Eugene Marathon features first-time winners in 2025 edition
Eugene native Jackson Mestler wins the 2025 Eugene Half Marathon in 65:04, his first race over the distance. Photo by Carlos Celio
by Owen Murray, TrackTown USA
Marathons are emotional.
The finish line is always stocked with elation, disbelief and exhaustion — and it was no different in Eugene on April 27.
The sold-out 2025 Eugene Half and Full Marathon took runners around the city on a dry Sunday morning. The winners, for many of whom the day was their first-ever win, took victories on the track at Hayward Field with pride in front of a packed grandstand. Their emotions — optimism, joy, excitement and satisfaction — were on full display at the line.
Men’s half marathon winner Jackson Mestler was the first runner to enter Hayward Field on Sunday morning — the Eugene native finished his first-ever half marathon in 1:05:04.
“I knew it was going to be a patient game for me, at least, to get to eight to 10 miles,” Mestler said. “And then I’d know at that point if this was a big mistake or where I am fitness-wise. It was the latter.”
Mestler led early and often after the field’s early-morning departure on Agate Street, but it wasn’t the victory that he said he was focused on from the gun.
“I just wanted to be cautiously optimistic — to go out there and find a rhythm,” Mestler said. “I just wanted to be rhythmic and efficient. I had a good group of guys out there, so it was really nice.”
On the women’s side, high school track coach Hannah Calvert won her half marathon in 1:16:44 — and, in her first finish at Hayward Field, she let her imagination run, too.
“This’ll be my only win at Hayward Field. I’ll pretend it’s a Diamond League meet.”
- Eugene Half Marathon winner Hannah Calvert
“It was so cool,” Calvert said of the finish line. “I was like, ‘This’ll be my only win at Hayward Field. I’ll pretend it’s a Diamond League meet.’”
Calvert, an experienced distance runner, said she secretly loves half marathons.
“I think the half is the magical distance,” Calvert said. “You can recover from it super easily, you can run more of them than a marathon, and for me it’s that you can pretty much feel good the whole way.”
The men’s full winner, Bradley Hodkinson, took the tape in his first Eugene Marathon. Hodkinson, who finished in 2:19:44, eased ahead of a group with around 10 miles to go and secured the win.
“It was very special,” Hodkinson said of his finish. “This is my first time being at the new Hayward Field, and they did an awesome job. It was super exciting — all the fans were awesome and had lots of hype.”
“The fans were awesome and had lots of hype.”
- Eugene Marathon winner Bradley Hodkinson
He’s a former collegiate track runner who got back into distance running after careers at Pacific Lutheran University and Washington University — Sunday was his fourth marathon, but his first win.
“It went about how I planned,” Hodkinson said. “There were definitely a lot of people going out really quick…I was maybe expecting five or six, but there was a big group of 30 or 40 people.”
Women’s full marathon winner Anna Kenig-Ziesler said the conditions were “just perfect.” She finished in 2:36:53 to take top spot in her category. The race was also her fourth marathon — and her best finish.
“I ended up running alone for a lot of it, but I felt good,” Kenig-Ziesler said. “I liked the backside, because there’s not a lot of people and I feel like that’s when you’re suffering, so it’s kind of nice to have the quiet.”
She’s a current PhD student specializing in environmental public policy at the University of Washington, but started marathoning in 2023 after an undergraduate college soccer and track career at the University of Chicago.
“I’m someone who loves training, and I feel like with the marathon, you get to train all the time.”
- Eugene Marathon winner Anna Kenig-Ziesler
“I just thought it would be fun,” she said of her decision to start running marathons. “I’m someone who loves training, and I feel like with the marathon, you get to train all the time.”
Even with expanded fields, this weekend’s Eugene Marathon sold out across all distances – from the 1k Kids Duck Dash through the full marathon. Registration for 2026 has already opened at eugenemarathon.com.
2025 Eugene Marathon photo gallery
Photos by Carlos Celio
2025 Eugene 5k and Duck Dash inspire finishers, provide pancakes
Lauren Ross breaks the tape at the Eugene 5k. Photo by Rian Yamasaki
by Owen Murray, TrackTown USA
There are a couple things that are different about the finish line at the Eugene 5k.
It’s at the heart of Hayward Field — the centerpiece of track and field in the Pacific Northwest.
For a special group, it also means pancakes.
The 2025 Eugene 5k sold out for its third-straight year as more than 2000 runners stacked the start line on Agate Street on Saturday morning — some in their best kit and others with strollers-in-hand. For some, it was all about competition; for others, it was about the promise of free pancakes. Every finisher, though, wrapped their race at one of the nation’s most historic finish lines.
“I’ve raced here before, a couple of times,” men’s winner Eric Beyerle said. “It’s a special place.”
Beyerle used to work out at historic Hayward Field. “I’ve been training for 5ks and 10ks on the road this winter,” he said. “I got sick at the beginning of April, so that set me back.”
It didn’t matter. Beyerle outleaned second-place finisher Nickolas Russell to finish in 15:00.30.
“It’s always nice to break the tape.”
- Eugene 5k winner Eric Beyerle
“It’s hard — the hill at mile 1 up University Street was difficult, but fortunately the last mile was downhill,” Beyerle said. “It’s always nice to break the tape.”
Women’s category winner Lauren Ross checked an item off her bucket list at her first Eugene 5k. She got the word that she was in front by a small margin from a spectator — so she picked it up as she entered the stadium.
“I’ve won some races in my time, but I’ve never broken the tape,” Ross said. “That was highly motivating.”
Ross, who finished in 17:28.00, usually opts for longer distances. She’s a frequent finisher in this Sunday’s event, the half-marathon, but she decided that a 5k was what she needed in 2025.
“I’ve actually been training specifically for the 5k,” Ross said. “Just slightly different workouts, a little bit less mileage and higher intensity.”
Ross was one of two women — with second-place finisher Annie Boos — to beat both the Krusteaz mascots on Saturday.
Flap Jack and Flap Jill, the pancake-clad mascots, were the bar; those who beat them earned a supply of free Krusteaz pancakes for the next year. 11 men and 17 women beat their respective counterpart and secured the supply on Saturday. It’s this Flap Jill’s second year running, and she said that this year, she nailed down the technique.
“I didn’t get stuck in the syrup this time,” Flap Jill said afterward. “It’s a little bit of a technique, a little bit of squeeze-your-arms.”
Non-binary category winner Kate Lewandowski, like many of the pancake winners, had big plans for the year of pancakes.
“We can probably make endless pancakes,” Lewandowski, who finished in 25:48.40, said. “Pancake cakes…I don’t even know — pancake burritos?”
Like Ross, Saturday was Lewandowski’s first Eugene 5k — and the win was unexpected.
“I run maybe twice a week, but just for fun,” Lewandowski said. “I wasn’t planning on winning — I was standing, and I heard my name. I was like, ‘Oh, I must’ve placed!’”
The sold-out Duck Dash, a 1k race for kids aged 2-12, wound through the University of Oregon campus less than an hour later. The medal rack was restored, and finishers picked their style: one leaned across the line while another chose a cartwheel to cap the morning’s action.
Sunday’s half and full marathon start on Agate St. tomorrow morning at 7:00 AM.
2025 Eugene Marathon 5k photo gallery
Photos by Rian Yamasaki
Oregon, Texas A&M take home team titles from 2025 Oregon Team Invitational at Hayward Field
Oregon’s Matthew Erickson and Texas A&M’s Kimar Farquharson following the men’s 800m at the Oregon Team Invitation. Photo by Rian Yamasaki.
By Owen Murray, TrackTown USA
University of Oregon and Texas A&M University — two of the nation’s premier track and field universities — split honors as the Ducks hosted the Oregon Team Invitational at Hayward Field on April 19.
The Ducks took home individual event wins across the board, including a men’s shot put win from freshman Kobe Lawrence and men’s 800m sweep from reigning NCAA Indoor champion Matthew Erickson and Koitatio Kidali. The A&M Aggies won six of the women’s events, racking up 222.5 total informal points. Oregon, meanwhile, snagged 137.5 on the men’s side through four event wins to claim its win.
