Westminster Christian Academy senior Daniel Everett passed by Icahn Stadium on a recent trip to Columbia University where he will be attending college in the fall.
Everett and two other St. Louis area track standouts hope to be performing inside the 12,000-seat stadium at Randall's Island in New York City on June 11.
Icahn Stadium is the site of the prestigious Adidas Grand Prix, which is a world-class international track event.
The "Dream" of competing at the Dream Mile and Dream 100 at the Grand Prix is alive if not yet realized for Everett and Nernix Hall's Colleen Quigley and Peyton Chaney.
Those athletes took the first step in qualifying for the Grand Prix with impressive championships in the Kansas Relays on April 23. That event was one of three qualifiers for the Grand Prix (the others are the Adidas Meet of Champions which was held last month and the Golden South Classic which will be held in Orlando May 28).
But in addition to winning the Kansas Relays, there was also a qualifying time, which has yet to be met by Everett, Quigley or Chaney.
"Those three runners have until the weekend of June 5 and 6 to hit that qualifying time," said Chris Hollis, who is the Next Generation Manager for running with Adidas America. "They can do so in any meet which is legitimately timed. The Grand Prix is one of the most selective races in the country. We are going to have 12 kids per gender in the Dream Mile and nine kids per gender in the Dream 100."
Eight boys and six girls have already qualified for the Dream Mile with spots reserved for Everett and Quigley if they can meet the standard time. Five boys and two girls have qualified in the Dream 100 with Chaney guaranteed a spot if she reaches the standard time. That means that at-large bids will be used to fill out the field.
"There is a lot of criteria which will be used in picking the at-large runners," Hollis said. "We will look at the US Performance List, the quality of runs and how they did in large races. I think all of the St. Louis runners are very deserving."
Quigley had an amazing day at Kansas, winning both the 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter runs. "I ran at the Kansas Relays last year and finished second in one of the events and third in the other," Quigley said. "I remember driving home and being so excited that I led for part of the race."
This year Quigley led when it counted the most, at the wire.
"I actually led the entire way in both races," Quigley said. "I felt a lot more comfortable running this year although I was still very nervous."
Quigley had PR's in both events at Kansas, running a 4:53.31 in the 1,600 and 10:44.66 in the 3,200. The qualifying time for Quigley to meet is 4:50 in the mile.
"It's going to be tough but I am going to do whatever I can to try to get there," said Quigley, who will be attending Florida State University in the fall. "I ran in the Foot Locker Cross Country Nationals in California last year and that was an unforgettable experience (Quigley finished 20th out of 40 runners). I met so many people there. I think it could be just as fun and memorable if I make it to the Grand Prix."
Everett won the boys 1,600 with a PR time of 4:12.58. The Grand Prix qualifying time is 4:11 for the mile (which is a slightly longer run).
"I ran at the Kansas Relays last year and had the lead in the last 100 meters but finished fourth," Everett said. "That was a bad memory but it was great to win it this year. It was a great experience, especially with Jim Ryun holding the tape. It was a windy day and I did not want to be in the lead. I let Connor Martin of Indiana dictate the pace. I stuck behind him and made my move in the last 200 meters."
Everett is targeting Saturday in a meet at Clayton High School as one of his best chances to make the qualifying time and be an automatic invitee to the Grand Prix.
"That would be an unbelievable experience, running in such a competitive field with the top milers in the country," Everett said.
Chaney, a junior at Nerinx Hall, hopes to spend June 11 in the Big Apple after winning the 100-meters at Kansas with her PR time of 12.03. "I was seeded second and my focus was just to run a PR," Chaney said. "When I won, it was one of the best moments of my life."
