Three Northeast Ohio athletes competing in track and field World Championships in South Korea

Jessica Beard of Euclid, Crestwood grad Bridget Franek and Firestone alum LaShaute'a Moore are in South Korea for the IAAF World Championships.

View full sizeAP fileJessica Beard, left, of Euclid, will compete in the track and field World Championships.

Winning another NCAA title always was foremost in Jessica Beard's mind this spring, but all year long, the World Championships never were far from her mind, or her training.

NCAA track athletes often struggle at the World Championships because they train to peak twice, if not three times, during the season -- at the NCAA finals, USA Nationals and, if they make it that far, the World Championships.

Beard, a 22-year-old from Euclid, said she has had a good plan in place all year. Beard is entered in the 400 meters and 4x400 relay at the IAAF World Championships, which began Friday and conclude Sept. 4 in Daegu, South Korea.

Beard is one of three local women competing. Hiram native and Crestwood High grad Bridget Franek is in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and Akron native and Firestone alum LaShaute'a Moore is part of the U.S. 4x100-relay pool.

Franek's first heat was late Friday, and she finished seventh in 9:43.09, failing to advance. and Beard is scheduled to run her 400 prelim at 7:14 a.m. this morning. The 4x400 and 4x100 are next weekend. Got to iaaf.org for results.

Beard said her coaches at Texas A&M kept her long-term goals in mind during her final college season, which she capped by winning the 400 and running on the winning 4x100 and 4x400, while leading the Aggies to the NCAA championship. She is a finalist for The Bowerman, which is track's Heisman Trophy.

"My coaches knew this was a World Championship year and, compared to other years, I ran a lot less 400s and a lot less 4x400s," said Beard, who has turned professional and signed with adidas.

In 2009, Beard's sophomore year, she ran a full college schedule, then was in the 4x400-relay pool at worlds. She ran a prelim in Berlin, but was not in the final. She won a gold medal anyway.

"My sophomore year, that was a long college season," she said. "Now, I'm two years older and I feel like I'm in a good position."

Beard hasn't bettered her personal record (50.59) since 2009, but she ran a 49.1 split in the 4x400 at the NCAA finals. "Even though I haven't run 49 or 50 in the open [400], I can still split it," she said.

Franek, an NCAA champ at Penn State last year, is completing her first year as a professional. Her PR is 9:32 and she has been in the high 9:30s this summer. The top women are under 9:20.

"My focus this year was to make that transition [to pro track] as smooth and seamless as possible to set me up for next year [the 2012 Olympics]," Franek said in an email from London, where she trained this month. "Obviously, you always want to PR, but right now, all things considered, consistently running these times is fine. In 2012, I feel like I will have a much better idea of what I am capable of as a professional."

Moore, 28, recently ran a faster time in the 200 than she did in the 2004 Olympic trials. She was fourth at U.S. Nationals in the 100 and sixth in the 200. She last ran at worlds in 2007 and placed seventh in the 200.

Other Ohioans competing in Daegu are high jumper Erik Kynard of Toledo, steeplechaser Daniel Huling of Columbus and 2008 Olympic pentathlon silver medalist Hyleas Fountain of Kettering.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: twarsinskey@plaind.com, 216-999-4661

On Twitter: @TimsTakePD

Source: http://www.cleveland.com/sports/college/index.ssf/2011/08/three_northeast_ohio_athletes.html

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