Jan. 10, 2005
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THIS WEEK — The Hawkeye men and women’s track teams will host the annual Iowa Open Saturday at the University of Iowa Recreation Building. Field events begin at 4 p.m. and running events at 4:45 p.m. Competing teams include Augustana, Bradley, Coe, Lewis, North Central, Northern Iowa, Truman State and Western Illinois. Admission is free.
2005 MEN’S SEASON PREVIEW — The Hawkeyes will once again be strong in the throws, led by returning all-Americans Bill Neumann and Adam Hamilton and five-time NCAA qualifier Ken Kemeny. The Iowa distance corps should also be strong, coming off its highest finish under Head Coach Larry Wieczorek at the NCAA Cross Country Championships (13th), and third place finishes at the NCAA Regional and Big Ten Championships. Several newcomers will make immediate impacts in several events and provide improved depth.
2005 WOMEN’S SEASON PREVIEW — The young Iowa squad will be led by sophomores Peaches Roach in the jumps, and Nikki Chapple and Shannon Stanley in the distance events. Roach won the Big Ten indoor and outdoor high jump titles as a freshman, earning Big Ten Outdoor Freshman of the Year honors. Both Chapple and Stanley are NCAA qualifiers and are coming off strong cross country seasons. Three legs of the school-record setting indoor 1,600-meter relay return in senior Aisha Hume and sophomores Erin Sheeley and Lindsay McCalla. Several newcomers are also expected to contribute.
HAWKEYE COACHES — Head Coaches Larry Wiezcorek and James Grant are in their ninth seasons at the helm of the Iowa men and women’s track, respectively.
During his career at Iowa, Wieczorek has coached 23 all-Americans and 35 Big Ten Champions. Iowa’s highest conference meet finishes during his tenure is second at the 1999 outdoor meet and fourth at the 1997 indoor meet. As a runner, Wieczorek was a six-time Big Ten champion for Iowa, winning four track and two cross country titles. He was also a four-time all-American. In 1998, Wieczorek was inducted into the National Iowa Varsity Club Hall of Fame.
The Hawkeyes crowned two individual champions and recorded their highest placing under Grant (third) and their highest team point total (89) in school history at the 2004 Big Ten indoor championships. During his career at Iowa, Grant has coached nine all-Americans and 18 Big Ten Champions. As a runner, Grant captained Eastern Michigan University’s 1970 and 1971 track teams. He earned all-America honors while specializing in the 400-meter dash, 400-meter hurdles and the mile relay.