By David Rogers. PORTLAND, Ore. — A fall with 600 meters to go in Paul Banta Memorial Men’s 5,000 Meters in the Portland Track Festival on June 15 didn’t stop ZAP Endurance’s Eric Van der Els from picking himself up for a strong finish, nonetheless. The High Country-based elite professional distance runner rallied to a No. 7 finish and season best, 13:25.00.
It was a special Father’s Day performance for race winner, Andrew Hunter (Asics), a father of two. Amon Kemboi (Puma Elite Running) and Thomas Ratcliffe (Nike Swoosh TC) overtook Hunter with a little more than a lap to go, with Kemboi surging ahead to open up a significant gap. But Hunter rallied past Ratcliffe, then drew even with Kemboi at the top of the final straightaway. The pair battled side-by-side before Hunter inched ahead in the final 10 meters to take the No. 1 spot in 13:14.95. Kemboi was the runner-up in 13:15.22.
There were 17 elite athletes competing in what race organizers called, “The Hot Window” section of the Men’s 5000 in the massive Portland Track Festival event. ZAP Endurance qualified a second team member in the Hot Window section, but Ryan Ford faded to No. 14 (13:41.72).
Earlier, in the High Performance section of the Men’s 5000, ZAP Endurance team member Dan Schaffer finished No. 4, crossing the line at 13:36.77 in the 43-man field split into two heats.
“Eric ran a fabulous race,” said ZAP Endurance head coach Pete Rea after the event. “His fall with 600 meters to go was a rough break but he got up and rallied for his second fastest 5,000 meters ever. I have little doubt that he will run 13:10 to 13:15 in Los Angeles later on in July, in the Sunset Tour meet.”
Ford, who is largely transitioning from middle- and long-distance events while in college to a primary focus on the marathon with ZAP Endurance, used the Portland Track Festival to get reacquainted with racing on the track.
“This was Ryan’s first track race since the 2024 Olympic Trials, so I’ll call it a ‘rust buster’ for him,” said Rea. “Less than two months removed from his stellar run in the Boston Marathon, the Portland 5K race serves as a great springboard for the USATF national championships in Eugene (Oregon), in July, where he will compete at the longer, 10,000 meters’ distance.”
Schaffer, like Ford, was an accomplished middle distance athlete in college but eventually aiming to compete in the marathon with ZAP Endurance.
“Dan ran well in this Portland race, but not quite well enough to qualify for the U.S. championships in Eugene,” said Rea. “He’ll have a few road opportunities before the buildup for his marathon debut later this year, in the fall.”
