July 12, 2004

LUBBOCK, Texas - Texas Tech junior sprinter Jonathan Johnson blistered the field in the finals of the 800-meter run Monday night with a personal-record 1:44.77 to become the school's first male Olympic athlete. Johnson will compete with the U.S. Olympic Team at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece, later this summer.

Johnson, competing at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials in Sacramento, Calif., also turned in the fastest time in the country this year, eclipsing runner-up Khadevis Robinson's 1:45.30 set on June 27. Johnson's previous best time was 1:45.81, set in May 2002 during his freshman season.

"He just ran the perfect race," Texas Tech track coach Wes Kittley said from Sacramento. "We wanted a 50.4 in the first 400 and he did that. He took off in the backstretch and separated from the field. Jonathan ran hard from the start, paced himself, and made us all proud. What a great day to be a Red Raider."

Staying true to his running style, Johnson jumped out to the front immediately and ran much of the race in a close second to Jeb Harris. Johnson moved into the lead for good on the backstretch and held off Robinson and third-place finisher Derrick Peterson for the win. Robinson and Peterson will join Johnson on the Olympic 800-meter team.

Tech's Licretia Sibley's Olympic dreams fell short in the women's 400-meter quarterfinal as she finished sixth in her heat, two spots out of qualifying for the semifinals.