Colorado University Athletics
Buffs Freshman Mann Eyes Trip To NCAA Championships
May 23, 2016 | Track and Field, Neill Woelk
BOULDER — When Elissa Mann signed on to run at the University of Colorado, she had hopes of someday running 800 meters in 2 minutes, 5 seconds.
“I wanted to be running that kind of time when I was a senior,” Mann said last week. “That was kind of my expectation if I kept working and training hard.”
But when Mann arrived at CU from nearby Monarch High School, she apparently found a fast-forward button. Mann, a true freshman, recently clocked a 2:05.28 in the 800 to finish fifth in the Pac-12 championships and earn a trip to the NCAA West Preliminary meet this week in Lawrence, Kan.
“I had no expectations of a time like that coming into this year,” Mann said recently. “My goal this year was to make it to regionals (NCAA prelims). But when you get here, you learn that the atmosphere here is that it's normal to go to regionals. That's the expectation, and I attribute that atmosphere to a lot of my success this season. You see all these people who are being successful, and you learn what it takes to get there.”
It's been a bit of a whirlwind for the middle distance runner who one year ago was preparing for the Colorado 5A state championships. She capped her prep career with a then-personal best 2:10.39 to finish second in the state meet — and at the time, she couldn't imagine running in a bigger event.
But this week, she will be one of 26 Buffs headed to Lawrence, Kan., for the NCAA West Preliminaries — and she's no longer satisfied with simply qualifying. The top 12 finishers in each event this week will earn trips to the June 8-11 NCAA Championships in Eugene, Ore., and Mann would like to put her name on that list.
Mann has the 11th-best time in the NCAA West prelim. She has also already shaved more than five seconds off of her previous personal best in just a year's time, progress that is far from normal in a race as short as the 800.
“Given her high school credentials, if she was a junior running 2:05 right now we'd be extremely excited,” said CU assistant coach Billy Nelson. “For her to make that jump as a true freshman, just a year later — that's unbelievable. But she's a gamer. You can see it in her face. She's tough.”
That kind of attitude is almost a requirement for an 800 runner. Often deemed one of the most difficult events on the track, the 800 requires competitors to run at almost an all-out sprint for two laps on the track.
“Oh, it hurts,” Mann said with a laugh. “There's not really a 'kick' like in longer races — you're kicking the whole time. I don't love the feeling that I get when I'm dying at the end of the race; I don't think anyone really likes it.
“But I'm so used to it now that it doesn't seem to bother me. There's really no time to think about how much it hurts until it's all over. I've really started to push my limits a lot more because I figure I can do anything for two laps.”
CU's coaches no doubt love that attitude about Mann. They know the 800 is not a race many runners choose, and they know that Mann has a quality about her that serves her well in that distance.
“There's always a debate about what the toughest event is on the track, but to me, the 800 is definitely one of the toughest,” Nelson said. “For someone to choose that event is unique. It's a lot of pain. It's a strength race and a speed race.
“What's good about Elissa is that she's now learning how to race it. She's learning how to channel her race strategy and you can see the improvement. It's been great to watch.”
Mann will run in the first round of qualifying on Thursday. The top three finishers in each of the first six heats, plus the six next-best times, will advance to Friday's quarterfinal heats. From there, the top three in each of the three quarterfinal heats plus the three next-best times, will earn trips to Eugene.
“If I race my heart out, I think I can do it,” Mann said. “It's really exciting. The time is going to come, but I think it would be cool to break 2:05.”
Contact: Neill.Woelk@Colorado.edu
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