Hill and Futch represent Delco at the worlds
Darrell Hill is no stranger to the international track & field scene. He’s been competing on the circuit since he turned pro last year, which included a trip to Rio de Janeiro for the 2016 Olympics.
His latest stop is London for the IAAF World championships, which began Friday.
Hill, though, isn’t the only Penn Wood product in England to compete against the best athletes in the world. Former teammate and 2012 Daily Times boys track coAthlete of the Year Eric Futch is there, too.
Hill kicks his competition off at 8 a.m. EDT Saturday in the qualifying round of the men’s shot put. Futch gets his first taste of world championship competition in the qualifying heats Sunday around noon.
Hill is ranked sixth in the world behind fellow Americans Ryan Crouser (first) and Joe Kovacs (second), Tomas Walsh of New Zealand, Tomas Stanek of the Czech Republic and O’Dayne Richards from Jamaica. Hill turned in the best performance of his career with a heave of 21.91 meters in Los Angeles in April. Hill placed fourth at the championships in June
Futch is the top-ranked American and No. 4 in the world in the 400-meter hurdles. He won the U.S. championships in June with a personal best time of 48.18 seconds. He was a two-time NCAA champ in the 400 hurdles at Florida.
Villanova grad Patrick Tiernan was the first athlete with local ties to compete in the world championships. Competing for his native Australia, Tiernan finished 22nd in the men’s 10,000-meter run. Tiernan, who was recently added to Villanova’s coaching staff as a volunteer assistant, is also entered in the 5,000-meter run.
Tiernan is one of three Villanova grads competing for Australia. Sam McEntee also is in the 5,000, while Jordy Williamz is in the 1,500.
The Wildcats are well represented in London. Bobby Curtis will compete for the United States in the marathon. On the women’s side, Siofra Cleirigh Buttner will compete in the 800 for Ireland, while Sheila Reid of Canada is in the 1,500. U.S.