Track and Field Adds Five Titles on Final Day of Championship

The 2021 SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships concluded on Saturday after three days of competition. Alabama men's team finished in second place behind Arkansas and is the best finish since 1985. The women's team came in third, which is the highest since they won the title in 1994. Along with the team placements, the Crimson Tide added five individual titles on the final day of the championship.

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Tamara Clark took home two individual titles in the 100m and 200m. Clark posted times of 10.87 in the 100 and 21.89 in the 200 to run away with the victories. Clark topped the fastest all-conditions mark in collegiate outdoor history in the 200m by a tenth of a second.

Eliud Kipsang and Robert Dunning ran away with the title in both of their divisions. Kipsang timed a 3:37:99 in the 1,500 meters to win by nearly a second and has a top three-mark in school history. Dunning scored a personal best of 13.15 in the 110-meter hurdles to take the title.

After winning the NCAA Cross Country Championship two months ago, Mercy Chelangat raced through the 5,000-meter division to win the championship with a time of 15:45:32, which is the third-fastest in school history. Chelangat also won the 10,000-meter title on Thursday.

Head coach Dan Waters said he could not have been more proud of both teams for their toughness and that it was an excellent test before the national championship.

"To go out there this weekend and come away with the best outdoor finish for the men in more than 35 years and the best by the women in more than 25 years is a real accomplishment. I'm really proud of the way this team went out there and fought from start to finish," said Waters. "Even when things didn't quite go our way, we focused on what was next and kept rolling. This conference is so tough, which is what makes these kinds of weekends a great test as we get ready for the NCAA Championships...".

Next week, Alabama will travel to Jacksonville, Florida, to participate in the NCAA East Preliminary on May 26-29. After preliminaries, the Tide will compete in the NCAA Outdoor National Championship on June 9-12 in Eugene, Oregon.