6/25/08

Shannon Rowbury, a Duke University graduate, has the year’s best U.S. women’s time in the 1500, a 4:01.61 she ran at the Reebok New York Grand Prix on May 31. She’d won the 1500-meter run in 4:07.59 at the Cardinal Invitational at Stanford on May 4. She also set a personal best of 2:01.03 in the 800 with a fourth place finish at the Prefontaine Classic on June 8 at Hayward Field Eugene, where she’ll return to race the 1500 at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Rowbury won the 3000 in 8:55.19 at the 2008 USA Indoor Championships. At the 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships, she won the mile and placed second in the 3000. Originally from San Francisco, Rowbury was a national scholastic champion in the 800. She is now coached by John Cook and is part of a training group that includes University of North Carolina grads Shalane Flanagan and Erin Donohue, her former Atlantic Coast conference rivals. Rowbury spoke to reporters by teleconference on Tuesday.