The scoring system, which Oregon brought to the table in an effort to boost team competition, was unofficial so as to remain in line with NCAA qualifying rules. Every finisher — 14 on the women’s side and 10 on the men’s side in each event — earned a point relative to their position; first place received 14 (women)/10 (men’s) points, second 13/9, and last place a single point.
“As our first go at bringing a team meet back to Eugene and college track, it was a lot of fun,” Oregon head coach Jerry Schumacher said. “The athletes had a great time, and I think the coaches had a lot of fun with it.”
Texas A&M sophomore Abigail Martin took home the first win of the day. A 56.37m throw in the women’s discus secured top spot for the Aggies — Kansas State University junior Tamaih Koonce grabbed second with a 51.75m throw and Martin’s teammate Carlie Weiser threw 50.05m for third.
The Aggie field dominance continued into the women’s long jump, where A&M freshman Sofia Iakushina jumped 6.11m to sneak past Kansas State University senior Shalom Olotu, who jumped 6.09m.
Oregon, meanwhile, took home a win in the men’s shot put when Lawrence, a freshman, threw a 2025 NCAA Division I #16 mark — 19.28m — on his fourth attempt. Lawrence outdueled two Kansas State athletes, Gary Moore and Nate Collier, for the crown.
The Ducks doubled down when Klaudia Kazimierska — winner of the 800m race in the Oregon Open on Friday — returned to the track to run her first 1500m of the season at Hayward Field. The 2024 Olympic finalist surged past her Oregon teammate, Mia Barnett, with 200 meters to go and secured a 2025 Division I #7 time: 4:07.28.
“We opened pretty hard,” Kazimierska said. “I was like, ‘This is a spicy pace.’ But I felt good, and the strategy was just to stay with the pacer and then work with Mia.”
“This is a spicy pace, but I felt good.”
- Oregon's Klaudia Kazimierska following her Oregon Team Invitational 1500m win
Texas A&M won its first track event of the day in the men’s 1500m race, where Luca Santorum ran a personal-best 3:38.91 seconds (2025 Division I #28) to secure the win ahead of Oregon sophomore Rheinhardt Harrison. Harrison ran 3:39.07 seconds — good for a 2025 Division I #29 slot.
The Aggies took the top two slots in the women’s 100m hurdles, too: sophomore Jasmine Harmon ran 13.22 seconds (2025 Division I #16) to best junior Jaiya Covington by one one-hundredth of a second. A&M men’s hurdler Ja’Qualon Scott sped past the field to set a new 2025 Division I #3 mark at 13.30 seconds ahead of Wichita State University sophomore Josh Parrish.
Scott has run at Hayward Field before, at last summer’s U.S.Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field. It still brings the best out of him, he said.
“The adrenaline — I knew that it was going to be there,” he said. “Walking through that little tunnel out to the big old stadium…you don’t get to perform in a place like this often. I wanted to go out there and do the best I could.”
Oregon grabbed a win when high jumper Shaun Miller Jr. hit a new 2025 Division I #50 mark at 2.11m without missing a jump. Miller clearned 2.01m and 2.06m on his first attempts before making it over the bar to secure the win. He took three shots at the 2.14m mark, but couldn’t clear.
A&M, meanwhile, continued to build a dominant lead on the women’s side in the 400m race, where Kennedy Wade and Jaydan Wood ran 53.42 and 53.52 seconds, respectively, to sweep the top two slots. Oregon sophomore Ella Clayton finished third, running 53.63 seconds behind the Aggies.
It was a top-two Aggie sweep on the men’s side, too, where seniors Hossam Hatib (46.71 seconds) and Cutler Zamzow (47.14 seconds) grabbed pole positions. Oregon sophomore Fuad Omer finished fourth, running 47.73 seconds.
Both the A&M athletes in the women’s 100m race took top positions; Camryn Dickson ran 11.27 seconds followed by Jasmine Montgomery (11.33 seconds). Ernest Campbell ran 10.57 seconds to earn maximum points in the men’s heat — Oregon athlete Rodrick Pleasant finished fifth running 10.66.
Oregon distance runner Silan Ayyildiz set a personal-best in the 800m race, where she stopped the clock in 2:03.11 (2025 NCAA Division I #20).
“I was kind of nervous today,” Ayyildiz said. “I’m still getting used to the speed, a little bit, but I got the PR, so I can’t complain.”
On the men’s side, it was the senior Duck, Erickson, who earned top spot ahead of the Oregon freshman Kidali. Erickson, the reigning Big Ten and NCAA indoor champion in the race, ran a 2025 Division I #35 1:47:39, while Kidali ran 1:48.14.
“Kadali is great,” Erickson said. “He is one of the best 800m runners in the world, and you see it in training. He is just a phenomenal talent. He and I work really well together.”
The Ducks clawed back some points in the women’s 5000m race, where Juliet Cherubet ran 15:28.86 (2025 Division I #12) ahead of a strong field that included a personal-best 15:54.95 time from Oregon sophomore Ella Thorsett.
The Oklahoma State University men, though, swept the top two places of their 5000m race. Fouad Messaoudi and Ryan Schoppe both ran personal-best times (13:28.17 and 13.28.88), good for 2025 Division I #15 and #18 slots nationally.
A&M took the final two events — the 4x400 men’s and women’s relays — with 3:06.02 (men’s) and 3:31.54 (women’s) times and closed the women’s victory. The Oregon women ran 3:38.80, while the men struggled with the final handoff and ran 3:20.87.
Schumacher hopes the Oregon women have the juice for an outdoor title run — less than a month removed from the indoor NCAA Championship.
“We won’t know until we get a little deeper into the season, but I sure hope so,” Schumacher said of Oregon’s chances. “That’s what we’re always planning, and when we’re looking ahead as coaches, that’s what we’re doing.”
Oregon returns to Hayward Field next for the Oregon Twilight, on May 9. The venue, though, will be back in action next weekend as the finish line for the 2025 Eugene Marathon, half-marathon and 5K.
"We’re all improving together": Oregon Open welcomes athletes for 2025 edition
University of Oregon alumnus Jackson Mestler paces current Ducks Benny Balazs, Sergio Del Barrio, and Vincent Mestler in the Oregon Open Men’s 3000m Steeplechase. Photo by Rian Yamasaki
by Owen Murray, TrackTown USA
In an open field, athletes have the freedom to learn.
The Oregon Open kicked off under sunny skies at Hayward Field on April 18. Host University of Oregon, led by steeplechase winners Katie Clute and Benjamin Balazs, triple jump winner Ryann Porter, and 800m winner Klaudia Kazimierska, won six events on the individual competition day as college athletes looked to push season and personal-best marks ahead of championship season.
Clute, a sophomore, opened the day with a comprehensive victory in the 3000m steeplechase: the Ohio native led from the gun and ran 10:13.16 (good for 23rd in the West region and 41st in NCAA Division I) to head a trio of top-seven Duck finishers.
Clute, though, is used to being in front.
“My automatic response, since my first cross country race in seventh grade, was to go to the front and hang on as much as I could,” said Clute following her Oregon Open win. “Today, I was just going to try to feel it out for the first thousand meters, and then if I was feeling okay, then try and start pushing it a little bit.”
Push it she did: Clute extended her advantage over the last 2000 meters and outpaced second place finisher Soňa Kouřilová (University of Utah) by 6.2 seconds when she stopped the clock. Oregon junior Kendall Martin finished third and ran a personal-best 10:21.72.
Training with runners like Martin demands Clute’s best every day, she said.
“It’s comforting. I train with these girls every day.”
- Oregon sophomore Katie Clute following her 3000m steeplechase win
“It’s definitely nice,” Clute said. “Knowing and trusting that you can run with them — and just trying to do well together. Being with teammates means you have a gauge on where you should be — and then it’s just kind of comforting. I train with these girls every day.”
Clute was matched on the podium minutes later by her teammate, men’s steeplechase winner Benjamin Balazs. The sophomore ran a personal-best 8:34.72 (2025 NCAA DI #14 / West region #9) as three Ducks finished in the top four.
