Wednesday, March 20, 2002

Fayetteville sprinter is first time Masters All-American

Al Gibbs, 39, of Fayetteville was awarded the USA Track and Field masters All-American plaque for the 2001 track season by Milton Campbell, advisor to the USA Track and Field, Georgia Chapter.

The 2001 season started out with a bang for Gibbs who won the gold medal in the 200-meter Sub-Masters (ages 35-39) at the Atlanta Track Master Meet and won the silver medal in the 100 meter Sub-Masters (30-39) at the annual Track and Field Classic in Jacksonville at the popular Bolles Track and Field Complex.

Injuries did take their toll on Gibbs last season and led to a last-place finish in the 100-meter in the Georgia Games.

"I just thought I could compete and ignore the pre-phase training because I was physically fit," said Gibbs. "That was a big mistake."

Gibbs has fully recovered and is training for the Southeastern RegionalChampionships and the Penn Relays next month.

Gibbs said he is probably one of the few men who can't wait to turn 40 this year because he will officially be a masters athlete and plans to compete at the World Masters Games in Melbourne, Australia this fall.

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