
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, July 31, 1995                   TAG: 9507310113
SECTION: SPORTS                    PAGE: B-1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: STAFF REPORT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

EX-TIMESLAND STAR CAPTURES BRONZE MEDAL

Rebecca Russell, a former standout athlete at Carroll County High School, won the bronze medal Sunday in the 400-meter hurdles at the U.S. Olympic Festival in Colorado Springs, Colo.

Russell, from Fancy Gap, ran the event in a time of 58.30 seconds, finishing behind first-place Tonya Williams from Norfolk, who won the gold medal with a time of 56.68 seconds. Sandra Glover of Palestine, Texas, won the silver in 57.69.

Russell also ran the second leg on the East's 1,600-meter relay team that won the bronze medal with a time of 3:35.57. The South and North teams won the gold and silver, respectively.

Russell was named the 1988 Timesland female track athlete of the year after dominating the Group AA meet. She scored 44 points single-handedly while competing in three running events, the long jump and the triple jump.

At that meet, Russell set two state records. Her time of 55.0 seconds in the 400 meters was 1.4 seconds better than the record that she had set the previous year. Russell, who went to the University of North Carolina on a track scholarship, also set a state record in the triple jump that year.

Another local athlete, Michael Reed of Roanoke, finished eighth in the men's 400-meter hurdles in 53.22. He also competed on the East's 1,600-meter relay team that won the bronze medal in 3:03.74. The South and North teams won the gold and silver, respectively.

by CNB