EUGENE, Ore. — Colorado Springs native Boris Berian stood at the starting line Friday at the Olympic Trials and acknowledged the crowd as his name was called, wearing a jersey, half-tights and, most important, gold-soled track spikes emblazoned with New Balance’s logo.
That act was made possible only last week, when Nike — whom Berian had been involved with in a bitter lawsuit since April — finally dropped the case to keep him under contract.
“It’s a big weight off my shoulders,” Berian said. “I didn’t know how much it was bothering me until they dropped it.”
Friday, Berian raced for the first time in a month, cruising through the first round of the 800 meters to advance to Saturday’s semifinals, winning his heat in 1 minute, 46.03 seconds. It was the top qualifying time of the day.
“It’s been a while since I last raced, so I just wanted to get out,” Berian said. “I’ve got some great competition out here. Can’t really let off too much. Got to keep pushing and can’t underestimate anyone out here.”
Berian will face far fewer rivals than expected in the next round. Duane Solomon, who finished fourth at the London Olympics in 2012, finished fourth in his heat and failed to advance. Nick Symmonds, who finished one place behind Solomon in London, pulled out of the trials Thursday with an ankle injury in what was almost certainly his final chance to make an Olympic team.
And Donavan Brazier, the Texas A&M freshman who broke Jim Ryun’s 50-year-old NCAA 800-meter record last month and then left to sign with Nike, also won’t race in the semifinals. The top three in each heat advanced, in addition to those with the next four fastest times.
“I got tired, and I slowed down,” Brazier said. “I wanted an honest race, and it didn’t work out. I should have gone out faster.”
, marking the end of , claiming he had to remain under contract with them after its initial endorsement deal expired at the end of 2015. He said he was surprised by Nike’s decision to drop the suit.
“Heard from my agent, said it was done, and that was it,” Berian said.
Only two summers ago, and sleeping on a friend’s couch, having dropped out of Adams State because of grade ineligibility. He kept training in the afternoons to keep his running dream alive and eventually got a chance to train with now-coach Carlos Handler in Big Bear Lake, Calif.
Last year, he ran the fifth-fastest time ever for an American at 800 meters and then won the world indoor title in the event in March in Portland, Ore., capturing the biggest win of his career.
CSU graduate advances in long jump.
Colorado State graduate Janay DeLoach, who lives in Fort Collins, was seventh in qualifying in the women’s long jump, leaping 21 feet, 7½ inches. The mark was a bit shy of her season best this year. DeLoach, who won a bronze medal in London, is looking to make her second Olympic team. She finished fourth in the world indoor championships in March and finished eighth in last year’s world championships.
Shot putter Adam Nelson receives Olympic gold medal in ceremony, 12 years later
Three-time Olympic shot put thrower Adam Nelson finally got the medal ceremony he deserved from the 2004 Olympics.
Nelson, who originally won silver in Athens, was later awarded the gold after samples from Ukranian Yuriy Bilonog were re-tested and found to contain performance enhancers.
Nelson received the medal a few years ago in the most unceremonious of ways — the food court at the Atlanta airport from a lone official with the U.S. Olympic Committee in 2013, where he exchanged his silver for gold.
He returned to Hayward Field on Friday at age 40 after coming out of a three-year retirement last year. He finished seventh in the final after hitting his first throw and then fouling the next five. The top three were Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs and Darren Hill.
“This meet gave me an emotional connection I’d never had before with my Olympic gold medal,” Nelson said. “Eugene is a special place.”