It’s been a fine year for Jesse
Carlin, but it ended on a sour note two weeks ago at the TAC
championship meet in Eugene, Oregon
.
The ex-Penn All
American out of St. Joseph by-the-Sea HS had placed third in the
800-meter run at the indoor national TAC meet, and was making her
first big-time appearance at the outdoor national meet, which also
served as the trials for the World Championships, which will be
held in Berlin in August.
Carlin began
training last fall under the tutelage of John Cook, the famed
ex-George Mason coach. She spent part of last winter in
Mexico
, where her training group included such notables as Leonel
Manzano, Shannon Rowbury, and Erin Donhaue.
Carlin had
lowered her personal best to 2 minutes, 3.42 seconds earlier this
spring.
In her trial
heat, she got off in seventh place, then tried to move at the 300
meter mark. She fought her way outside, got up into third place at
the 400, but was outside, and lost her position around the curve.
When the real
running started with 250 meters remaining, Carlin had already used
up a great deal of energy, and struggled home, failing to qualify
for the semi-final.
“I probably
made too many moves, and too many surges,” said Carlin, who will
not compete in
Europe
this summer. She’ll stay in
America
, take some time off, and then resume training in August.
She plans on
“running a few road races in the fall, and then gear up for her
indoor training.”
Island track fans
will take a special interest in her road races, as many feel that
she may be more suited for the 1,500 meters, a distance she has
rarely run.
Carlin
made a surprise appearance at last year’s Lou Marli Run, and was
an easy winner, leading to speculation that she may be ready to
make the big move upward.
