Anderson is one of track's hot new stars

Lindsey Anderson and her coach Paul Pilkington were out for a fast-paced training run recently in Park City, clipping off one mile after another at a 5:50 pace on the side of the road, when a passing motorist slowed her car and leaned out the window.

"There's a speed limit here! You need to slow down!!" she yelled.

Anderson just smiled. A lot of her opponents feel the same way these days. After years of anonymity, Anderson ended her college track and field career at Weber State with a flourish — a collegiate record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Stanford Invitational, first place at the NCAA West Regional, second place in the NCAA championships, third place in the U.S. championships. The latter finish secured an automatic berth on the U.S. team that will compete in the World Track and Field Championships late next month in Osaka, Japan.

"I never dreamed this would happen," says Anderson.

No kidding. Only a year ago, mired in a slump, she was so frustrated that she nearly quit the sport. Now she is one of the sport's hot new names with all of its trappings — an agent, a shoe contract, TV and magazine interviews. At the USA championships in Indianapolis, she was surprised when kids asked for her autograph and some of the top athletes made a point of introducing themselves to her. Some fans were calling her name from the crowd.

"How do they know who I am?" she asked Pilkington.

Says Anderson, "It's been crazy but really fun. I never thought I'd be in this situation. Now that I am, I don't really know what to do. Paul has been in this situation so he's been a big help."

Anderson was a good, but hardly spectacular, runner at Morgan High School. She ran the mile in 5:09 as a sophomore and never came within six seconds of that mark the next two years. Weber State coach Jim Blaisdell was the only coach to offer her a scholarship. He liked her overall athleticism — she also played basketball and soccer — and took a chance on her.

"That's my claim to fame now," he says.

As a Weber sophomore, Anderson produced a time of 10:20 in the steeplechase and won a conference championship, but she slumped during her junior year, just as she did in high school. She failed to come within 10 seconds of her best time. "I wasn't sure I wanted to keep running," she says. "When you're not racing well, it's hard to stay motivated. But finally I got fed up and decided I would train really hard in the summer and not worry about racing."