Indoor Meet Has O’Brien In Its Lineup

Once again headlining the Vandal Indoor track meet, world decathlon champion Dan O’Brien is scheduled to compete in the pole vault and high jump tonight at the Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.

O’Brien, having apparently recovered from the hamstring cramps that caused him to withdraw from last weekend’s USA Multi-Event national indoor championship, will be the most notable competitor at the 20th edition of the meet.

But he’s hardly the only attraction.

“I think it’s a great show,” Idaho coach Mike Keller said of the meet. “It’s a quick meet and it’s easy to watch, which I think is great for the fans. It’s truly a spectator’s meet.”

Despite O’Brien’s withdrawal last week, he has received word that he will be invited by the IAAF to represent the United States in the World Indoor Championships in Barcelona, Spain, March 11-12.

The first event tonight gets under way at 6:30.

The high jump field features at least four athletes who have exceeded 7 feet, including Idaho’s Thad Hathaway and Boise State’s Jon DeBerry.Other outstanding collegiate athletes scheduled to compete include Washington State pole vaulter Christos Pallakis, who is the second-ranked collegiate in the country after a vault of 18-5 in Reno two weeks ago.

NCAA indoor nationals qualifier Joyce Rainwater of Eastern Washington will compete in the 55-meter dash; former Irish Olympian and University of Washington star Regina Bonnie will compete in the 3,000-meter run; and Jane Brooker, ranked fourth in the United States in the 400-meter dash, will compete in her specialty.

The meet will also feature a boys high school invitational mile with an outstanding field that includes Mead standouts Micah Davis and Skiy DeTray from Spokane as well as Washington AAA state 800-meter run champion Eric Mickelson of Newport-Bellevue.

Youths age 16 and under will be admitted free. Admission for fans 17 and older is $5.00.

West interviews: University of Idaho associate athletic director Lance West interviewed earlier this week for a fund-raising position at Marshall University in Huntington, W.V.

West is believed to be one of four finalists for Marshall’s vice president’s job in charge of athletic department fund-raising.

West, a former Vandal football player, recently received a promotion at UI to oversee external affairs.