Five Sun Devils to compete in 12th IAAF World Championships

August 11, 2009

Five former members of the Arizona State University track and field program will compete at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics starting Saturday in Berlin, Germany, with four individuals representing the United States and one other competing for Ghana. All five former Sun Devils will compete in their respective events in a meet that will run August 15-23.<separator></separator>The Sun Devils that will compete in Berlin include Team USA members <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/alcorn_kyle00.html">Kyle Alcorn</a>, <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/davila_desiree00.html">… Davila</a>, <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/phillips_dwight00.html"… Phillips</a> and <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/williams_charonda00.htm… Williams</a>, as well as <a href="http://thesundevils.cstv.com/sports/c-track/mtt/amoo_seth00.html">Seth Amoo</a>, who will run for Ghana. Combined, the five athletes have competed in 13 world championship events, including three Olympic Game appearances and a combined total of five medals. Alcorn, Davila and Williams all will be making their debuts at the IAAF World Championships in Athletics senior level competition while Phillips is competing in his fifth in a row and Amoo in his second-consecutive.<separator></separator>Phillips, who will once again compete in the long jump, is the most decorated of the group as he has competed in the IAAF World Championships in Athletics on five occasions and has won three gold medals and a bronze. The 2004 Olympic Gold medalist in Athens and eighth-place finisher at the 2000 Sydney Games, Phillips won world outdoor titles in the long jump in 2003 (Paris) and 2005 (Helsinki) while also taking gold at the 2003 indoor meet in Birmingham. In his most recent world-level championship meet, the 2007 Osaka outdoor world meet, Phillips placed third in the long jump. Phillips earned a berth into the world meet after winning the USA Championships in June.<separator></separator>Amoo, a 2008 Olympian in the 200m for Ghana, will be back on the world stage in the same event this year and could also compete on the 4x100m relay team. Amoo first competed on the world level at the 2007 outdoor championships in Osaka and placed sixth in his heat without advancing. Last year, before the Olympic Games, he also competed at the 2008 world indoor championships and placed fourth in his heat of the 60m dash in Valencia.<separator></separator>While this will be Alcorn’s first senior-level IAAF championship meet, it is not his first world championships as he competed in the 2004 IAAF World Junior Championships in Athletics in Grosseto. At the junior meet, Alcorn placed fifth in his heat of the steeplechase and did not advance in the competition. He will compete in the steeplechase at this year’s meet after finishing third at the USA Championships in June.<separator></separator>Davila also will be competing in her first IAAF World Championship in Athletics meet this year, but, similar to Alcorn, is no stranger to the world stage. In 2006 and 2007, Davila was one of five U.S. women selected to compete in the first and second IAAF World Road Racing Championships. She placed 43rd at the inaugural event in Debrecan before improving to 34th at the 2007 event in Udine. Davila, who will compete in the women’s marathon, was selected to Team USA based upon her finish at the 2008 Chicago Marathon, where she was the top American and finished fifth overall.<separator></separator>Williams is the only Sun Devil headed to Berlin this year that has yet to compete at a world championship. During the past collegiate season, Williams smashed the school records in the indoor 60m and 200m before taking down the outdoor 100m and 200m marks. She collected six All-America honors on the year, including Top 8 finishes in the indoor 60m, 200m and 4x400m relay before adding Top 8 placements outdoors in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m. Williams then competed at the USA Championships where she was fourth overall in the 200m dash and earned a berth on Team USA. She will compete in the 200m dash in Berlin and is in the relay pool for the 4x100m as well.<separator></separator>NBC and Versus will carry coverage of the IAAF World Championships in Athletics throughout the meet (check local listings for times and channels) while updated live results can be found at berlin.iaaf.org.<separator></separator>Sun Devils at the 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics Event Schedule August 15 August 16 - Alcorn (steeplechase, heats) August 17 August 18 - Alcorn (steeplechase, final), Amoo (200m, heats & quarterfinal) August 19 - Amoo (200m, semifinal), Williams (200m, heats) August 20 - Amoo (200m, final), Phillips (long jump, qualifications), Williams (200m, semifinal) August 21 - Amoo (4x100m, heats), Williams (200m, final) August 22 - Amoo (4x100m, final), Phillips (long jump, final), Williams (4x100m, heats & final) August 23 - Davila (marathon, final)<separator></separator>