From Within the Soul

Lower Hutt runner Nick Willis surged forward in the final moments of the men’s 1500m for third place, in a race Willis’ University of Michigan coach Ron Warhurst said the 25-year-old “always had the talent to do.” “Wow. What a night for New Zealand. What a night for Michigan,” said Warhurst. Willis said all the training was worth it. “There’s 91,000 people screaming for you. You just get it. It comes back from al the training you’ve done, the speed work on the track, the 22-mile runs. That’s where you get it from.” Willis said his mind and soul were split between two continents as he took a long victory lap around the Bird’s Nest. John Walker, who won gold in the 1500m at Montreal in 1976, told NZPA it was an “outstanding performance” in a competition where two of the top ranked runners in the world had failed to even make the semis. In cycling news at the Beijing Olympics, New Zealand’s men’s pursuit team also won bronze.