It was an occasion to celebrate and Marian Burnette wasted little time in showing her appreciation at winning the national Sportswoman of the Year award.
One day after the panel of National Sports Commission members and judges voted in her favour, Burnette upstaged a number of seasoned world class runners to place third in her pet 800 metres event at the prestigious Addidas Boston Indoor Games in Boston last Saturday .
In her first race of the indoor season, Burnett return-ed 2 minutes 04.94 seconds which almost matched her 2003 season-opening run of 2:04.57 when she broke her own Guyana national record. In the process she defeated last year's winner and 2-time NCAA champion Alice Schmidt who placed fourth, while Malta's Tanya Blake was fifth and Pan American Games bronze medallist Christiane Dos Santos of Brazil sixth.
Former U.S. champion Hazel Clarke was eighth and another big name here Chantee Earl was seventh.
The Sunny D Intense Sport-sponsored elite race was won by hometown favorite and current world indoor 800m #4, Jen Toomey of the U.S. with American record holder Nicole Teter in 2nd place.
It was an irksome deja vu for the petite 5'1" Burnette who has endured incidences of severe bumping in races on the international circuit. Here, she was stunned as Earl and Clark tangled in front of her with 150m to go. "Yeah, it disturbed my rhythm ... probably taking a second or two from my time," Burnett recalled, adding that she stopped, then hopped over the tumbling runners. "I don't know, but like nobody sees me when the race is 'bunched-up'. Clark and
Burnett were part of a three-person bumping at last year's Pan American Games where the Guyanese took the silver medal.
Burnette's coach Mark Elliott said the jostling took some precious seconds off her time since she had to adjust, though she wasn't actually "walloped this time."
Asked about winning the Sportswoman award, Burnett, who is in her final year at Louisiana State University (LSU) said she got the news in a call from Amateur Athletics Association (AAA) executive Neville Denny and others while at her hotel in Boston prior to the
race. "I was so excited, I screamed all the way to the lobby (hotel) for breakfast. It encourages me to ensure to put Guyana on the commentators lips this year ... and, I have started that, ugh!" The meet was televised live by ESPN.
Elliott was equally jubilant about the award. "It is just reward for her awesome determination and jingoism," he noted. "She's a true patriot, a role model," he said, especially referring to Burnett's intrepid insistence for her country's flag to be flown
at the medal award ceremony at last year's Pan American Games. The eventual 800m silver medallist had called for officials to correct their oversight of having a Guyana flag available at the presentation, resulting in an hour-long delay. The Linden-born athlete who is now a two-time Sportswoman of the Year winner was only two days earlier told by Guyana Olympic Association (GOA)
officials of their inability to obtain International Olympic Committee (IOC) funding for her to prepare for the this year's Athens Olympics.
Burnette's agent, Ricky Simms who traveled from his
company - KIM International Sports - in England to be
in Boston, was satisfied after viewing Burnette's
strategy and resolve in the race. "It's your first
meet and you did really well, looking like a half-mile
hurdler," he told Burnett. She competes next on
Valentine's Day in Fayetteville, Arkansas at the Tyson
Foods Invitational, the 2nd of four USATF Golden Spike
IndoorTour meets.
The Addidas meet with just 12 select events, also provided super performances for the thousands of raucous, race-hungry fans. Arguably the world's greatest modern day athlete, Ethiopian Haile
Gebrselassie won the blue ribbon 3000m while his compatriots Berhanu Alemu and Meseret Defar took the Men's 1000m and Women's 5000m, respectively. Americans Jon Drummond won the Men's 60m, Gail Devers, the 60m Hurdles and Stacy Dragila - Women's Pole Vault.
Bahamian champion, Tonique Williams beat junior 200m world record holder Alyson Felix of the U.S. in the 400m. Kenyan Laban Rotich beat countryman Boaz Cheboiywo to win the Men's Mile, while Brazilian ace Osmar dos Santos won a hard fought Men's 600m.