OTC Elite’s Green sets 1,500m PR at Music City Distance Carnival

By Curtis Anderson | Jun 4, 2019

EUGENE, Ore. – Oregon Track Club Elite’s Hanna Green established a personal best by nearly three seconds in the 1,500 meters at the Music City Distance Carnival in Nashville, Tenn., last Saturday (June 1).

Green, a second-year pro out of Virginia Tech, placed seventh in the tightly contested race with a time of 4 minutes, 6.66 seconds. Her previous best of 4:09.33 was set earlier this season.

The top seven competitors in the race finished within 1.42 seconds of each other.

“It has been a healthy trajectory for Hanna this year, especially over the longer distances which we’ve targeted up to this point,” Oregon Track Club Elite coach Mark Rowland said. “She did not show what we had expected in the previous couple of races but she more than rectified that with her 4:06 performance in Nashville.”

Drew Piazza, in his first year with OTC Elite, placed seventh in the 800m at the Music City Distance Carnival. The 2017 Virginia Tech graduate crossed the finish line in a season-best time of 1:46.21.

“Drew has improved with each race this season and I’m confident he will continue to do so,” Rowland said. “It was a good weekend for the Virginia Tech graduates.”

Ben Blankenship turned in a strong third-place performance in the 1,500m at the Josefa Odložila Memorial in Prague, Czech Republic on Monday (June 3). Blankenship, a 2016 Olympic finalist in the 1,500m, hit the tape in 3:37.80, a mere one-tenth of a second out of first place. It’s the second-fastest 1,500m time by an American this season.

Harun Abda placed fifth in the 800m with a time of 1:47.48 at a Grand Prix athletics meeting in Gliwice, Poland on Sunday (June 2).

Here’s a quick glance at tentative races over the next week for OTC Elite athletes:

• June 6

• Nijel Amos, 800m, Diamond League, Rome

• June 8

• Sally Kipyego, USATF Women's 10K Championships, New York City

• June 9

• Vince Ciattei, 1500m, Portland Track Festival, Lewis & Clark

• Sabrina Southerland, 800m, Portland Track Festival, Lewis & Clark​