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Huskies' Brian Fay finishes eighth in 5000m at European Championships...

MUNICH, Germany--Brian Fay (Paul Merca photo) traded his University of Washington racing vest for that of the Irish green as he toed the line in the finals of the men's 5000 meters at the second day of competition at the European Championships Tuesday night at the Olympiastadion.

As is typically the case in a championship race final, the pacing for the first part of the race was a bit uneven for the first 3200, with the first 1600 in 4:20, and the second 1600 in 8:50 (4:30).

Once the field got to the 3600 mark, the pace jumped dramatically, as world champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway edged his way to the front and stayed there, taking the victory in 13:21.13.

In contrast, Fay, who was positioned in the middle of the pack, began to drop back as the field entered the final kilometer, but found a gear in the final lap, going from thirteenth to finish eighth in a time of 13:31.87, finishing the last 400 in 57.35.

In the mixed zone, Fay told reporters, "You want to be able to beat those guys and compete with the top guys."

Describing the mad dash in the final lap, he said, "With a lap to go I said I'm just going to full send. If I blow up, I blow up."

This was Fay's second top ten finish in the European Championships in the last year, as he finished tenth at the European cross country championships back in December.


Earlier Tuesday, Marta Pen Freitas of Portugal and the Brooks Beasts finished eighth in her heat of the women's 1500 in 4:07.82, and did not advance to the finals on Friday.

Washington alum Amy-Eloise Markovc will run in the finals of the women's 5000 meters on Thursday at 9:25pm local time (12:25 pm in Seattle).


NOTE: European Athletics and Athletics Ireland contributed to this report.

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