Fairly tale conclusion to Ella Donaghu’s collegiate career gets put on hold: Oregon track & field rundown

Ella Donaghu

Ella Donaghu is pictured en route to the 2016 Oregon Class 6A state high school title in the 1,500 meters. (Erik C. Anderson/File)LC- Erik C. Anderson/The Oregoni

Ella Donaghu is one of the best prep distance runners Oregon ever has produced.

She won 10 Class Class 6A state titles for Portland’s Grant High School and set the state high school record in the 1,500 meters with a time of 4 minutes, 14.11 seconds at the 2016 Portland Track Festival.

She has been running collegiately for Stanford. Donaghu was set up for big senior year in track after running the fastest 3,000 by a Stanford runner in 37 years at an indoor meet in Seattle in January.

Now her senior year is on hold for a year after the coronavirus pandemic abruptly canceled the NCAA Indoor Championships and Stanford’s entire outdoor season.

Here is an excellent profile of Donaghu from the Stanford website.

-- The Eugene track and field community in particular and the sport in general lost a mainstay yesterday when Bill McChesney died at 91.

I talked to a number of people yesterday about McChesney’s life and legacy for this story. Many thinks to his sons, Steve and Ken for their willingness to talk to me, and condolences to the McChesney family for the loss of a remarkable man.

Here are two other stories:

Running icon BIll McChesney dies after a rapid decline. (R-G)

McChesney is remembered as competitive and encouraging by family members. (DyeStat)

-- It sounds as if the postponed 2021 World Outdoor Championships will take place in Eugene in 2022, perhaps in early July.

Writing in The Sports Examiner, Rich Perelman speculated those dates could run headfirst into pollen allergies that tend to flare in the south end of the Willamette Valley at that time of the year.

Prefontaine Classic meet director Tom Jordan disputes that notion, noting pollen allergies haven’t been issue at the Prefontaine Classic for two decades thanks to improved medications. The Pre Classic annually takes place in the late spring in Eugene.

Distance runner Galen Rupp, who has multiple allergy problems and sometimes began races at Hayward Field wearing a mask, has been successful there anyway in the late spring.

To that I’ll add, I have not noticed athletes having major allergy issues when the NCAA Championships have taken place at Hayward Field in June.

Top level track and field athletes compete at the Pre Classic in Eugene, Ore.

His allergies haven't slowed Galen Rupp (left) noticeably at the Prefontaine Classic. (Thomas Boyd/File)LC- The Oregonian

OK, more links:

Former University of Oregon runner Jim Bailey, the first man to break four minutes in the mile on U.S. soil, dies at 92. (DyeStat)

A 1956 Olympian, Bailey is most remembered for one, extraordinary race. (NSW Athletics)

The coronavirus pandemic has brought track & field and road running to a standstill. A look at what has happened, and what is next? (Track & Field News)

A contractor on the Hayward Field project walked off the job for safety reasons, and lost the contract. (Willamette Week)

Bowerman Track Club Olympian Courtney Frerichs talks about training during the coronavirus pandemic. (RunBlogRun)

In this vlog, decathlete Mitch Modin does a killer 400-meter workout on grass. (I had a reader ask if Modin and his group aren’t training a little too close together and risking coronavirus transmission. That perception could be based on the camera angle.)

And, in this vlog, Modin takes viewer questions, including one in which he talks about about the business side of college athletic scholarships.

Video of hurdler Lolo Jones putting on two shirts and then taking a sip of wine while doing a handstand goes viral. (Daily News)

Molly Huddle sets her sights on a fall marathon. (Elmira Star Gazette)

Getting to know marathoner Laura Thweatt. (Colorado/USTAF)

U.S. men’s pole vaulting is surging. (Track & Field News)

Renaud Lavillenie clears 18-5 (5.61) in his backyard. (European Athletics)

On this date, Arizona State’s Maggie Ewen made history -- twice. (USTFCCCA)

Not bush fires, sharks or the coronavirus can stop determined Australian high jumper Nicola McDermott. (RunBlogRun)

Asbel Kiprop, serving a four-year doping ban, says he is determined to clear his name. (Daily Nation)

The British Championships are reset for August. (Athletics Weekly)

As the pandemic deepens, hope for running events in May fades. (DyeStat)

Public display of the Olympic flame in Tokyo is suspended after officials declare a state of emergency because of the coronavirus pandemic. (NBC)

Remembering the ‘Accidental Olympics,’ when the modern Games resumed 124 years ago. (Sports Illustrated)

When Harvard student James Connolly won the triple jump in 1896, he became the first Olympic champion since 369. (NBC)

Ten examples of Olympic perseverance. (World Athletics)

Jesse Squire examines the rivalry between Jim Ryun and Marty Liquori. (Citius Mag)

Looking back at the legendary Steve Scott. (RunBlogRun)

World Athletics extends the Olympic qualification period, temporarily furloughs some employees. (World Athletics)

World Athletics reorganizes, makes a commitment to a greener future. (World Athletics)

Jason Halpin and Kevin Sully, the House of Run guys, discuss Eliud Kipchoge as a fashion icon and other developments in the world of running and track during their most recent podcast.

Keith and Kevin Hanson talk with Chris Chavez about their impact on U.S. distance running on this Citius Mag podcast.

The front page for LetsRun.com.

The links package from Track & Field News.

The news links from RunnerSpace.com.

-- Ken Goe

kgoe@oregonian.com | @KenGoe

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