Teresa Vaill, a 2004 Olympian and former New York state scholastic racewalk champion, established an American record at the USATF 30K Racewalk Championships on Oct. 31 at Rockland Lake State Park in Congers, N.Y.
Vaill, a 47-year-old former resident of Pine Plains in Dutchess County who now lives in Gainesville, Fla., covered the 30K (18.6-mile) loop course at Rockland Lake in 2 hours 31 minutes 30 seconds to shatter the previous American record of 2:34:37 set in 2001 by Michelle Rohl. Vaill also broke the U.S. 45-49 age group record by an astounding 31 minutes. Maria Michta, a one-time C.W. Post standout, placed second in 2:39:35, also an outstanding performance.
Vaill was the oldest female track & field Olympian in U.S. history when she competed in the 20K walk at the 2004 Olympics in Athens at age 41.
Dave McGovern, a 1983 Clarkstown North graduate and six-time Olympic Trials competitor, finished first among U.S. male entrants and sixth overall with a time of 2:39:23. En route, he set the U.S. age 45-49 record for 25K (15.5 miles). McGovern also served as race director for the event.
In the non-championship 20K (12.4-mile) race, 2004 Olympian John Nunn of Chula Vista, Calif., pulled away early in the race and continued on to victory in 1:25.08. Dan Serianni of Rochester, N.Y., the U.S. 5K and 1-Hour champion, was the second American finisher in 1:34:15. Pamela Alva of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Athletic Club won the women’s division in 1:54:44.
The event’s international flavor was accented by Ecuadorean Olympians Andres Chocho and Mesias Zapata, who went 1-2 in the non-championship 50K (31.1 miles). Chocho was timed in 3:54:41.6, an IAAF World Championship “A” standard qualifier, while Zapata’s time of 4:08:21.4 is a World Championship “B’” standard qualifier. En route to the 50K, Chocho passed through the 30K mark first in 2:21:12, followed by Zapata in 2:23:06. Samuel Babativa, a Colombian native residing in Puerto Rico, finished third in 2:28:03. Another Ecuadorean, Mauricio Arteage, was the second overall finisher in the 20K in 1:28:22.
National age-group records in the 30K were established by John Starr of Wallingford, Pa., in the 80-84 bracket (3:53:18), Chris Schmid of World Class Racewalking in the 60-64 category (2:48:04) and Leon Jasionowski of Pegasus A.C. in the 65-69 division (2:57:55).