Despite cold, Brandon Miller runs 2026 US leading mark in 600m at Stumptown Twilight...
PORTLAND--It was billed earlier in the week by the Portland Track organizers as an attempt at Johnny Gray's long standing world best at the 600 meters of 1:12.81 in 1986.
However, Brandon Miller (Paul Merca photo) wasn't quite 100 percent, as according to Brooks Beasts coach Danny Mackey, he was fighting off a cold he picked up earlier in the week.
Nonetheless, Miller, who was slightly congested Saturday morning, gave it a shot, and ran the fastest time by an American this season in the final event of the Stumptown Twilight meet at Griswold Stadium on the campus of Lewis & Clark College.
With Brooks Beasts teammate Sam Whitmarsh, who earlier won the 800, doing the pacing, Miller still managed to run 1:14.08, just ahead of the US leading mark of 1:14.15 run by Cooper Lutkenhaus indoors in February.
Despite the congestion, Miller and the Brooks Beasts crew don't think it will be an issue as he marks his return to the Wanda Diamond League circuit next Friday in Lausanne.
The Beasts swept the men's and women's 800s, as Sam Whitmarsh (1:47.74) and Valery Tobias (1:59.83) grabbed the wins.
John Rivera was fourth in the men's race for the Beasts in 1:48.87, while Kristie Schoffield ran a season best to take fifth in the women's race in 2:02.98.
Almost a month after being the lead pacer in teammate Josh Kerr's world record mile, Brannon Kidder of the Beasts won the men's 1500 in a personal best 3:33.47, leading fellow Beast Max Davies to a personal best as well, as he ran 3:34.64.
Washington alum Sam Ellis' debut aa a member of the Atlanta TC Elite did not go as well, as he was with both Kidder and Davies before fading over the last 300, finishing in 3:42.18.
Fellow Washington alum Eleanor Fulton finished third in the women's 1500, running 4:09.39, as BYU alum Carmen Alder won in 4:06.40.
On the penultimate day of the European Championships in Birmingham, United Kingdom, Washington alum Sophie O'Sullivan of Ireland advanced to Sunday's final in the women's 1500.
Running in the second of two qualifying heats, O'Sullivan, last year's NCAA 1500 champion, ran 4:08.88 to secure fifth place, with the top six finishers in each heat advancing to the finals with no time qualifiers.
O'Sullivan will race at 1:13 pm Pacific time/9:13 pm local time.
Current Husky Sofia Cosculluela of Spain finished 18th in the heptathlon, moving up from 21st place after the first day of competition.
Cosculluela started day 2 with a jump of 20-11.75 (6.39m), just off her personal best of 21-4.75 (6.52m).
In the javelin, she threw 140-10 (42.94m), then finished up the two days of competition with a time of 2:21.20 in the 800.
All told, she posted a two day score of 5999 points.
Ireland's Kate O'Connor won the European title with a final score of 6751 points, a new national record.
NOTE: European Athletics, World Athletics, and Portland Track contributed to this report.
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