Distance stars set for Pre.

Byline: From Register-Guard and news service reports

The world's top-ranked women's 800-meter runner and the world's No. 1 performer in the men's 5,000 and 10,000 will headline two races at the Prefontaine Classic track and field meet on June 10 at Hayward Field.

Janeth Jepkosgei of Kenya, atop the IAAF world rankings in the 800, is expected to challenge Mozambique's Maria Mutola and her 14-race Pre Classic win streak at the 33rd edition of the meet.

Kenensia Bekele of Ethiopia, who won the "double mile" at the FBK Games in Hengelo, Netherlands, last week in 8 minutes, 13.51 seconds, is the featured runner in the 2-mile at the meet.

But the competition will be considerable.

Among those who figure to challenge Bekele are Eritrea's Zerzanay Tadesse, who won the 2007 World Cross Country Championships; Kenya's Ben Limo, the Olympic 5,000 champion, and Qatar's Saif Shaheen, the world record-holder in the steeplechase.

Mutola opened her outdoor season Sunday, winning the 800 in a world-leading time of 1:58.79 at the Road to Eugene '08 meet at Hayward Field.

Jepkosgei, the 23-year-old Commonwealth Games winner, had the fastest 800 in the world last year at 1:56.66. She ran under 2 minutes 10 times in 2006, and five were faster than Mutola's time in the Road to Eugene meet.

Tickets to the Pre Classic, scheduled to begin at 12:30 p.m., are on sale at the Casanova Center ticket office, by calling 1-800-932-3668 during regular business hours, and online at www.goducks.com.

West was best last week

in regional attendance

It was closer than expected, but Eugene led all four NCAA regional track and field sites in attendance last weekend.

The two-day total for the West Regional Championships at Hayward Field was 10,032, compared with 9,037 at the Midwest regional in Des Moines, Iowa, at Drake Stadium, which will host the 2008 NCAA championships.

No official counts were available from the East regional in Gainesville, Fla., or the Mideast regional in Columbia, Mo. However, `ballpark' estimates put the numbers at 4,200 in Florida and between 3,000 and 5,000 in Missouri.

Smith's Sooners win

Midwest regional title

Oklahoma head track coach Martin Smith was able to accomplish something last weekend he never did during his six-year tenure at the University of Oregon.

Smith, who was named Big 12 men's coach of the year in his second season, led the Sooners to the Midwest regional title. Oklahoma won with strength in the jumps, hurdles, sprints and throws as no Sooner athlete qualified for the NCAA meet in the middle distance or distance events.

The other men's regional champions were USC (West), LSU (Mideast) and top-ranked Florida State (East). Women's regional winners were Arizona State (West), LSU (Mideast), Texas A&M (Midwest) and Virginia Tech (East).

Fourth LCC record

goes McNamara's way

Jordan McNamara added a fourth school record to his legacy at Lane Community College last Sunday.

McNamara finished seventh in the 1,500 at the Road to Eugene meet at Hayward Field with a time of 3:43.03, breaking the LCC mark of 3:45.14 set in 1986 by Jose Luis Barbosa.

It was a good way to end a busy week for the UO recruit.

McNamara won the 10,000 at the Northwest Athletic Association of Community College championships at Mount Hood Community College on Thursday, and then swept the 1,500 and 5,000 on Friday.

He didn't know he had a spot in the Road to Eugene meet until late Saturday night when he received a phone call from Titan assistant track coach Ross Krempley.

`He asked me, `Did you run today?' and I said, `No way, man, I took the day off, I just raced 10 miles,' ' said McNamara. `And he told me, `Well, go run 15 minutes because you're running in the `A' section of the 1,500 (Sunday).' He said, `Go run, take an ice bath and go to sleep.'

`I was pretty pleased with it. I wasn't sure how I'd feel after just one day's rest. It was good to mix it up with some guys. You have to get used to that sort of thing.'

McNamara also set school records in the mile (4:03.36), 5,000 (14:09.01) and 10,000 (29:36.33) this season.

UO recruits keep busy

in state high school meets

Two other Oregon recruits captured titles at their respective state high school championships last week.

Matt Centrowitz set a state record of 4:04.09 to win the 1,600 crown in Maryland, a race he won by nearly 15 seconds. Betsy Bies took first place in the 3,200 in South Dakota in 10:55.19.

Meanwhile, Chad Hall and Jamesha Youngblood, both bound for Oregon, will compete in the California state championships this weekend. Youngblood is the top seed in the long jump (20-2) and 300 hurdles (41.23), and the No. 2 seed in the triple jump (41-8 1/2 ). Hall is the second seed in the 1,600 (4:09).