Rock Canyon star falls short of title
Sloan’s stumble comes in 300 hurdles
lakewood » Emily Sloan had an enormous lead down the stretch of Saturday’sclass 5A300meter hurdle finals and the state record in her sights.
But as the Rock Canyon sensation — who had the nation’s best times for a junior in the 100 and 300 hurdles coming into the weekend, and was the defending state champion in both events — went to clear the final hurdle, disaster struck.
“I took my eyes off the hurdle for a split-second,” Sloan said, “and looked at the scoreboard to see my time.”
Sloan clipped the hurdle, andfell.
The noise from the crowd, which had been rooting her on toward the record, was instantaneously vacuumed out of Jeffco Stadium. Sloan scrambled to get up and dived across the finish line, but Cherry Creek junior Delaney Smith beat her there by 0.18 of a second.
“Everyone falls in hurdles— it’s part of the sport,” an emotional yet composed Sloan said after the race, her skin burned in multiple patches fromthe track. “Butwhile I run throughout the summer and into next spring, I’ll carry this into practice and use it as motivation.”
It was a bitter end to Sloan’s 300 hurdles season, which had already been laden with significant
adversity.
She had a scope on her left knee in midFebruary to remove a loose piece of cartilage behind her kneecap, a procedure that didn’t allow her to compete in a meet until April 14. And even then, she was limited to the 100 hurdles because she hadn’t yet built up the endurance necessary to compete in the 300.
“Being a junior, we just told her she needed to take it really slow coming back from surgery,” Rock Canyon coach Dan Davies said. “Shewas already heads and shoulders above everyone else from the indoor season, sowe figured ifwe got her back in midApril, she could defend the 100 hurdle title and we’d be good with that.”
But on a whim, Sloan decided to try the 300 hurdles at the Cherry Creek Invite on May 6. She showed little rust there with a winning time of 42.33, then captured the Continental League championship in the event the following week in 41.83.
Her winning time at last year’s statemeet in the 300 hurdles, 41.24, was within range until the fall, as was the state record of 41.18 set byrockymountain’scarly Lester in 2014.
“I did a lot of interval training and longer runs to keep my endurance up, so it was a good year in the 300s even with limited time on the track,” Sloan said. “Unfortu- nately, it didn’t finish how I wanted today.”
And despite Saturday’s setback, Sloan— along with Denver East sprinter Arria Minor and Grandview distance runner Brie Oakley— remains one of the most talented female track athletes in the state, something that hasn’t been overlooked by college coaches.
“Iwas joking with hermomthat she needs to get her own personal assistant, because my mailbox is constantly stuffed with letters — Ohio State, Ole Miss, Wisconsin, USC— that come in almost daily,” Davies said. “It’s hard not to notice that type of talent and drive, especiallywhen she comes back from an injury so much stronger like she did.”
The hurdler’s intensity rubs off on her teammates, too, as Sloan is often the first one to the track and the last one to leave.
“She just works so hard all the time, and she’s a positive influence on everyone in the program,” saidrockcanyon senior Bailey Timmons, who is headed to run at Nebraska. “Because she’s at that elite level, she pushes everyone to work hard and be the best version of themselves that they can be in their events.”
Sloanwill try to recalibrate Sunday, when she defends her 100 title at 10:05 a.m.
“I just have to visualize my race, and believe in what I know I have to do to get it done,” Sloan said. “Redemption.”