“It feels good,” Balazs said of the Oregon near-sweep. “You see them improving too, and you’re like, ‘Oh, I’m doing the same thing as these guys. We’re all improving together.’”
Balazs, though, said that he ran faster than he thought he would in his first steeplechase of the season — and that means recalibrating expectations. Now, he’s already shooting for a sub-8:30 time in the event, he said.
“I’m only four seconds off, and I was running pretty conservative to start,” Balazs said. “I don’t see why not. We’re gearing up this year to be fast at the end of the year.”
“We’re gearing up this year to be fast at the end of the year.”
- Oregon sophomore Benjamin Balazs following his 3000m steeplechase win
Ryann Porter, meanwhile, needed just two attempts to set her winning mark in the triple jump; after fouling her first attempt, the Oregon senior jumped 13.24 meters to set a new 2025 NCAA DI #6 mark that led the field and passed her next four attempts.
“We were thinking one to three jumps, and then shut it down,” she said. “There’s a couple competitors in that field, so I was a little bit wary, but I figured it would be good.”
Porter finished second at the 2025 Big Ten Indoor Championship meet, where she jumped 13.37m, before finishing 12th at the NCAA Indoor Championship with a 13.00m jump.
“I can jump a lot farther by the end of the season,” Porter said. “My coach and I have been talking about 14 meters all season, so we’ll see if we can make that happen.”
Klaudia Kazimierska, a junior at Oregon who hadn’t run at Hayward Field since August due to an injury, returned with a bang. The Polish 2024 Olympian ran 2:02.80 in the 800m race to take the top spot ahead of her Oregon teammates Mia Barnett and Samantha McDonnell, who both ran personal-best times
“I did maybe two speed workouts before this, and I didn’t know where my shape was at,” Kazimierska said. “Now, going into the 1500m, it was a good opener but I want to get into fitness to race it.”
She made her move at the bell in the race and jumped ahead of Oklahoma State University athlete Isis Grant — she called it a “brave move” to overtake the athlete who led the initial 400 meters with so long to go. Even though it worked out in the end, it wasn't necessarily the plan, she said
“Honestly, we didn’t have any strategy,” Kazimierska said. “I wasn’t feeling great this morning, so we were thinking to trust your instincts and just race.”
“Trust your instincts and just race.”
- Oregon junior Klaudia Kazimierska following her 800m win
Oregon junior Evan Bishop won the final solo race of the night, the 5000m open, in a field stacked with Ducks. Bishop, who transferred to Oregon in 2024 after two years at the University of Wisconsin, ran a personal-best 13:42.79.
“You learn something every time you race,” Bishop said. “We all love to race more than train, so you can’t take these opportunities for granted. We had a blast out there.”
Elsewhere, Oregon pole vaulter Kyle Gibbs jumped 5.16m but was bested by the Texas A&M duo of Jack Mann III and Aleksandr Solovev — the latter of whom made it over 5.56m to set a new NCAA Division I #2 mark.
Ducks freshman sprinter Mihaly Akpamgbo ran a season-best 10.61 seconds in the 100m to win, while his freshman teammate Reggie Witherspoon III finished fifth with a time of 10.89 seconds. Akpamgbo also placed fourth in the 200m race, where he ran 21.51 seconds.
Oregon will continue competition tomorrow, in the scored Team Invitational. The final flights of the men’s and women’s hammer throws will also be competed, but no Oregon athletes are scheduled to throw. The Team Invitational begins field events at 4:00 pm PT, with the national anthem set for 4:55 pm PT.
2025 Oregon Open photo gallery
Photos by Rian Yamasaki
65 Years Since the First Sub-4 Mile at Hayward Field
Dyrol Burleson outkicks Stanford’s Ernie Cunliffe, in a dual meet against Stanford University to become the second American to break the 4-minute barrier. Photo provided by UO Libraries Special Collections and University Archives
by Natalie Baltierra
“When you see someone do the impossible, everything becomes possible.”
65 years ago this month, 20-year-old University of Oregon sophomore, Dyrol Burleson, ran the first sub-4 minute mile at Hayward Field on April 23rd, 1960.
Burleson clocked a time of 3:58.60 for the mile, outkicking Stanford’s Ernie Cunliffe, in a dual meet against Stanford University to become the second American to break the 4-minute barrier. His mark surpassed Don Bowden’s American record by one tenth of a second.
Under the guidance of Coach Bill Bowerman, Burleson never lost a race during his time as an Oregon Duck. He received the first full ride scholarship from Coach Bowerman and credits his undefeated collegiate career to his coach, as mentioned in an interview with sportswriter Gary Cohen.
Burleson was a three-time NCAA champion between his sophomore through senior seasons. He won the 1500m in 1960 and the mile in 1961 and 1962. Since freshmen were not allowed to compete during this time, Burleson competed in the 1500m at the 1959 Pan American Games and the AAU and US-USSR dual meet.
Since then, over thousands of athletes have accomplished the sub-4 minute mile feat – something that used to be thought of as an impossible task. It was not until British athlete Roger Bannister did the “impossible” to become the first person to run a mile in under four minutes in 1954.
Almost seven decades later, the "impossible” has nearly become the norm.
According to the Track & Field Results Reporting System (TFRRS), a total of 129 NCAA-level (Division I, II, and III) athletes have run a sub-4 mile this past 2024-25 NCAA Indoor Track & Field season.
A lot has changed since then and there are many factors that come into play when looking at the why and how of the remarkable increase of sub-4 minute miles: The evolution of training, advanced coaching, modern facilities, the introduction of “super shoes,” and much more.
Yet, one thing remains the same no matter the passage of time: The chase for the coveted sub-4 mile.
Today, the sub-4 feat is commemorated right here in our Eugene/Springfield community. Founded in 2022 by Olympian, World-Record Holder, and three-time U.S. Champion Ben Blankenship, the Endless Mileage Project is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to fostering sustainable environments and programming that inspire the next generation of track & field athletes to break barriers.
Under the Endless Mileage project, the Fast Forest is the visible recognition of the accomplishments of the American athletes who have run a sub-4 (men) and sub-4:30 (women) mile.
Located at Dorris Ranch in Springfield, Oregon – just three miles east of Hayward Field – hundreds of trees have been planted to honor the American athletes who have accomplished this feat, with more trees being added every year. Dyrol Burleson’s sub-4 minute mile is immortalized with the second tree planted in the grove.
How hurdler Rasean Jones took his competitive fire from the football field to the track at the 2025 Oregon Relays
Rasean Jones wins the boys’ 110m hurdles at the 2025 Oregon Relays. Photo by RunnerSpace.
by Owen Murray
“Two? Three? Four? Five?”
Rasean Jones couldn’t remember how many hurdles he hit. By the time the hurdler from Baker High School crossed the finish line, his left knee was scraped and scratched.
It didn’t matter.
Jones, who returned to Hayward Field to run under the lights for the 2025 Oregon Relays in April, wasn’t sure by the time he got in front of the broadcast camera to talk to the host. All he could do was guess at which hurdles bloodied his leg.
What he did know was that he had two top three finishes in his two hurdles races, including a win in the 110-meter hurdles. He’d learn soon that his two times were both the best in Oregon this year. He’s known how to play this game— be confident, and run your race.
But this isn’t his only sport. Jones is a wide receiver, too, with his eyes on the college gridiron. He’s a three-star prospect, per 247Sports, and has official offers from five schools, including Boise State University and Oregon State University. He’s used to the contact — just not on the rubber.
“It’s a lot different,” he said. “(In track), nobody’s touching you. Nobody’s in your space. It’s just you versus you, and trying to do your best.”
On the final straightaway at Hayward Field on April 5, it was Jones versus the record books. The junior ran 14.34 in the 110 meter hurdles to set a new 2025 Oregon #1 time. Behind him, three athletes ran personal-record races. None were closer than 0.16 seconds.
He’s used to being in front. It was nice that they were close.
“It’s definitely a lot more competitive,” he said. “I don't really get a whole lot of competition in Eastern Oregon, so it’s cool to be out here and run with the best of the best.”
He’d come back to the track less than half an hour later to rack it back up. He got back in the blocks and was in the field for the 300 meter hurdles.
