08/13/12 Nearly 1,000 people filled the Plymouth High School Auditorium to standing room only Friday afternoon as Plymouth’s Olympian, Morgan Uceny ran in the women’s 1500 meter finals.
The race was not broadcast live so the school opened its doors to allow the community to watch the live streaming of the race on NBCOLYMPICS.com.
There was cheering, chanting and clapping and screaming as Morgan was introduced on the big screen. As the race began family, friends and fans were yelling with excitement as Morgan was right in the middle of the pack on the outside. She appeared to be feeling confident and ready to make a move toward the front when the unthinkable happened. She was tripped and fell.
Those crammed into the auditorium immediately gasped with shock as they saw Uceny fall at the 1,100 meter mark. The live stream didn’t go back to Uceny who pounded the track with her hands and was still down on the track when the rest of the field crossed the finish-line.
Jim Condon, Principal at PHS told the crowd that Morgan had attained her goal by making it to the Olympics and being one of the 12 Olympic finalists in the 1500. He spoke of her accomplishment and the role model and leader that she has been to the community. He then encouraged support for her and indicated that there will be a chance for the community to honor her in the near future by saying there will let the public know where and when the event will happen.
Morgan’s coach, Terrence Mahon said she had bumps and bruises but nothing broken, although as she left the track there was blood dripping from leg.
The two runners from Turkey finished first and second while the runner from Bahrain took the bronze. Winning time was 4:10.23.
AP Photo/Morry Gash
