Think pink
EUGENE, Ore.--Anna Willard has had quite a week.
Willard got a surprise wedding proposal last Saturday and on Thursday she got a berth on the Beijing Olympic team for the first women's Olympic 3,000-meter steeplechase competition.
Willard, a Brown graduate with a master's degree from Michigan, won the Olympic trials 3,000-meter steeplechase in an American-record time of 9 minutes, 27.59 seconds. Asked afterward if she were on Cloud 9, she laughed.
"Cloud 11 maybe. I feel amazing," said Willard, who previously was most notable for the dyed-pink streak in her hair.
"Everything I've ever wanted has just happened."
As the race wore on, she knew she'd win but wanted to keep up a good pace. "The hurdles can start getting a little bigger as you get tired," she said.
But she wasn't intimidated by a close call at a water jump with Jennifer Barringer, who finished third in 9:33.11. Lindsey Anderson was second, in 9:30.75
"A physical race doesn't rattle me at all," Willard said. "I felt fantastic. I just knew I had it."
The only down note was that her fiance, Jonathan Pierce, was eliminated in the men's steeplechase semifinals.
--Helene Elliott
Top photo: Anna Willard celebrates her record. Credit: Andy Lyons / Getty Images
Inset: Gold medalist Anna Willard smiles on the podium between silver medalist Lindsey Anderson, left, and bronze medalist Jennifer Barringer. Credit: Andy Lyons / Getty Images
