Wake Forest University
NCAA Championships
Bingham Finishes Second In 400-Meter Finals at NCAA Championships
6/13/2009 12:00:00 AM | Men's Track and Field
June 13, 2009
Championship Site | Live Scoring
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - Senior Michael Bingham closed out his career with a strong second place finish in the finals of the men's 400-meter dash Saturday afternoon at the 2009 NCAA Track & Field Championships at McDonnell Field on the campus of the University of Arkansas.
Bingham crossed the line in a time of 45.09 which was the second-best time of his career. It was also his second top-5 finish in the NCAA outdoor 400-meters as he took fifth in the finals as a junior in 2007.
The race started clean and Bingham was able to get into a good position amongst the group down the back stretch. Freshman Kevin Borlee from Florida State took the lead right off the gun and had the lead heading into the final turn. But he was on the outside in lane eight and may have gone out too quick as Bingham and Kevin's twin brother Jonathan swung by him to the head of the pack with 100-meters to go.
Coming down the final straight, Jonathan Borlee took a slight lead over Bingham and despite the senior's best effort, he wasn't able to catch Borlee in the end and wound up finishing second.
Jonathan Borlee, a 2008 Olympian, ran the best race of his career, winning with a personal-best time of 44.78 while Florida's Calvin Smith took third at 45.29.
"Michael gave it everything he had today and there wasn't much more he could do," said Wake Forest Director of Track & Field Annie Bennett. "It was his second-best time ever and he got beat by a guy that ran his best time ever. We're just so proud of the way Michael competed this week. He represented Wake Forest well not only today but throughout his career. This was a good way for him to end his collegiate career but he is ready to achieve so much more."
This was the fourth All-American honors of Bingham's career as he earned the distinction during both the indoor and outdoor seasons in 2007. After redshirting last year as he trained for and eventually competed in the Beijing Olympics as a member of Great Britain's 4x400-meter relay team, he returned to win the ACC 400-meter dash title during both the indoor and outdoor seasons as well as a national title in the 400-meters at the NCAA Indoor Championships.
Bingham also put a wrap on the 2008-09 athletic campaign for Wake Forest as he was the last Demon Deacon athlete to finish up his or her season. Friday night in Fayetteville, sophomore Anna Nosenko capped off her tremendous season with a 14th place finish in the women's 5,000-meter run.
Juniors Thomas Sensing and Caroline Vaughn also competed this week in their first NCAA Championships. Sensing competed in the prelims of the men's javelin but did not advance onto the finals while Vaughn made it through the first round of prelims in the 400-meter hurdles but did not advance through the semis. She also competed in the first round of the 100-meter hurdles on Thursday but her time of 14.00 was not enough to move on.
"This meet features some of the best athletes in the world and competing here gives you confidence and will only make you better," Bennett continued. "We leave here with three underclassmen that I know have learned from this experience and it will only make them hungrier and compete that much harder in the years to come."
Caroline Vaughn
100-Meter Hurdles
1st round - 14.00 (27th)
400-Meter Hurdles
1st round - 58.33 (18th)
Semifinals - 59.89 (17th)
Michael Bingham
400-Meter Dash
1st round - 46.30 (10th)
Semifinals - 45.28 (2nd)
Finals - 45.09 (2nd)
Anna Nosenko
5,000-Meter Run
1st round - 16:33.44 (15th)
Finals - 16:59.96 (14th)
Thomas Sensing
Javelin
1st round - 184-10 (56.34m) (26th)
Players Mentioned
