BERKELEY - American record holder and California alum David Torrence earned his first individual medal on the international stage for USA Track and Field after claiming silver in the 5,000-meter run at the Pan America Games in Toronto.
Torrence claimed silver in the event with a time of 13:46.60, just .13 behind winner Juan Luis Barrios of Mexico. The silver medal for USA matches the silver Torrence claimed as a member of the 4x1500-meter relay team at the 2014 World Relay Championships.
“It was a battle at the end for sure,” Torrence said of the race. “I really, really wanted to win. Training has been going really well … I know I still have a little bit of work to do with the last 100 meters, but I’m getting better at it.”
An All-American runner at Cal before graduating in 2008, Torrence is also the current American record holder in the 1,000-meter run at 2:17.86 that he set last year in Boston. He is also a member of the 4x800-meteter relay team that holds the world record time of 7:13.11. Torrence and his relay teammates Richard Jones, Duane Solomon and Erik Sowinski set the mark in January 2014 at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix.