Lauren Forgues had a plan. And it went much better than she could have hoped.

Forgues entered last weekend’s USA Track & Field championships in Eugene, Ore., simply hoping to place no worse than third in the 20,000-meter racewalk. That’s where she ended up — but the real prize was her time.

Forgues, of Boothbay, finished in 1 hour, 37 minutes, 40.86 seconds — not only a personal best but below the Olympic “B” qualifying standard of 1:38:00, which was a long-term goal heading into next summer’s Olympic trials.

“I’m on Cloud Nine,” said the 23-year-old Forgues, who is spending the summer in Maine. “I honestly did not expect that. Well, I kind of did. But when I finished I was still really surprised.”

Surprised because her training regimen doesn’t exactly measure up to what she’d like to be doing. Forgues is trained by Tim Seaman, one of the nation’s top male racewalkers who operates out of California. But she couldn’t afford to stay on the West Coast this summer, so she returned home to work at the Life Is Good store in Boothbay Harbor.

She plans on returning to Seaman’s training in the fall, but for now the two talk daily about what she’s doing. He sets up a training regimen, she follows it. What she accomplished, said Seaman, “says a lot about what she is able to do on her own and the amount of work we completed here. Then she was able to carry it over to her training there.”

Seaman fully expected Forgues to make the “B” standard at some point before next summer. That it happened last weekend was stunning.

“Lauren is a fighter,” he said. “She understood the ramifications of the situation. It was a great course, perfect weather. And when all is said and done, a B (standard) is a B (standard). They can’t take it away the next time you race.”

Making the B standard takes pressure off Forgues, who knows she can earn a berth in the London Olympics if she wins the Olympic trials race.

Of course, since the two women who finished ahead of her — winner Maria Michta and runner-up Teresa Vaill — also got the standard, Forgues knows nothing is guaranteed. That’s why her new goal is to achieve the “A” standard of 1:33:30. If she achieves that, she automatically qualifies for London.

“Maria is a teammate of mine, she also trains with Tim, and Theresa a good friend,” she said. “The three of us were saying after the race that it would be great if we all got the ‘A’ standard. Then we wouldn’t have to worry about who won (the trials). That’s the only way more than one of us could make the team.”

Forgues believes she can meet the “A” standard, especially if she returns as planned to California. She and Seaman are already plotting a race schedule that will carry her into the trials.

Forgues wasn’t the only Maine racewalker to have a strong showing in the national meet.

Her brother, Matthew, finished third in the men’s 10,000-meter junior race in a time of 45:56.56.

And three members of the Maine Racewalkers club finished in the top 12 of the women’s 10,000 junior race walk, each posting a personal-best time. Abby Dunn was fourth (55:00.48), Courtney Williams sixth (56:29.52) and Nicole Court-Menendez 12th (1:00:10.37).

Staff Writer Mike Lowe can be contacted at 791-6422 or at:

mlowe@pressherald.com

Twitter: MikeLowePPH

 

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