expect. I've been racing these same competitors for years and know exactly what needs to be done. In 2011, I was new and was less confident when it came to big, international races. The training is always intense but the biggest difference in preparation comes from the mental side. Just being more confident and ready for what lies ahead."
All three are coming off outstanding efforts in this year's U.S. Championships in June in Sacramento. Simpson clocked a 4:06.33 to win the 1,500 title — her 11th USA Championships gold — while Coburn won her sixth USA gold with a 9:20.28 finish in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.
Simpson's and Coburn's performances were to be expected. They have dominated their distances in the U.S. in recent years and the only surprise would have been if they hadn't won.
But Vaughn, however, may have captured the most attention with her performance. The wife of fellow former CU standout Brent Vaughn and the mother of three who earns a living as a real estate agent in Boulder, Vaughn earned her first World Championships berth by moving up from ninth with barely 350 meters to go to third down the home stretch.
"I have an almost 2-year-old — she's 22 months — and her favorite line right now is 'No, my turn, mine,'" Vaughn said after the race. "So that's what I was thinking (at the end of the race)."
Vaughn became an immediate social media sensation, as the hashtag #MomVaughn skyrocketed in popularity. Qualifying for London, she said, was tremendous validation for a training schedule she was forced to balance around her three children and a full-time job.
"I think to be a distance runner, in general you have to be a little crazy," she said after the race. "And then to put yourself in position to make the team at 31 with three kids, maybe you have to be resiliently crazy."
Simpson's best time this year is a 4:02.57 clocked earlier this month in London at a Diamond League meet, ranking her 15th in the world this year. But it would be unwise to count her out of medal contention because of her race-day savvy and experience.
Coburn, meanwhile, is the sixth-ranked steeplechaser with a 2017 best of 9:07.96 in Eugene, Ore., in May.
"My goal is to win another medal," Coburn said. "The women's steeplechase has become very competitive this year and there are four women ranked ahead of me who are running really well. It will be tough to beat them but I think anything can happen out there. I don't think anyone is unbeatable."
Both Simpson and Coburn proved that point last summer in Rio when they both beat runners who had posted better times to claim their bronze medals.
But no matter what happens this year, both are already focused on the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, which will be contested just before Simpson's 34th birthday.
"As soon as you finish an Olympic cycle you begin to dream about the next," she said. "I would love to make a fourth Olympic team in 2020, represent my country again, and hopefully compete for another medal. Training for that dream has already begun."
SCHEDULE: The first round of the women's 1,500 will be contested on Friday, Aug. 4, with the semifinals scheduled one day later and the finals Aug. 7. The women's steeplechase first round will be held Aug. 8 with the finals set for Aug. 11. NBC and NBCSN will be providing television coverage of the championships.
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
