Walla Walla's Kenneth Rooks finishes tenth in steeple finals at world championships...

BUDAPEST, Hungary--Walla Walla native Kenneth Rooks (Paul Merca photo) finished tenth in the finals of the men's 3000 steeplechase to close day four of the World Athletics Championships Tuesday night at the National Athletics Centre.

At the start, the double USA and NCAA champion from Brigham Young University got towards the front of the pack and stayed there through the first 800. 

Between 800 and 1000 meters, the pace picked up, when Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia and Leonard Bett of Kenya moved towards the front. When the field responded to Girma's move, Rooks suddenly found himself with little running room, and dropped towards the back of the pack at the first kilometer, which the leaders went through in 2:50.41.

Rooks fought his way back to the middle of the pack at the halfway mark, but Girma and Bett continued to run up front, with defending champion Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco lurking in the shadows.

In the end, El Bakkali asserted his dominance on the field, winning in 8:03.53, with Girma second in 8:05.44, and Abraham Kibiwot third in 8:11.98.

Rooks finished tenth in 8:20.02 as the top American, with Isaac Updike 16th in a personal best 8:30.67.

The College Park HS grad and former Washington 1A champion lamented the fact that he wasn't as assertive as he should have been when Girma moved to the front.

"I felt smooth the first half of the race. I still have confidence in my ability, and I feel like I can compete with those guys. I'm still trying to figure out why I didn't have as much fight as I did today."

Rooks is committed to running cross country this fall for the Cougars as they move to the Big 12 Conference from the West Coast Conference. 

"I will have to get into cross country mode after taking a break."

Washington alum Gianna Woodruff finished fifth in the first heat of three in the semifinals of the women's 400 meter hurdles, running 54.71, as Rushell Clayton of Jamaica won the heat in a personal best 53.30.

The only other runner with Washington ties who raced Tuesday night was Isaiah Harris of Team USATF and the Brooks Beasts, in the third of seven first round heats of the men's 800.

Harris, who was seventh at the 400 meter mark in 56.08, tried to make a late charge, but could not get through a gap that opened momentarily, and finished a non-qualifying fourth in 1:48.00.

The only athlete with Washington ties competing Wednesday morning is Nia Akins of the Brooks Beasts who runs in the fifth of seven first round heats at 10:37 am local time (1:37 am Pacific).

Due to a heat wave hitting the Budapest area, the first round of the women's 5000, with Washington alum Amy-Eloise Markovc was moved to 7 pm local time (10 am Pacific), from its original start time of 11 am local time (2 am Pacific).

Former Pullman resident, and defending world and Olympic champion Katie Moon goes in the women's pole vault, along with the defending world under-20 champion, sole record holder of the American high school and U20 records Hana Moll of Olympia's Capital HS. 

Moon and Moll go at 7:30 pm local time (10:30am Pacific).

Finally, Josh Kerr of the Brooks Beasts and Great Britain runs in the finals of the men's 1500 in a quest to keep the world championship on British soil after the forced withdrawal of defending champion Geoff Wightman due to injury. Kerr runs at 9:15 pm local time (12:15 pm Pacific).

Results of day 4 and start lists for day 5 are available here.

Don't forget to visit our buymeacoffee.com to access exclusive member and supporter only contest throughout the world championships.

NOTE: World Athletics, the WABudapest 23 Organizing Committee, and the federations of Canada, Great Britain & Northern Ireland, New Zealand, Panama and USA Track & Field contributed to this report.

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