The cheering crowd at Hayward Field was on its feet Friday evening as Portland-native Galen Rupp took first place in the men's 10,000-meter.
He was a favorite to win and he had extra encouragement from his young children in the grandstands. After his long victory lap celebration, Rupp addressed his fans.
Rupp: "It was tough. You know this is a great field today, probably one of the toughest ones I've had to win. Shadrack [Kipchirchir] really just pushed hard to the end, and the heat made it brutal, but I knew I just had to keep my head down, keep pushing and fortunately I was able to come out with a win."
Rupp is now qualified for the U.S. Olympic team in the 10-K and has some tough choices ahead.
In February, Rupp qualified in the marathon for this summer's Olympics in Rio. He's also hoping to pick up another win when he competes in the men's 5,000-meter Monday.
If he does qualify, Rupp says he can't imagine competing in all three events at the Olympics, so he'll have to pick two.