That race didn’t go exactly how he wanted — despite running an Oregon #1 38.52, he had runners in front of him. 38.52 seconds grabbed third place, behind Keith Rogers Jr. (Todd Beamer High School) and Miller Warme (Kamiak High School).
He didn’t even check the final results on the video board before coming to the media mixed zone. It’s all about the mentality, he said.
“In football, you’ve gotta get yourself almost psyched out,” he said. “You just have to be way more energetic. (In) track, it’s more that you’ve got to be confident. You’ve got to know what you need to do, run your race, and trust the training.”
Now he’s got one more year to lock his spikes into the track. He’ll keep his studs in the turf, too. Both are special.
There’s something about Hayward Field, though. He knows it, and he had the time to look.
The fastest high school hurdler in Oregon even had time to glance up during his race at the lights and the people. He knew the feeling.
"There’s just something about it": Oregon Relays brings the best out of high school athletes over two-day meet at Hayward Field
The Wilson High School girls’ relay team celebrates after competing at the Oregon Relays. Photo by Rian Yamasaki.
by Owen Murray, TrackTown USA
Hayward Field is for records. It doesn’t matter how old you are.
Eugene’s historic track and field venue has played host to innumerable athletes who take the record book and rip it up. It was no different when high school athletes in the Oregon Relays came to town for the first weekend in April. The winners set the bar with seven U.S. 2025 #1 times and 21 Oregon 2025 #1 times. They say running at Hayward Field matters — they say it feels different. Over two days, they proved it.
The action started early, when Central High School’s Aiden Wendring ran a U.S. #1 5:59.02 in the boys’ 2000m steeplechase on Friday morning. Victoria Rodriguez (Mercer Island High School) ran her own U.S. #1 time — 6:41.62 — just minutes later.
Mateo Ganje and Aster Jones sprinted to their own wins in their respective 200m races. Ganje, from Glacier Peak High School, ran 21.65 to outstrip second place by 0.82 seconds. Jones, meanwhile, ran a U.S. #3 (Oregon #1) 23.44 to clinch her second-straight title.
Jones, the Roosevelt High School junior who won the 200m race last year at Hayward, returned in 2025 to sweep both the 100 and 200m titles in Eugene on Friday night.
“I haven’t been here since Nike Nationals last year,” Jones said. “It just feels good to come out here. (Hayward Field) is only two hours away from my house, and it honestly just seems like a home.”
“It honestly just seems like a home.”
- Roosevelt High School’s Aster Jones following her two Oregon Relays titles
She’d return to the track later on Friday with an 11.55, Oregon #1 (U.S. #24) time in the 100m race to claim her second title of the day. Grant Valley, meanwhile, ran a personal-record 10.80 in the boys’ 100m final to best Ganje by eight-hundredths of a second.
On the infield, Marissa Johnson (Tigard High School) set a new Oregon 2025 #1 13.14m throw in the girls’ shot put. It was more than enough to win her the event.
Shortly afterward, Hayden Williams-Downing won the girls’ javelin. It took until her third throw, but she uncorked a 43.89m mark that topped the next-closest throw by 2.94m. She’ll get used to Hayward Field soon — the West Linn High School senior is committed to throw at Oregon next year.
The final hour on Friday night was blazing fast. Eugene mayor Kaarin Knudson (and former Oregon track and field All-American) was on the track with a microphone, pulling even more enthusiasm from the crowd. The sun began to set, and Wilson High School (Long Beach) kicked off the second window of the meet with a 3:17.07 4x400m relay that won the event by nearly six seconds.
Minutes later, Max Billett (Shorewood High School) and Sophia Rodriguez (Mercer Island High School) set U.S. #1 marks in both the boys’ and girls’ two mile. Chloe Huyler (Lakeridge High School), ran 4:46.70 in the girls’ mile to earn her own American #1 mark while Kellen Williams (Jesuit High School) ran a personal-best 4:09.06 to win the boys’ mile.
For high school athletes like Rodriguez, running on hallowed ground matters.
“I was talking about this with my friend,” Rodriguez said after winning the two mile race. “The track actually looks a little big — maybe it’s just the stadium…there’s just something about it.”
“There’s just something about it.”
-Mercer Island High School’s Sophia Rodriguez on competing at Hayward Field
Maya Bybee finished second in the two mile — the top 17 athletes all reset the top US times in order. She loves running against the best, she said.
“It’s so cool,” she said. “I keep running into these girls throughout the races, and competing with them at these meets. They’re all so kind and so nice — it’s so cool to have such a competitive field that really pushes you and makes you stronger.”
Friday was extra special for Niwot miler Addison Ritzenhein. The senior was born in Eugene before moving away in first grade, and she returned to run a new U.S. #2 time (4:51.08) and place third in the girls’ varsity mile.
“It’s such a special feeling, coming back here,” Ritzenhein said. “It sounds kind of weird, but there’s memories.”
Ritzenhein was in the girls’ distance medley relay, too, but the focus was on Lakeridge when the event rolled around on Saturday night. Trailing for most of the race, it took something that anchor Chloe Huyler doesn’t usually do to grab victory.
“Normally, I’m the one to get outkicked at the end,” Huyler said. “So today, it feels great to be able to outkick someone and be in the opposite position.”
Huyler pushed past Mercer Island’s Sophia Rodriguez on the back stretch at Hayward Field, where fans filled the outer lanes cheering, to sweep the Pacers into the lead and grab the win, running 11:37.83.
That stretch matters, Huyler’s DMR teammate Margaux McCloskey said.
“I feel like, especially with all the people on the back end…it’s so encouraging,” McCloskey said. “I’m in the 400 meter leg, and that last half of the race was so brutal. When I see all the people and faces, it’s super encouraging to finish that leg.”
Of course, it had to end with shock, too. When the boys’ distance medley relay hit its final leg, the Mercer Island boys weren’t close to the front.
Islanders runner Owen Powell had other ideas. He ran a sub-four minute 1600m leg to pull the team into first place — 10:04.01.
“Coming off this indoor season, (where I) ran sub-four twice, gave me a lot of confidence,” Powell said. “I knew it’d be a bit trickier here, in a high school only race…honestly, I wasn’t trying to run any time. I was just trying to catch the guys.”
He caught them.
“I wasn’t trying to run any time. I was just trying to catch the guys.”
- Mercer Island High School’s Owen Powell following his sub-4 minute 1600m in the boys’ DMR
Wilson (Long Beach) wrapped up the meet underneath the lit-up Hayward tower and claimed its third-straight Oregon Relays title when the night ended, with 160 points. The Bruins won 14 of 60 events, including a team sweep of the 4x400m relays, where the girls ran a meet-record 3:48.12, and both the sprint medley relays. The victory was comprehensive.
The prize for the athletes?
A pizza party.
2025 Oregon Relays photo gallery
Photos by Rian Yamasaki
Why Mykolas Alekna will win in Paris, and how it’s fine if he doesn’t, by Kara Winger
Kara Winger with Mykolas Alekna following his world record discus throw in Ramona, Oklahoma. Winger served as an official at the event.
Hey, it's Kara Winger, TrackTown USA Throws Ambassador! I simply had to write about my favorite throwing story in the world, just ahead of the Paris Olympic Games. Especially after my recent jaunt back onto the javelin runway, and feeling performance nerves again even at 38, I'm so wildly impressed by Mykolas Alekna, the 21-year-old World Record holder in the discus from Lithuania. I threw the javelin for long enough that I get to say I was on World Championships teams when both Virgilijus (Mykolas's Dad) and Mykolas were competing, so while every thrower feels connected to this story, I feel like I've had a front row seat. I haven't. But it feels that way. And I needed to talk about it. Enjoy!
If you’re not a huge throws fan, it’s understandable that you could have missed Mykolas Alekna’s World Record earlier this year. Just 21 years old (and not 22 until September), he’s the youngest of all of the 27 men to have set a world record in the discus in history. His 74.35m throw came in the fifth round of the Throw Town Ramona World Athletics bronze meet held on April 14. All five of his other throws traveled more than 70m as well, an astounding feat of top-notch consistency for any discus thrower. He PRed three times in that series. The record he broke was the oldest one in track and field: 38 years. My own age, as of four days before I had the honor of officiating that incredible competition.
