2008 Woodie Awards
SIUE's Brown headed for 2008 Olympic trials
Josh McCarty
Issue date: 6/18/08 Section: Sports
During the 2008 track and field season, SIUE senior Deserea Brown earned the right to be called a national champion and a record-breaker.
With all of that on her resume, the best may be yet to come. In a matter of weeks, she could be an Olympian.
Brown qualified for the 2008 Olympic trials during a track meet Sunday at SIUE. She ran a personal best 56.82 seconds in the 400-meter-hurdles, coming in well below the qualifying mark of 57.80.
As she crossed the line, her audience made it clear her goal was achieved.
"My teammates were cheering for me," Brown said. "When I finished, they were all yelling '56'. It was really exciting."
Brown took 1.4 seconds off of her previous time, which she ran a week earlier.
SIUE freshman Amber Triner is one of Brown's teammates and recognizes the difficulty of shaving off so much time in a matter of days.
"That is extremely hard to do," Triner said. "It takes so much work and dedication even to shave off tenths of a second. I know she has been in all week doing extra work and extra lifting. It has paid off."
Her work ethic is a quality head track and field coach David Astrauskas admires in Brown, and he said it makes her successful on and off the track.
"She works hard both as a student and as an athlete, which is what you need to get to this level," Astrauskas said. "She is an all around good person and good team member."
It's that quality as a person that has her teammates so thrilled for her opportunity.
"Everyone is extra excited," Triner said. "You get the same feeling as if it were yourself. I guess it's just because we're all so close."
Brown earned the national championship in the outdoor 400 hurdles, as well as another national championship as part of the indoor 4x400 relay team. In total, she has set nine SIUE records, including four in 2008 in the indoor 60, 60-hurdles, 200 and 400 hurdles.
"This year has really been a good season," Brown said. "I focused on a lot of different events and putting everything I learned the last three years to use."
With all of that on her resume, the best may be yet to come. In a matter of weeks, she could be an Olympian.
Brown qualified for the 2008 Olympic trials during a track meet Sunday at SIUE. She ran a personal best 56.82 seconds in the 400-meter-hurdles, coming in well below the qualifying mark of 57.80.
As she crossed the line, her audience made it clear her goal was achieved.
"My teammates were cheering for me," Brown said. "When I finished, they were all yelling '56'. It was really exciting."
Brown took 1.4 seconds off of her previous time, which she ran a week earlier.
SIUE freshman Amber Triner is one of Brown's teammates and recognizes the difficulty of shaving off so much time in a matter of days.
"That is extremely hard to do," Triner said. "It takes so much work and dedication even to shave off tenths of a second. I know she has been in all week doing extra work and extra lifting. It has paid off."
Her work ethic is a quality head track and field coach David Astrauskas admires in Brown, and he said it makes her successful on and off the track.
"She works hard both as a student and as an athlete, which is what you need to get to this level," Astrauskas said. "She is an all around good person and good team member."
It's that quality as a person that has her teammates so thrilled for her opportunity.
"Everyone is extra excited," Triner said. "You get the same feeling as if it were yourself. I guess it's just because we're all so close."
Brown earned the national championship in the outdoor 400 hurdles, as well as another national championship as part of the indoor 4x400 relay team. In total, she has set nine SIUE records, including four in 2008 in the indoor 60, 60-hurdles, 200 and 400 hurdles.
"This year has really been a good season," Brown said. "I focused on a lot of different events and putting everything I learned the last three years to use."
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Derek Bright
posted 6/19/08 @ 7:10 PM CST
Congratulations to Deserea Brown for qualifying for the Olympic Trials! Enjoy Hayward Field and all the history and excitement of track and field in Eugene. (Continued…)
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