There are almost always question marks leading into major, high-level track and field meets.
And there aren't many more major in the U.S. than the Olympic Trials.
Friday night at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, two former local runners, Katelyn Tuohy and Eric Holt, answered some of those questions, advancing in their respective events.
Tuohy, whose magical high school track and cross-country career was followed by a phenomenal career at North Carolina State, emerged from the shadows, making her first race of 2024 a memorable one.
Tuohy, the former North Rockland High star, who now runs for Adidas, had been on the sidelines this season, at least in part due to a hamstring issue.
But the 22-year-old, who turned pro after helping the NC State win its third straight women's NCAA Division I cross-country team title, finished fourth in the second of two women's 5,000-meter heats.
With the first six finishers from each heat and the next four fastest runners overall advancing, Tuohy made the final, which is slated for Monday.
It's still a long shot Tuohy, who set both multiple national high school records and wo multiple NCAA championships, will qualify for the Olympics, which begin in July 26 in Paris, France.
Entering Friday, she had the 18th fastest time of the 30 women who'd qualified to compete in the Trials' 5,000.
And Friday's race gave little indication of how fast Tuohy can run. Her heat was slow and tactical with the top six finishers determined in a sped-up final lap.
The winner of the first heat, 2020 Olympian Elle St. Pierre, who was the world indoor champion at 3,000 meters this year, crossed the finish in 15:18.32.
The winner of Tuohy's heat, Elise Cranny, the 2020 Olympic Trials 5,000-meter champion, who holds the U.S. women's indoor 5,000-meter mark, clocked 16:02.33.
Those women were the two top qualifiers entering the Trials with the 29-year-old St. Pierre at 14:34.12 and the 28-year-old Cranny at 14:46.49.
Tuohy's top time was 15:15.26, which placed her seventh at the 2023 USATF Outdoor Championships.
Friday, content to stay near the front but not in front of the pack, she ran 16:09.22.
That was only the 17th fastest time of the night but, again, clocked in a slow heat.
Presumably, Tuohy can run faster than her qualifying time, although how much faster isn't clear, especially after her long layoff.
But also unclear is whether the final will be a fast or tactical race.
Still, despite the unknowns, just the presence Monday of the young distance runner, who gained national fame in track years before she graduated from high school, is sure to be viewed by most as a positive for Tuohy going forward.
Holt back to Olympic Trials semifinals
For Holt, the former Carmel High School and Binghamton University star, Monday was much more of a must-advance and he did just that in the first round of the men's 1,500 meters.
Holt, who has gained national attention only recently and more for his never-say-quit attitude, running at age 29 without sponsorship, than for his impressive performances, clocked 3:35.86 for fifth in his heat.
The top seven finishers from each heat (Holt's heat was the third of three), plus the next five fastest runners, advanced.
Holt, who also advanced to the semifinals at the 2021 Trials, when the Olympics were delayed a year by COVID, will have little time to rest.
The men's 1,500 semifinals are slated for Saturday.
Three years ago, he just missed qualifying for the final.
This time, Holt, who runs for the Westchester County-based Empire Elite Track Club, believes he has a legitimate shot at not only making the final but of placing top-three there to secure a spot on the U.S. Olympic team.
Friday, Holt, who entered this year's Trials with the sixth best time among the qualifiers, ran strong from the get-go, clearly keenly aware of where he was and needed to be to advance.
Holt's heat was the fastest of the three and his fifth-place finish time was also the fifth fastest time posted among the three heats.
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Each semifinal heat Saturday will include 13 runners and the top five finishers from both and the next three overall fastest runners will advance to the final, which will be Monday.
Friday's top time was Cole Hocker's 3:34.54.
That time was faster than Hocker's 2021 Olympic Trials-winning 3:35.28 and only slightly slower than Holt's all-time best time, which occurred earlier this month when he clocked 3:34.05 to finish second at the New York City Grand Prix at Icahn Stadium.
That race added to Holt's increasing profile as a legitimate potential Olympic qualifier since he was just .04 behind 2022 world champion Jake Wighman of Britain and finished in front of highly-touted 21-year-old American Hobbs Kessler, who runs for Adidas.
Kessler, who's expected to make the final and is considered one of the favorites for making the 1,500-meter team for Paris, won the second heat. He posted the ninth fastest time overall out of 38 finishers at 3:37.5.
Finishing right behind Kessler in his heat and overall, in 3:37.61, was Yared Nuguse, another favorite with whom Holt will vie if both make the final.
Nuguse qualified for the 2021 Olympics as the third-place finisher at the Trials, but failed to go due to injury.
Nancy Haggerty covers cross-country, track &field, field hockey, skiing, girls basketball, girls lacrosse and other sporting events for The Journal News/lohud. Follow her on Twitter at @HaggertyNancy