He’s quiet. It happened in a field in the middle of nowhere. There was no mixed zone, press conference, or in-depth analysis by the athlete himself on social media. Just a short interview with Dan McQuaid, some great angles by Throws University, and a few articles (World Athletics, Sports Illustrated, Cal Athletics, and Citius Mag). A biomechanical analysis is in the works, and coaches and avid throwers are still salivating over this early May tweet. You can now watch Mykolas’s Cal Coach, Mo Saatara, break down his technique on CoachTube. Paul Hof-Mahoney did get to chat with the reserved Alekna for Citius Mag, and I just read this endearing Q&A in doing research for this piece.
One of the reasons that chatter about this absolutely monumental event died down quickly is that the new World Record holder just. kept. going. And he seems to have very impressive wisdom beyond his years to be, simply, enjoying the ride.
This is, kind of, just the beginning of a transcendental career. But the most miraculous things about it are a) it didn’t just begin: It was already incredible. And b) it won’t matter if, tomorrow, he puts the discus down. This kid has on lock the things that some of us (ahem, ME) take two decades to figure out: His worth isn’t tied to his results, he’s in it for the fun, and he has noticed when it isn’t as fun, and curated his experience to avoid those traps. This phenom has an incredible, holistically supportive team behind him, he knows it, and is actively grateful for it. This student is fully present in - and continuing to learn from - all areas of his life.
Here are all the reasons he’ll win Gold in Paris. Or, you know, not, and be the same guy.
He has established a history, already, of performing at major championships, and when big opportunities present themselves.
Mykolas was NINETEEN when he earned Silver at the Oregon 2022 World Championships. His toss of 69.27m was second to merely-23-year-old Slovenian Kristjan Čeh, who we’ll get to. Mykolas had thrown 69 meters just twice prior to that performance: To win that season’s Lithuanian National Championship, and then to get second to Čeh at the Stockholm Diamond League. In an event as saturated with talent as the men’s discus is in our current throws world, a teenager had no business on the podium. But there he was.
That same season, Mykolas became the youngest European Champion in discus history, throwing just three centimeters under his then-PB 69.78m for Gold in the Berlin Olympic Stadium.
In 2023, he became the youngest athlete ever over 70m when he, at 20, launched the discus 71.00m at Cal’s Edwards Stadium (he’s competing collegiately for the Golden Bears). His results were modest by his standards until, again, he became Lithuanian Champion for the second time, and, again, he made the World Podium in Budapest with 68.85m and bronze.
Ramona, Oklahoma was not a global championship, but an enormous opportunity that captivated the imaginations and hopes of the entire throws community the moment that Alekna’s name appeared on the start list. For Mykolas to step up under all of that pressure and deliver on the World Record dreams everyone had for him? At 21? There are not enough words. It seems simple to him. He seems to have the levelest of heads. But anyone who has ever thrown anything with people watching and expectations put upon them knows that harnessing your own calm under all of those eyes is anything but simple. His ability to perform anyway is amazing.
Perhaps the biggest argument for Mykolas topping the Paris podium to me is the way he waltzed from the World Record to multiple 70m Diamond League victories this year. And while Oslo was not a major championship, his second-best result of the season being a meet record that his Dad (we’ll get to him soon) had formerly held is symbolic of him standing up to that particular kind of pressure that others apply to his career: Living up to Virgilijus. His 70.91 there made a statement.
Mykolas has incredible examples of what’s possible, all around him. He appreciates them, lets them inspire him, and has freaking built on them.
His Dad, Virgilijus, is widely regarded as the best discus thrower of all time. He owns three Olympic medals and four World Championships ones, including two Golds from each of those. He was Top 6 in EVERY major championship final from 1996 to 2012, and on three of the four European Championship podiums in the between years (5th at Europeans in 2010 when he was 38 is the minor blemish in those 16 years, omg). There’s a quote from Mykolas in the Paul Hof-Mahoney Q&A linked above about watching London 2012 on TV, and being disappointed for his Dad that he got fourth with 67.38m. In the same paragraph and clearly the same breath, Mykolas understands that 67 meters at 40 years old is incredible, and aspires to the same greatness. He lived with it growing up. But it informs his dreams rather than crowding them. That’s so cool. To BE a fly on the Alekna dining room wall, discussing technique and competition mindset in what seems to be the most supportive of environments?! The most amazing leg up. Excellent parenting, as it’s clear there was never any pressure to follow in Dad’s footsteps, for any of the kids (Martynas will also compete for Lithuania in Paris).
Mykolas watched his countryman (and eventual fellow Eugene 2022 medalist) Andrius Gudžius and established talent, Swede Daniel Ståhl at the European Championships in 2018, the same year he picked up a discus for the first time at 15, and was inspired to compete with them. When the time came to do so, at a meet in San Diego Daniel came to in 2022, Mykolas stepped up with a 66.70m PR to get second to the Tokyo Olympic Champion. That same season, another young phenom was making a name for himself: Kristjan Čeh didn’t just throw 70 meters a lot, he typically did it in stadiums, and at meets that mattered. He’d burst onto the international scene in 2020, with a five-meter jump from 2019 and from 20 years old to 21. Kristjan Čeh was very nearly Mykolas Alekna, just during COVID, and without the famous Dad. His dominance in 2022 at 23 years of age had to be encouragement to the young Alekna: I imagine him thinking, “I can do that, too.” And he kept on keeping on.
He bounces back from stuff.
Mykolas Alekna, the World Record Holder in the men’s discus, has not yet won an NCAA title. He was second in 2022 and third in 2023, both with, it should go without saying, some of his worst marks of each season. And each season, he went on to earn a bunch of other stuff, including in both cases a Lithuanian title and a World Championships medal.
If you watch the Throws University video of Mykolas’s series in Ramona this year, you’ll see frustration in round 1. The guy everyone wanted to see break the world record had the strongest reaction anyone has ever seen him have to that throw, and a) it still went 72.21m but b) he buckled down, didn’t let himself lean into that bit of struggle, and delivered the series of anyone’s lives after that blip on the emotional radar. The composure he showed was astounding.
Mykolas rolls with the punches. Which means that his bronze in Rome at this year’s European Championships will only spur him on to further greatness.
The consistency Mykolas has shown this year is unmatched.
While an Olympic year definitely sees people bring their best at The Games themselves, Mykolas’s four competitions over 70m in 2024 is difficult to argue with. That number would be 5 if his first PB of the year, 71.39m, were recorded anywhere. Why it isn’t (from a meet at home at Cal) is a mystery to me, but should remain a source of confidence. His consistency in other seasons and ability to show up at major championships in the last few years also indicate that there is more in the tank! Even in poor conditions (which the recent FBK Games in Hengelo, Netherlands reportedly sported), he can reach 68+ meters darn reliably. Three Diamond League wins of three so far this year is formidable. The other meet record that Dad Virgilijus holds that Mykolas might be interested in breaking? The 69.89m Olympic Record, set when Mykolas was 2 in the course of Dad winning his second straight Olympic Gold.
Consistency isn’t everything, and the past two Worlds winners (Čeh and Ståhl) both threw 71m to get the job done. But with all this confidence building up with all these 70m throws all season? Mykolas could absolutely win his Olympic debut.
The way that everyone around Mykolas supports him as a whole human.
The Alekna family clearly just loves each other. Supports each other. In whatever way each of them need. Values education as much as or more than Olympic medals. Likes to fish. Virgilijus provides guidance to both his discus-throwing sons, but never pushes them. An incredible resource, but mostly, a loving Dad. It seems romanticized in terms of idyllic family life but, also, true.
Mantas Jusis of Jusis Training in Vilnius, Lithuania started Mykolas on his discus path at home. They figured stuff out, and quickly. Mohamad Saatara, a treasure, fully supports and participates in that continued coach-athlete relationship as he helps guide Mykolas on American soil at Cal. Coaches can be egotistical and possessive, but the exact opposite is true of this scenario: It’s a joy to watch an athlete’s best interests kept in mind by all parties.
