Trippas of Men’s Track & Field Earns Bronze at Australian Championships

PRINCETON, N.J. – A trio of student-athletes from the Princeton University men's track & field team have recently posted impressive performances, highlighted by Ed Trippas' bronze medal in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Australian National Championships.

Trippas finished the race in 8:31.09, earning a bronze medal and a new PR. His previous PR was 8:33.90, earned at the NCAA Regional in 2019 and he is still in contention for a spot on the Australian National Team for the Tokyo Olympics. Trippas' success has not come as a shock to Head Cross Country Coach & Distance Coach in Track Jason Vigilante.

"He's a great kid," said Vigilante. "He came on an unofficial visit as a junior on a cold day. It was the only place he wanted to be. He's the team captain and he does everything for the team."

Trippas has faced many challenges over the past year, making his performance even more impressive.

"I have been able to perform well recently because although the last year has been a real struggle due to persistent injuries with only three months of consistent training as well as the obvious challenges from Covid, that made me more determined and grateful for the recent competitions that I had," said Trippas. "When you go months without running pain-free and have to take weeks off due to quarantine and other reasons, you start to doubt your ability as a runner. However, Coach Vig and my teammates never lost belief that I would return to my best despite the adversity of the past year. The chance to compete is such a precious opportunity to do what we love that is sometimes taken for granted, but the last year reminded me to enjoy every race and run as hard as possible because you don't know when your next one might be."

Trippas was joined by Duncan Miller at the Australian Championships. Miller competed in the 1,500 and despite getting tripped 150 meters into the race, still finished in an impressive time of 3:50.01.

Along with Trippas and Miller, Michael Phillippy also impressed at the Brian Clay Invitational on the campus of Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California. He clocked in at 47.55 in the 400, a PR and a season-opener for this year. Phillippy's previous PR in the 400 was 48.01, earned at Outdoor Heps in 2019.

"There was some really great, Olympic-level competition there," said Phillippy. "My heat even had three members of the Brazilian Olympic team in it, those guys definitely helped push me. I'm hoping to continue to improve this over the coming weeks/months with smarter and more intense training. I think the fast competition and new race strategy (getting out faster) created a great way to get back into the swing of things race-wise."

No matter where they are in the world and what challenges they face, the Princeton men's track & field team's positive attitude and strong work ethic has ensured that they continue to perform at a high level.

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