Site search
sponsored by
News
ENLARGE
PAPPAS
MARBURG, Germany — Five-time U.S. champion and 2003 world champion decathlete Tom Pappas, an Azalea native and Glendale High graduate, posted the second best score in the world this year in leading Team USA to victory over Germany at the 16th annual Thorpe Cup combined events challenge over the weekend.
Pappas, who was not at full strength earlier in the year and did not compete at the USA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, posted his best score in five years with 8,569 points in leading the Team USA men's squad to victory. It marked the best performance by the 32-year-old Pappas since 2004, when he totaled 8,732 points at Gotzis, and it's the highest total by an American this year.
Pappas is an assistant track and field coach at Kansas State University. He set his PR of 8,784 in 2003 at the USA Outdoor meet.
“Tom's performance was outstanding,” said KSU head coach Cliff Rovelto, Pappas' personal coach. “ He performed at a very high level in every event save for the 1,500 meters, where he battled some cramping.”
Former University of Wisconsin standout Joe Detmer was the runner-up to Pappas in the individual competition with 7,892 points, with German world junior champion Jan Felix Knobel finishing third with 7,758.
Team USA, which has won the Thorpe Cup 13 times in 16 outings, won this year's event convincingly with 39,462 points to Germany's 35,297.
Pappas, who was not at full strength earlier in the year and did not compete at the USA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, posted his best score in five years with 8,569 points in leading the Team USA men's squad to victory. It marked the best performance by the 32-year-old Pappas since 2004, when he totaled 8,732 points at Gotzis, and it's the highest total by an American this year.
Pappas is an assistant track and field coach at Kansas State University. He set his PR of 8,784 in 2003 at the USA Outdoor meet.
“Tom's performance was outstanding,” said KSU head coach Cliff Rovelto, Pappas' personal coach. “ He performed at a very high level in every event save for the 1,500 meters, where he battled some cramping.”
Former University of Wisconsin standout Joe Detmer was the runner-up to Pappas in the individual competition with 7,892 points, with German world junior champion Jan Felix Knobel finishing third with 7,758.
Team USA, which has won the Thorpe Cup 13 times in 16 outings, won this year's event convincingly with 39,462 points to Germany's 35,297.