I’ve read articles that mention Mykolas’s friends at Cal. How he doesn’t talk much unless he’s around them, sitting in the stands after a meet and just casually being a college kid. Friendship. It’s important. And I bet he didn’t lead with, “I’m the best discus thrower in the world” when he met those fellow students. They like him for him.
The holistic support of this guy is obvious, and precious, and needs to be protected at all costs. It’s something every human being should aspire to gather around themselves. What an awesome place to keep growing within.
Mykolas, who I first got to meet after we both became World Medalists for the first time in Eugene, earning the same color bauble, has such a big fan in me. He was 19. I was 36. Join me in cheering on this generational talent, whose level-headedness, humility, clear gratitude for his family and support system, obvious respect for and from competitors, and simple love of what he does make him worthy of role model status for any aspiring athlete. I believe we’ll always be left wanting more from this guy: The lack of flash, simplicity in describing his own technique, disciplined-rather-than-fiery, matter-of-fact way he goes about being the best in history is just cool. I believe he’ll win Gold in Paris. But if he doesn’t, he’ll be more than fine. Neat.
Kara Winger with fellow official Lionel at the ThrowTown Ramona event, where Alekna broke the world record
Moments I will always remember from (Mykolas’s First?) World Record Day:
Mykolas, peeking out from his hat, asking me how much warm-up time was left for the third of three flights.
The murmur-excited sound the crowd made after I announced that his frustrating first attempt was a massive 72.21m.
How it felt to whisper re-ordering stuff excitedly with Axton Ors, the Seal Throwing Club athlete who monitored live results all three days of that weekend. It took 66.28m to be Top 8 at a mid-April meet in the middle of Oklahoma.
Cherishing hearing “74.41m” from Lionel, my fellow Official operating the laser that day, after Round 5. The way we grinned at each other before he re-measured to make sure was one of those moments that will forever connect you to a fellow human. True appreciation for just being there. And my hands immediately shook.
My quads burning as I made sure there was no twist in the steel tape we used to verify the mark, squat-hustling from 74 meters to the ring, holding the tape between my fingers an inch from the ground the whole way.
Being told, later, by multiple competitors, that they saw just a bit of overwhelm, slightly more emotion than typical in the 21-year-old’s eyes. That these older men had celebrated him, wanted to build him up as he rightfully deserved, but also protected his peace by noticing and breaking up that overwhelming attention. Letting him savor it in his own way. Giving him space. And watching him record yet another 70m mark to truly solidify his greatness. The emotional intelligence of the entire group was incredible to understand.
Watching Mykolas turn back into as much of a kid as he lets the world see these days after the meet was over. I always think there’s more of a joke behind his relaxed expressions than most of the world gets to experience, and that’s perfect.
The Men’s Discus Final is set for Wednesday, August 7 at 11:25 a.m. Pacific time, streaming live on Peacock.
U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field Women's Shot Put preview, by Kara Winger
Photo by Oregon Track & Field
Hey track & field fans—TrackTown USA Throws Ambassador Kara Winger here. Let’s talk about the women’s shot put!
The most competitive throwing event on the women’s side - and perhaps across genders - to make at this Olympic Team Trials is the shot put. In the hammer, four women came into the Trials with the 74m Olympic Standard and one achieved it here. In the discus, only three women had the 64.50m mark. One javelin thrower owns the 64m Olympic Standard. Seven men’s shot putters had thrown the 21.50m Olympic qualification distance coming into their competition last weekend.
Eight women possess the Olympic Standard of 18.80m entering the first round of the shot put on Friday. One other athlete lives within the Top 32 in the World Rankings, and would be eligible for the team if she beat enough standard-holders in the final. And two to three more could earn enough points to climb the rankings with great performances in qualifying and finals.
This field boasts the American Record holder, an Olympic silver medalist, the NCAA Record holder, Olympians, World Team members, and a serious stock of upcoming collegiate talent and post-collegiate experience.
Jessica Ramsey had a baby last year. She also won the 2021 Olympic Trials in commanding fashion, and will not only draw on that experience, but dropped an 18.90m performance in the Bahamas this month to come into these Trials with the wind at her back. With that recently-recorded post-baby PB, the Tokyo Olympic finalist has to be feeling confident that her 20.12m overall PB from her last Trials victory (also the Trials Meet Record) is near.
Adelaide Aquilla’s 2024 season has been somewhat of a roller coaster, but the 19.38m SB she recorded at the Suzhou Diamond League came early and seemingly a bit easier than some of her hard-won 2023 results that still put her on the Budapest World team. Adelaide knows how to show up at Hayward Field, where she has won two NCAA titles, made two World Championships teams, and became an Olympian after making the Tokyo team here in 2021. Her personal best of 19.64m is two years old now (she set it in winning NCAAs in 2022), so I wouldn’t be surprised to see this still-young talent make a little jump in an environment she has thrived in before.
The third of three women’s shot put Olympians returning to this Trials competition is Raven Saunders, the Tokyo silver medalist with a 19.79m effort at the 2021 Olympic Games, and 5th place finisher from Rio in 2016 at just 20 years old. Raven returned to competition this May after serving an 18-month whereabouts filing failure ban from the sport by the anti-doping governing body. That ban began on August 18, 2022, and her first mark back on May 18, 2024, was 18.62m, just shy of the 18.80m Olympic Standard. Raven now has two competitions on the season over 19.10m
Oregon22 World Championships finalist and 19.40m shot putter Jessica Woodard achieved the Olympic Standard with 2cm to spare at last season’s Brussels Diamond League, and while her results haven’t been what she wanted this season, she had some solid indoor results, and has been climbing again lately with an 18.39m performance and the USATF NYC Grand Prix. A breakthrough - ilke has happened in this ring for her in the past - at the right time will send her to Paris.
The 2024 Indoor NCAA Champion and the 2024 Outdoor NCAA Champion both own Olympic Standards coming into their first Olympic Trials.
Mya Lesnar, the Colorado State University rising senior, had a breakout indoor season with two February performances over 19m (19.07m and 19.10m). She took the indoor NCAA victory with an 18.53m toss in Boston. While her outdoor NCAA run didn’t mimic her indoor success, she did get back out over 19m to win a conference title for the Rams, and will look to improve on her fifth place finish out of this ring from outdoor NCAAs earlier this month.
Jaida Ross will be a senior at the University of Oregon this fall. She’s from Medford. She threw 19.57m out of her home ring to win her first NCAA title this month, and a few weeks prior, became the first collegiate women’s shot putter to throw 20m, setting an NCAA Record of 20.01m at the NCAA West Regional competition. She was named a Bowerman award finalist this week, and throwers would LOVE if one of those finally went to one of us. A really wild thing about the best NCAA shot putter in history? She first broke the nineteen meter barrier just this outdoor season. I can’t wait to see what her future holds, and that starts in qualifying on Friday.
The seventh and eighth athletes with the 18.80m mark coming into women’s shot put qualifying are two of the most accomplished athletes in the field. Neither has made an Olympic team quite yet.
Maggie Ewen was our last hope for a Bowerman award, when she was named a finalist during her junior year at Arizona State University, the season she set the collegiate hammer record in winning her first outdoor NCAA title. Spoiler alert, she didn’t win the Bowerman, but the next season she won shot put and discus outdoor NCAA titles (and set the shot NCAA record) and was again named a Bowerman finalist, becoming the first thrower of either gender to receive back-to-back nominations. While she didn’t win yet again, that year’s award went to a jumper we love, Keturah Orji (she just made her third Olympic Team), and was the first ever win for the field. Maggie Ewen, notably, got the fan vote. Let’s take that into account ahead of time this year please, Bowerman committee.
