On the first day of the U.S. Olympic track and field trials, Minnesota athletes found inspiration in many places. Joe Klecker got it from his mom, Janis, a 1992 Olympian in the marathon. Payton Otterdahl drew it from competitor Ryan Crouser's world-record throw.
Joe Klecker, Payton Otterdahl ride inspiration to Olympic team berths
Klecker pays tribute to his family, Otterdahl to peers.
June 20, 2021 at 12:11AM
Klecker, a Hopkins High School grad, and Otterdahl, from Rosemount, had one thing in common: They both used that emotion to make the Olympic team Friday night. Klecker finished third in the men's 10,000 meters, and Otterdahl placed third in the men's shot put. Those were the only two finals on Day 1 of the trials at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., putting the two Minnesotans among the first six athletes to be named to the U.S. track and field roster for the Tokyo Summer Games.
Nine athletes with Minnesota connections have made the U.S. team for Tokyo. The list also includes swimmer Regan Smith (Lakeville), BMX racer Alise Willoughby (St. Cloud), wrestler Gable Steveson (Apple Valley), climber Kyra Condie (Shoreview), sailor Lara Dallman-Weiss (Shoreview), shooter Patrick Sunderman (Farmington) and women's volleyball player Jordan Thompson (Edina).
Klecker was emotional in a post-race Zoom interview. Holding a small American flag, he thanked his parents — Barney and Janis Klecker, considered Minnesota distance running royalty — and said he was proud to continue a family and state legacy.
"Having my mom there gave me a lot of extra push," said Klecker, 24, a state high school champ at Hopkins who now lives in Boulder, Colo. "She's been guiding me through this whole process.
"To be one of the Olympians to come from Minnesota means a lot. There are people I've idolized forever: the Hassan Meads, the [Ben] Blankenships, my mom. So many Olympians have come out of Minnesota. To have my name up there with them means a lot."
Klecker was among four men to sprint away from the rest of the field on the final lap. Woody Kincaid of Portland, Ore., ran the last 400 meters in 53.47 seconds to win in 27 minutes, 53.62 seconds. Grant Fisher was second, and Klecker third in 27:54.90.
Janis Klecker was 21st in the 1992 Olympic women's marathon in Barcelona. When Joe asked about her ritual before her race at the Olympic trials, she told him she ate a Snickers bar. "I followed that to a T, and it worked out," he said.
Otterdahl felt ready to unleash a big throw Friday. An NCAA champion for North Dakota State, he had not improved his personal-best mark in two years, since he finished college. That drought ended Friday with a throw of 71 feet, 11 inches, seventh-longest in the world this year.
He got it on his fifth throw of a thrilling competition. Crouser obliterated a world record that had stood for 31 years, with a fourth-round heave of 76-8 ¼ that beat the previous mark by 10 inches. Otterdahl had a closer call; he threw just one inch farther than fourth-place Darrell Hill, a 2016 Olympian.
"I'm just so happy to finally see [Crouser] break that world record," said Otterdahl, who lives and trains in North Dakota. "To see it with my own eyes, and then feed off that energy.
"I'm in the [competition] where the world record just got broken. This is history. I'm glad I was able to feed off of it like that."
The trials continue through next Sunday, with several other Minnesota-connected athletes set to compete.
Maybe it was nerves for her first World Cup race back in nearly six years. Maybe it was a bumpier course than she's used to racing on. Maybe it was some wrong lines or angles.
