Aug. 20, 2008

2008 Summer Olympics - Track and Field Schedule and Results

BEIJING - On Thursday evening at the Beijing National Stadium, three former George Mason track stars will be competing for a chance at Olympic gold. Both Richard Phillips ('06) and Maurice Wignall ('00) earned a spot in the 110-meter hurdles final, while Cydonie Mothersill did the same in the 200-meter dash, after competing in the semifinals on Wednesday.

Mothersill, who was a member of the Patriots for one season and is running under the Cayman Islands flag, will race in the finals of her event at 7:30 p.m. local time (7:30 a.m. ET). Meanwhile, both men, competing for their native Jamaica, will be among the eight athletes looking to medal in the event at 9:40 p.m. local time (9:40 a.m. ET).

Phillips took part in the first semifinal and was positioned in lane three. He finished fourth in the heat with a time of 13.43, his fastest mark thus far in the Olympics and a season best. Wignall, competing in the other race, started in lane seven and finished fourth as well, crossing the line in 13.40.

Wignall edged China's Dongpeng Shi by two-hundredths of a second to earn fourth place and a spot in Thursday's final, while Phillips held a 0.12-second advantage over the fifth-place finisher, Konstadinos Douvaldis of Greece. Dayron Robles of Cuba ran the fastest time of the round, winning the first semifinal in 13.12.

Mothersill took part in the second semifinal of the 200-meter dash, starting out of the block in lane three. Her season-best time of 22.61 represented fourth in the race, beating out fifth-place contender Muriel Hurtis-Houairi of France by a tenth of a second. The fastest time in the round came from Jamaica's Veronica Campbell-Brown, who finished in 22.19.

For Wignall, Thursday marks a return to the finals after he finished fourth in the 2004 Olympics in Athens in the 110-meter hurdles, recording a time of 13.21. That finish represents the highest Olympic standing by a Mason track athlete in school history.

Phillips competed in Athens as well, advancing to the semifinals where he crossed the line in 13.39. Mothersill is no stranger to Olympic competition either, as she advanced to the semifinals of the 200-meter dash in 2004 with a time of 22.40.

Both Phillips and Wignall's names can be found among the greatest in Patriot track and field history. Phillips holds the school record in the indoor 60-meter hurdles (7.68, 2005) and the outdoor 110-meter hurdles of 13.48, set in 2004. He is a four-time all-American in the 60-meter hurdles as well as the 110-meter hurdles and as part of Mason's 4x100-meter relay in 2003.

Wignall holds claim to one of Mason's 17 men's track and field national titles, as he won the indoor long jump with a distance of 26-1.5 (7.96m) in 1999. Wignall holds the Jamaican national record of 13.17 in the 110-meter hurdles, set at the Athens Olympics. A seven time All-American at George Mason, Wignall is the school record holder in the long jump during the outdoor season with a mark of 26-9 (8.15m).

Mothersill was named an All-American twice at Mason, earning the accolade in the 200-meter dash and as part of the 4x400-meter relay. She holds the indoor and outdoor school records in the 200-meter dash and is second all-time among Mason athletes in the 100-meter and 400-meter events.