BearTalk

Former Cal middle-distance running star and East Bay resident David Torrence has cleared a huge obstacle in his quest for a spot in the London Olympics.

Torrence, 26, achieved the Olympic “A” qualifying standard in the 1,500 meters on Friday, clocking a time of 3 minutes, 35.41 seconds at the Occidental College High-Performance Meet in Los Angeles.

Torrence needed to run faster than 3:35.50 to get the “A” mark, which means that he now qualifies for London if he secures a top-3 finish in the event at the U.S. trials next month in Eugene.

It’s a big deal, because often events such as the 1,500 become slower, tactical races at the trials as athlete compete for positions more than times. So getting the “A” standard at the trials is less likely. Now it’s out of the way for Torrence.

For those who don’t pay attention to track, his 1,500 time translates to 3:52.64 for the mile. Pretty fast.

Torrence burst onto the scene as a Cal junior in 2007 when he ran 3:58.62 to break Don Bowden’s 50-year-old school record in the mile. In 1957, Bowden became the first American to break the 4-minute mile.

BYU and Arkansas State will play Saturday night for the national collegiate rugby title that Cal has won 26 of the past 32 years.

Here’s why the Bears passed on the chance to pocket another title this season.

– Water polo: Two former Cal stars were named to the U.S. Olympic women’s water polo team. Heather Petri, 33, a former All-America star at Cal and Miramonte HS grad, was named to her fourth Olympic team. And ex-Cal star Elsie Windes has earned a spot on her second Olympic roster.

– Track and field: Courtesy of “Bring Back the Mile,” here’s a 4-minute interview with former Cal middle-distance star David Torrence, a contender for the London Olympics.

No, it’s not football or basketball but for those who are interested, former Cal star and 2008 Olympian Magdalena Lewy Boulet was 10th this morning at the U.S. Olympic marathon trials in Houston. She needed a top-3 finish to qualify for the London Games.

Lewy Boulet, a 38-year-old Oakland resident, ran the 26.1 miles in 2 hours, 33 minutes, 42 seconds.

Another Cal alum, Brooke Wells, was 19th in 2:36:24.

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.