Path to Paris: Alvarado Qualifies For Men's 800m Final at U.S. Olympic Trials

EUGENE, Ore. — BYU track and field alum Abraham Alvarado ran 1:44.44 in the semi finals of the men's 800-meters at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials at Hayward Field Friday night. 

Full Results

Alvarado ran a new lifetime best in the event while surpassing the Olympic Standard of 1:44.70 in the process. The former BYU runner took third in his heat behind professional athletes Hobbs Kessler and Brandon Miller who secured the two auto-qualifications with their placements. Alvarado had the fourth fastest finish on the night to earn the time-qualifying spot. The top-five finishers in the heat all earned personal bests.

The 28-year old from Winton, California competed at Cal State Stanislaus prior to BYU. There he was coached by current BYU associate director of track and field Diljeet Taylor before both joined the Cougars in 2016. Alvarado took first in the indoor mile at the 2018 MPSF Championships and fifth in the indoor 800m just a few weeks later at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Alvarado will compete for a spot on Team USA in the finals of the event Sunday night at 5:51 p.m. MT. 

Current BYU thrower Alysa Keller tossed 47.72m/156-7 in the round one of the women's javelin, but did not qualify for the finals. At 18 years old, Keller was the youngest competitor in the field. The freshman from Billings, Montana holds the No. 4 spot on the program's top-ten board with her 51.86m/170-1 mark at this year's Big 12 Outdoor Championships where she took second overall. Keller went on to compete in the U20 USATF Championships earlier this month where she placed second in the field. She will represent the United States at the U20 World Championships in Lima, Peru this August. 

BYU alum and professional Adidas athlete Anna Camp-Bennett ran 4:05.62 in the semi finals of the women's 1500m. Camp-Bennett placed 13th overall and did not qualify for the finals. 

The Cougars will resume competition at the U.S. Track and Field Olympic Trials Saturday with Dallin Shurts in the finals of the men's discus throw scheduled for 5:30 p.m MT.

Find all streaming information for the Olympic Trials on NBC and Peacock. On the other side of the coast, 3000-meter steeplechase runner James Corrigan is set to chase the Olympic Standard of 8:15.00 at the Penn Relays Summer Showcase. Corrigan's race is scheduled for 6 p.m. MT and can be streamed on FloTrack and the Flotrack YouTube page.