Gear relies on late surge to snap Coburn’s streak of 10 consecutive national championships, Rooks overcomes fall and rallies to hold off Keter and Updike to win first U.S. crown

By David Woods for DyeStat

EUGENE, Ore. – Krissy Gear was down last fall after moving across the country and coping with other stressors. Kenneth Rooks was down, too – as in, down on the ground.

The two survived and thrived – as in running to victories in the 3,000-meter steeplechase Saturday night at the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships.

Rooks’ bounce-back caused the Hayward Field crowd of 8,965 to erupt because of the obvious improbability. Gear, on the other hand, not only ended Emma Coburn’s string of 10 wins at nationals, she won a more private battle.

Gear kept the measure of Coburn, then kicked past the former world champion for 12-second PB of 9:12.81 – sixth on the all-time U.S. list and 14th in the world this year.

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Coburn was second in 9:13.60 and Courtney Wayment third in 9:14.63 to complete the team for August’s World Championships.

NCAA champion Olivia Markezich of Notre Dame ran an eight-second PB of 9:17.93 for No. 3 on the all-time, all-dates collegiate list.

Gear, 23, wrapped up her Arkansas college career last year and relocated to Flagstaff, Ariz. She said she became depressed last fall, even though running was therapeutic. The move, isolation, family problems and a romantic breakup contributed to “some abuse” of alcohol and marijuana, Gear said.

Teammates at HOKA NAZ Elite were supportive, she said, and insisted she was poised for breakthroughs. She said she “freaked out” after a May 6 steeple at Walnut, Calif., because 9:23.55 was a 15-second PB. Expectations accompany a time like that.

“That’s been the story of my life. ‘You can do this and you can this,’” Gear said. “‘No way.’ And then it happens.”

Gear had never made an NCAA or U.S. final in the steeple, although she was 10th at junior worlds in 2018. Her best individual NCAA finish was second in the indoor mile in 2021.

She has always featured a kick, but positioning before the last lap made it meaningful.

“It’s cool to have a kick, but no one cares if you’re 80 meters out the back,” she said.

Courtney Frerichs, an Olympic silver medalist and American record-holder, withdrew because of an ankle injury. Although the 32-year-old Coburn was beaten, she made a ninth world or Olympic team.

“Worse things have happened to me than getting second at the U.S. Championships,” Coburn said. “So I’m not going to beat myself up.”

Rooks was beat up after falling on the second lap. Anthony Rotich put his hands on a barrier, and Rooks almost ran into him from behind.

“Initially, my brain said, ‘Well, am I done?’ “ said Rooks, the NCAA champion from BYU. “And I just decided, ‘OK, well, I’m just going to get up and keep going.’ I tried to stay in the moment, stay present.”

Rooks was 14th – and last – after the fall and 12th at 1,600 meters. He climbed to ninth, then sixth, then third with 200 meters left. He finished in 8:16.78.

Benard Keter and Isaac Updike were second and third in 8:17.19 and 8:17.69, respectively. None of the top three has met the World Championships standard of 8:15 but could make the cut via world ranking.

Mason Ferlic led most of the last lap before dropping to fourth in 8:18.75.

The race went on without injured Evan Jager and Hillary Bor, who had combined for the previous 10 national titles.

Oddly, given he ran so many years ago, Henry Marsh was Rooks’ inspiration. Marsh, a BYU graduate, was a nine-time national champion in the steeplechase, finished fourth at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics and once set an American record lasting for 21 years.

“I just reminded myself, ‘Well, OK, Henry Marsh used to run from the back of the race. I just have to slowly move back up and see how many guys I can get,” Rooks said.

Oddly, again, Rooks said he had thought before the race about what he would do if he fell. He wanted to be prepared for all scenarios.

“If you’re in the steeplechase,” he said, “you will fall eventually.”

And you never know what might happen if you get up fast enough.

Contact David Woods at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter: @DavidWoods007.