Following his career-high score of 8,163 points, Hakim McMorris earned the individual title and helped Team USATF’s men win the Thorpe Cup decathlon dual meet against Germany on Sunday in Wetzlar, Germany. In a competition where the final team totals were determined by adding the combined scores of the top five finishers from each country, the United States finished with 39,065 points against Germany’s 37,472.
Day one saw McMorris win the first two events, long leaping (7.78/25-6.25) and racing 10.59 in the 100.50, before finishing the day quickly (46.50 in the 400). After the first five events, teammate Denim Rogers trailed McMorris by 320 points; however, he began to close the gap on day two with a 13.78 victory in the 110 hurdles.
Rogers had an eight-point advantage heading into the final event after McMorris lost points with a poor discus and javelin. However, McMorris won the race with a superb 4:28.42 in the 1500. Second place went to Rogers with a PB 8,074, and Marcel Meyer of Germany finished first with an 8,012 score. Sam Black (7,845 – 4th), Daniel Spejcher (7,701 – 5th), and Josh Farmer (7,282 – 9th) were the other scorers for the United States.
In the women’s heptathlon, Germany narrowly prevailed by 62 points (17,901-17,839). At PB 6,078, Serina Riedel emerged victorious in the solo competition, just surpassing U.S. competitor Allie Jones in second place. Timara Chapman, the NCAA champion from Texas A&M, finished fourth with 5,899, while Jenelle Rogers, the fourth-place finisher from Ball State, completed the American scorers in fifth place with 5,878.
