Decathlon, More Duck + Day Seven

Beijing, China: The breakfast buffet
at this hotel continues to be amazing, which is a good thing as the smoky dated
rooms leave a bit to be desired. Sadly, I do not partake of the pork-o-rama
(piles - actual massive mounds - of crispy bacon, sausages, steamed buns and dim
sum). Today, only watermelon, tomatoes, cucumbers and smoked chicken. Their
coffee is also most excellent.

Lighters confiscated at the security checkpoint to enter the stadium
Dave and I were over to the track very early to watch
Oregon's favorite son, The World's Greatest Athlete, World Record Holder,
World Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist, Duck alum and all-around World's
Greatest Guy Ever, Ashton Eaton, compete in the decathlon. The US entered
four athletes in the decathlon. Ashton (automatically eligible due to being
the reigning World Champion) and the three top finishers at the US
Championships - Trey Hardee, Jeremy Taiwo and Zach Ziemek. It's a brutal
sport. Ten events over two days. The athletes work so hard and the stands
are rarely filled with appreciative fans.
Ashton started very well, winning the 100m and claiming an early lead. Eaton
ran 10.23, the fastest ever in a World Championship meet.

Decathlon High Jump
Eaton did not fare quite as well in the next three events
(the high jump, long jump - one of his strongest events - and shot put), but
retained his lead by a narrow margin. American Trey Hardee had to withdraw
during the shot put due to an injury sustained during a long jump attempt.

Decathlon Shot Put
During the mid-day break in the program, we took our friends and
TrackTownUSA committee members back to Da Dong Peking Duck in the Tuanjiehu
section of Beijing. They were tired of hearing us swoon about the Peking Duck we
had yesterday, so wanted to try it themselves.

Puffed bread or thin pancakes, stuffed with crispy duck! Oh
goodness, everyone just loved their lunch and were so happy they decided to
make the trek downtown. Since we had a good-size group, we could order a few
different things (and two ducks!).

Calvin had really enjoyed the Kung Pao Chicken we had near
the Great Wall the other day, so we ordered it at Da Dong and it was super
good and quite spicy. We also had a big platter of sauteed spinach.

Calvin is quite an adventurous diner and had no qualms about
chomping on the duck head.

And don't you just love the chopstick rests at Da Dong? As
we left the restaurant, we noticed a wall of photos of famous faces that
have dined at Da Dong - His Serene Highness Prince Albert of Monaco and Joel
Robuchon.
Good thing we had a tasty lunch outside the stadium today... there were questionable options inside:

This evening, the WGA set another record. He ran 400m in 45
seconds flat, the fastest 400m in a decathlon ever in the history of the
whole entire wide world. The stadium went wild. Ashton went wild. It was
goose bump inducing and earned Mr. Eaton an amazing 1060 points. His lead
soared with this incredible lap around the track. After the first day of
competition, Ashton Eaton has 4703 points, 173 points ahead of Canadian
Damian Warner and 297 points ahead of Germany's Rico Freimuth, in third
place. Tomorrow will be most exciting.
It was a great day for the US (and The Peking Ducks) as Matthew Centrowitz,
Leo Manzano and Robby Andrews advanced to the 1500m final Sunday night.
There were a lot of great races tonight, see complete results
here. I need to go to bed.
Until my next update, I remain, your sleepy correspondent.
Peking Duck scoring: No Ducks in a final
tonight, so we still stand at 14. I expect a few changes over the final two
days. Watch out, Cuba - we're comin' for ya.
Official Placing Table
Something I found interesting today: The
amount of volunteers in place around the stadium is simply mind-blowing.
Tens of thousands. Every single of them in their early 20's. My favorite
part is when the crack security volunteers fall asleep in the stands.
Pedometer: 12,025 steps; 5.32 miles.
You may also like:
Full daily results from the Championships
Follow me on instagram (I'm posting daily)
Watch the meet on Universal Sports
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