DES MOINES, Iowa – John Mickowski closed his prestigious Army career on Thursday at the NCAA National Track and Field Championships, hosted by Drake University.
Mickowski placed 12th in his heat of the 1,500-meter semi-finals with a time of 4:03.68, missing the qualifying cut for the finals.
With 500 meters to go and everyone running in a tight pack, two athletes fell to the track in front of Mickowski, forcing him to leap over the runners while being pushed out to lane four.
“It was just another fluke thing,” said head coach Jerry Quiller. “Everyone was right there getting lined up for the final lap and those two guys went down right in front of John. Having to leap over those guys just took all the momentum out of him and he ended up shutting it down the last lap.”
“I’m just happy that I got the opportunity to compete at this level and represent my team and the Academy,” said Mickowski. “I’m really thankful for coach Quiller and I’m glad I could get him to one final National Championship.”
Thursday’s race marked the end of an outstanding career for Quiller as well, as he will retire from Army this summer after 13 years at the helm of the program.
Mickowski closes his career at Army having competed in the National Championships in both cross country and outdoor track and field this season. He leaves the Academy with the third-fastest 1,500-meter time in school history (3:43.98) and also ranks among the top-ten in the 800m and mile.
Leo Manzano, the defending national champion from Texas, went on to win the heat in 3:41.70.