Okay tangent tangented. Maggie’s professional career, like her collegiate one, has featured multiple events, but shot put has been her main focus, and she’s had a lot of close calls in terms of international podiums. After her 2018 graduation, she quickly hopped onto the Doha 2019 World Team in the shot put, finishing a devastating fourth with 18.93m after throwing what would have been in the medals in the qualifying round. A dreaded fourth place at the 2021 Olympic Trials echoed that performance at Maggie’s next opportunity to make a team, but at the end of 2021 she won the Diamond League Final, securing her place on the Oregon22 World Team. While she finished 9th at that Worlds, her friend Chase Jackson (nee Ealey) won, and Maggie and Jessica Woodard got to celebrate the first American World Champion in the event as teammates in that final. Maggie put on an absolute clinic in becoming last year’s National Champion, and was over 20m for the first time in her career in 2023 (a 20.45m stunner at the LA Grand Prix), finishing fifth in Budapest when Chase again won gold. So many close calls for one of the most consistent shot putters and magnificent throwers in U.S. history. She deserves an Olympic berth just as much as everyone else in this field.
Chase Jackson (formerly Ealey, married Mitch this January in a gorgeous rural England ceremony) has won the last two straight World titles, becoming not only the first American woman to do so in Oregon in 2022, but proving it twofold in Budapest last summer. At the Diamond League Final at the 2023 Prefontaine Classic, she demolished the American Record that Michelle Carter set when she won Rio 2016 Olympic Gold, recording a 20.76m effort that put the world on notice for a 21m throw from her. She has stated publicly that that is the goal. A proponent of women using rotational technique rather than the (perhaps formerly) traditional glide, her results this season have spoken volumes about where she might be at in a championship season: All three of her Diamond League victories have been over 20m so far in 2024, and while injuries have hampered her in the past, she bounced back from an indoor ailment (and still secured bronze in Glasgow) much more quickly than she has from other issues in previous seasons, proving her veteran status in a new way. She wants her first Olympic berth VERY badly, and her performance in this ring at 2023 PRE has to give her confidence that it will happen.
Other neat stories in this qualifying field (they all are!! Everyone has a shot!! Pun intended!!) are Rachel Fatherly and Monique Riddick of Garage Strength. I will just not stop singing the praises of that team’s support of each other and the rest of the field and event group. They are awesome, keep showing up, and demonstrate the heart of the throws so well. Jalani Davis of Ole Miss is in the Top 32 at 26th, was second at last year’s USAs, and got her feet wet on the Budapest Team at 2023 Worlds. KeAyla Dove is currently World Ranked 38th, and therefore has a chance to move into the Top 32 with great performances this weekend. Her PB from May 2023 of 18.95m would be good for an Olympic Standard if she can do it again in this competition. Cierra Jackson of Fresno State, Jayden Ulrich from Louisville, and Veronica Fraley of Vanderbilt are all throwing both discus and shot put at this Olympic Trials. Veronica will now definitely be an Olympian, after finishing third in the discus final with an Olympic Standard in that event. Jayden will also likely be an Olympian if the bump in World Rankings that she’ll get with her strong performance and second place finish in the final holds up through Sunday. How to celebrate making an Olympic discus team? Throw the shot put! Gabby McDonald-Morris was second to Jaida Ross at outdoor NCAA Championships, and the senior from Colorado State will wear her Rams uniform alongside teammate Mya Lesnar for the final time here at this Trials. Gabby’s 18.66m PB to earn silver earlier this month is just 14cm away from the Olympic Standard.
See the full field here, and dig into each and every story behind the names you see! The future of shot put is here in Chase Jackson, but who will rise again, and who might take up the healm in terms of new talent? We’ll see who shows up when women’s shot put Olympic Trials start with the qualifying round on Friday. Finals Saturday will determine yet another extremely strong American women’s shot put contingent for Paris in just one month.
U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field Women's Discus preview, by Kara Winger
Photo by Howard Lao
Hey track & field fans! TrackTown USA Throws Ambassador Kara Winger here to break down all the drama in the upcoming women’s discus final.
Olympic Trials is always brutal in one way or another, and while media focus has revolved around Athing Mu’s fall in the 800m final, the women’s throws have quietly been completely shaken up as well.
The two women who were the first to make a podium together in the women’s hammer, and did so at Hayward Field, will not be on the Olympic Team. Brooke Andersen, the 2022 World Champion and current World Leader in the event, and Janee’ Kassanavoid, two-time World Medalist (bronze in Eugene and silver in Budapest in 2023), did not finish top 3 in Sunday’s final. Then, on Monday, Laulauga Tausaga, 2023 World Champion and the second-best discus thrower in U.S. history, sector fouled all three of her qualifying round throws, eliminating her shot at a Paris bid.
But others’ dreams came true (Annette Echikunwoke’s hammer victory is my favorite throws moment of Trials so far, Ryan Crouser’s strong return to the shotput ring coupled with Joe Kovacs’s willingness to admit he has added fuel to a frustrated fire was great), and still more will realize Olympic-sized ones when the women’s discus final is contested on Thursday. Let’s take a closer look.
The Hayward Field facility record holder rewrote that line in the book with her one and only effort of the day: Valarie Allman’s 70.89m first round throw of qualifying made waves all around the stadium on Monday, and her celebration of it kept the party going. Even though that mark is just the second furthest in the world this year, Val boasts three of the four marks so far over 69m. She rocketed to 70m distances in 2020, and has not looked back, but only added ridiculous consistency AND pushed her top level higher each season. The defending Olympic Champion has expressed a lot of joy in 2024, and appears to be handling the pressure of that title defense very, very well. If history is to repeat itself like it did in the qualifying round (Val set the former stadium record in qualifying at the 2021 Trials), we’re in for another 70m effort on Thursday, and likely another Olympic Gold for the American Record holder.
The second of two athletes in this final who owns an Olympic Standard distance of 64.50m is Veronica Fraley, 2023 World Championships team member and 2024 NCAA Champion in this event. Veronica threw a big personal best of 67.17m in Oklahoma in April, and has made the Hayward Field ring her home, with her 63.66m NCAA title throw earlier this month and a solid showing in qualifying on Monday with two 62m efforts. She looks to be a strong contender for an Olympic spot indeed.
Two athletes within striking distance of the World Rankings necessary to qualify for Paris are Jayden Ulrich (currently sitting in 30th) and Elena Bruckner (37th).
Jayden, the Louisville rising Senior, has made a 5-meter PB jump this year, from 59m to 64.29m, but in her first season as a 60m discus thrower, only has one competition out of 8 below the 60m line. Remarkable consistency for not only a young athlete, but one who has made such a significant improvement in one year. Her 63.61m mark from qualifying is her lifetime second-best, but she had a 63m effort to earn second at the NCAA Championships out of this very ring as well, giving her all the confidence coming into the Olympic Trials final. Once the Performance Score from Jayden’s qualifying round effort is added to her World Athletics Ranking Score, she should get bumped up to 25th or 26th on the Road to Paris list, making her Olympic opportunity very, very real.
Elena, teammate of Val and Veronica’s in Budapest in 2023, was just a meter short of her personal best with 61.35m in qualifying on Monday, and will look to build on that momentum as she needs more Ranking Points to crack the top 32, or the standard. Lanie’s 62.38m PB and some consistency this year means she could absolutely get this done! See below for more on that
In order of World Rank right now, the other eight finalists in the women’s discus are Shelby Frank (48th, also 8th in the women’s hammer final Sunday), Micaela Hazlewood (50th, she got silver at this meet three years ago), Jordyn Bryant (55th, one of two Fresno State athletes in this final, so cool), Kaia Harris (68th), Cierra Jackson (72nd, the other Fresno State thrower), Erika Beistle (102nd, had a 61.68m PB in qualifying that would move her up to about 76th), Kat Moody (110th, qualifying will bump her up to about 86th), and Alexandra Freeman (who was not on Road to Paris as of Tuesday but I believe it might be because she just switched her affiliation from American Samoa to the United States and some paperwork is necessary. She should be around 96th).
This event is such an exciting mix of post-collegiate, still-finding-their-way athletes, fresh NCAA talent, and an irrefutable star. Something to keep in mind as you watch is that, in the eyes of USATF and the USOPC, the selection system treats Olympic Standards the same as World Rankings, so if an athlete that has the standard is beaten by someone who is within, or climbs to within the Top 32 of the World Rankings within the qualification period (ending Sunday), the person with the ranking is selected over the standard holder. Three spots are up for grabs.
