Track and Field

UCLA women’s track Coach Bob Kersee was reprimanded by the NCAA track committee for instructing an athlete to false-start intentionally in the NCAA Championships at Eugene, Ore., last June.

Kersee instructed Janeene Vickers to false-start in the women’s 100-meter high hurdles final to save herself for the 400-meter intermediate hurdles.

After false-starting in that race and being automatically disqualified, Vickers came back and won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles, her third consecutive NCAA title in that event.

“The committee considers Mr. Kersee’s action a flagrant violation of the misconduct rule,” said Mark Young, committee chairman and women’s coach at Yale. “Mr. Kersee’s decision to instruct his student-athlete to false-start lacked integrity, made a mockery of the rules and discredited the championships. In addition, he deprived another student-athlete from participating in the event.”