FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

World Masters Athletics “Day One” Sets Strong Tone

ALACHUA COUNTY,  FL – March 23, 2025 – Cross Country, The 60M, 800M and Pentathlon all saw action on Sunday in “Day One” of the WMA Indoor Championships. At West End, the Men’s 70+ and Women’s 70+ (6K) cross country started the day’s events.  Team USA’s Rick Becker’s 26:03 and Nora Cary’s 28:14 were the high water mark for the first race on Sunday.   The Team Score for Men’s & Women’s (8K) 70+ also saw Team USA in Gold with a combined time of 1:20:11.  Thailand finished in second with 1:28:56.  

The Women’s 35-69 (6K) was led by Portugal’s Andreia Santos time of 30:16.   The Men’s 35-54 (6K) was won by Team USA’s Joseph Gray and his time of 25:54.   The Men’s 54-69 (6K) saw Germany’s Miguel Molero-Eichwein’s time of 28:53 win Gold.  Women’s Team 35-69 (8K) belonged to Team USA at 1:46:04.  In the Men’s Team 35-54 (8K) Spain grabbed gold with their time of 1:23:28.  In Men’s Team 55-69 (8K) Team USA’s 1:28:50 bested Spain’s 1:30:20. 

West End, the location for the cross-country events, was purchased by Alachua County.  Following the WMA Indoor Championships, it will become a public park and a venue for future events including a cross-county course for the community.

The Indoor Pentathlon also took place, on Sunday, in seven categories starting with Women’s 50-54 to Men’s 80+.  The Women’s 50-54 division was won by Team USA’s Marsha Baird.  Women’s 54-59’s winner was Australia’s Lenore Lambert.  Women’s 60-64 saw another American’s gold with Neringa Jaksteine finishing first.

Men’s 65-69 was won by Poland’s Wieslaw Musial. In Men’s 75-79, Sweden’s Olle Borg took top honors.  Men’s 80+ had first time competitor and Team USA’s Jim Sharps wearing Gold.

“My first world championship!” said Sharps.  “It’s absolutely superb.  Very nice facility and very well run.  It was a tough day but a good day.  I’m a jumper.  You can see I’m built for flight not for fight so getting out to a lead on the track was big.”   

Sunday also saw 15 heats and semi-finals take place in the Women’s 60M and 18 semi-finals in the Men’s and Women’s 800M.

The Marty Liquori Jazztet wrapped up “Day 1” in the Athletes Village with a live performance.  Liquori, a member of the National Track and Field Hall of Fame, become only the third American High Schooler to run a sub four minute mile in 1967, three years after Jim Ryun first did it. 

Monday morning will see multiple competitions in two locations.  At 9AM, the Men’s and Women’s Indoor Pentathlon continues at the Alachua County Sports and Events Center with Women’s 70+ and Men’s 60 categories starting the day.   The Men’s 60M heats and Women’s 60M finals will follow.  The Men’s Shot Put and Women’s Weight T also gets underway at 9AM.  At 3:30PM the Men’s and Women’s 800M finals start.    At West End, at 9AM, the Outdoor Throws commence with Men’s and Women’s Discuss, Javelin and Hammer.   

Key Event Highlights:

  • Competition Dates: Today thru March 30, 2025
  • Locations: Alachua County Sports and Events Center, Celebration Pointe
  • Open 5K Road Race: March 29, 2025, following the WMA 10K Road Race at Celebration Pointe (registration at www.wmaci2025.com)
  • Volunteer Opportunities: Available throughout the week (sign-up at www.wmaci2025.com)
  • Admissions: Free for spectators
  • Athlete Village: Open daily from 10am – 9pm, with live entertainment vendors and more. Vendor opportunities can be found at https://wmaci2025.com/vendors/

Media Information:

  • Local media are invited to attend. Media credentials can be requested through the official event website: https://wmaci2025.com/media-accreditation/
  • The Media Center will be located at the Alachua County Sports and Events Center and will be open to credentialed media throughout the competition.
  • General Schedule and competition details are available at www.wmaci2025.com

Event Resources:

Email: info@wmaci2025.com

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