By way of introducing you to these athletes, I’d like to present the math needed for one person to climb the rankings enough to be Top 32, and share the framework for my calculations so that you may extrapolate! Go forth and math, and cheer on your favorite women’s discus throwers really, really specifically
Elena Bruckner. Currently ranked 37th with a Ranking Score of 1125 from her top 5 meets: A personal best of 62.38m in Fresno, 59m and third at the USATF Throws Festival, 60m and second at the Iron Wood Classic, a 62m victory in Oklahoma, and bronze at Harry Jerome with 58.81m, which resulted in a Performance Score of 1119. That Harry Jerome result is the fifth of Lanie’s Top 5, and since the qualifying round here, at a B meet, doesn’t result in any Placing Scores, her 61.35m toss in qualifying only earns her a 1096 Result Score and doesn’t replace her fifth Top 5 mark (it is lower than the current 1119).
In order to bring her Ranking Score (the average of her Top 5 Performance Scores between July 1, 2023 and June 30, 2024) up to the ~1141 points necessary to be ~30th on the World Rankings, Lanie needs a Performance Score of ~1197 in the final to replace her current lowest Performance Score. An 1197 equals a 62.50m toss (1117 Result Score), AND second place (80 Placing Score) in the final. She could also throw further than that and place lower, as you can see on this chart (I’ve highlighted yellow the required score she needs to up her average enough, and PINK anything above and beyond that score. Green is any other probable outcome, but wouldn’t be enough points to up her ranking to Top 32.).
Do the math on your own!
The numbers above are for women’s discus specifically, using this calculator (which was created using World Athletics Scoring Tables) to determine Result Scores (x axis, bottom row) based on potential distance (x axis, second row up, in meters). The y axis is Placing Score (furthest left column, scores pulled from Table 7.2 here), based on potential place in the final (second column in from left). All Performance Scores possible from 58m and 8th to 64.49m and victory (1cm below the 64.50m Olympic Standard that would negate all these Ranking Scores) are calculated based on individual equations in the middle. You can use this table’s values for any women’s discus thrower competing in the final (a B Category competition) on Thursday!
For Lanie specifically (and you can do this with your favorite athlete of the 12 women), I clicked on her name in the Road to Paris list to view her Top 5 results in the Qualification Period, and copied those values over to my own table. Then, I entered a hypothetical equation (=average(her specific Top 4+the hypothetical value she needs in the final to get a Ranking Score of 1141)) in the yellow highlighted cell, and tried a bunch of values from the larger table to get the number she needs. See below.
The final layer of World Rankings that makes predicting what might make an Olympic Team difficult is that other athletes in the world are constantly chasing their own points! So while 1141 was approximately 30th in the World on Tuesday, that number will probably keep creeping up as June 30th approaches, and other countries are also contesting their own Olympic Trials, with valuable points on the line and in the ring.
As we’ve already seen, anything can happen at the USATF Olympic Trials. I look forward to sharing all of the nerves with you as we watch the women’s Olympic discus team earn their Paris berths in TrackTown USA on Thursday at 4:50pm PST!
First four days of U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field start with a bang at Hayward Field
Photo by Evan Poulsen
By Sophie Fowler
June 21st kicked off the first four days of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field, where the country’s best athletes compete to represent the United States in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris this August. Over 900 athletes descended upon Hayward Field to try to claim their spot. Some highlights:
Noah Lyles won the men’s 100m with a personal best time of 9.83 seconds. This will be Lyles' second Olympics appearance, having won bronze in the men’s 200m in the Tokyo Olympic Games. Kenny Bednarek placed second this weekend with a personal best time of 9.87 seconds. Bednarek took home silver from Tokyo in the men’s 200m. Fred Kerley came in third with a time of 9.88 seconds. Kerley won silver in Tokyo in the men’s 100m.
“It’s amazing to finally be here,” Lyles told NBC News following his race. “In Tokyo, I felt like I had blown a huge opportunity. The more I look back at it, the more I’m like, ‘Wow, if I never had that moment happen, I never would have produced what I have done up until now.’ I don’t think there would be the drive in me as much as it has the last couple of years.”
In the women’s 800m, Nia Akins placed first with a personal best time of 1:57.36. Allie Wilson placed second with a time of 1:58.32, and Stanford sophomore Juliette Whittaker placed third with a personal best of 1:58.45. This is Akins, Wilson and Whittaker’s first time representing the U.S. in the Olympic Games.
Ryan Crouser won the men’s shot put with a distance of 22.84m (73 - 11 ¼). This is Crouser’s third time making Team USA, previously winning gold in both the Rio and Tokyo Olympic Games. Joe Kovacs placed second with a distance of 22.43m (73 - 7 ¼), also taking him to the Olympic Games for the third time. Kovacs won silver in Rio and Tokyo. Payton Otterdahl placed third to qualify for the Paris Games with a distance of 22.26m (73 - 0 ½).
Quincy Hall had an impressive finish in the men’s 400m to finish first with a personal best time of 44.17 seconds. Michael Norman placed second with a time of 44.41 seconds, and Chris Bailey placed third with a personal best time of 44.42. Norman represented Team USA in Tokyo, where he won gold in the 4x400m relay.
Sha’Carri Richardson placed first in the prelims, semi-finals and finals–finishing with a time of 10.86 seconds to claim her spot on her first Olympic team. Melissa Jefferson placed second in the finals with a personal best of 10.87 seconds, and Twanisha Terry placed third in 10.89 seconds. These three training partners will represent Team USA next month in the 100m.
“The trials have shown us what we already know and what we’ve been preparing for,” Richardson said in a press conference following her race. “We knew this moment would be possible if we put our minds, bodies and spirits into it … We got the job done today.”
The U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field resume on June 27th, where the rest of Team USA will be selected to compete in Paris next month. Tickets and VIP upgrades are available at TrackTown24.com.
U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field Men's Javelin preview, by Kara Winger
Photo by Charlie Townes
Hey field fans! TrackTown USA Throws Ambassador Kara Winger here. I’m back in a dual role serving as ambassador to the throws community for TrackTown USA, AND as a competing athlete at this year’s U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field.
The only American javelin thrower who has thrown the Olympic standard in the Paris qualification period is Maggie Malone-Hardin. Yes, this is the men’s javelin preview, and I’m mentioning the only U.S. athlete with the javelin qualification mark, a woman! Yay, women! The men’s standard is 85.50m, and the closest American athlete this season is Jordan Davis at 84.45m. More on him later. Cool story.
The severe lack of standards in American javelin means that World Athletics Rankings will be majorly at play this weekend to determine the men’s javelin team headed to France. Let’s have a little lesson!
You can learn all of this from the World Athletics source!
In a lot of words:
An athlete earns a Result Score by throwing a distance at a meet. Result Scores are listed by event in this very long document, available if that last link doesn’t download automatically for you via World Athletics here under the “Scoring Tables” dropdown menu.
A Placing Score is added to the Result Score, based on what level of meet the athlete is competing at and what place they achieve at that meet. The Ranking Criteria lists the categories of competitions around the world, from OW (Global Majors: Olympics and Worlds) down to F (national permit meetings and “other). The USATF Olympic Track and Field Trials is a B Meet, which means (for no other reason than deduction, subtraction, and observational skills (both mine but mostly Ariana Ince’s)) that first place gets 100, second 80, third 70, fourth 60, and so on (though 5th at a B gets 55 so I’m not completely sure of the progression after that. It’s not linear).
The sum of the Result Score and the Placing Score is that athlete’s Performance Score for that competition.
An athlete’s World Ranking Score is the average of the athlete’s Top 5 Performance Scores across a 12-month period.
For Paris, the Olympic standard AND World Ranking qualification period started July 1, 2023, and will end on June 30, 2024. So, only competitions after July 1, 2023 count toward an athlete’s World Rank, and athletes hoping to qualify on World Rank must have at least 5 competitions that give them a Performance Score, in order to achieve that World Rank.
Athletes ranked within the Top 32 of their respective event are eligible for selection to the Olympic Games.
In fewer words:
Result Score (based on this scoring table) + Placing Score (higher if you place higher and if the meet you achieve the place at is better) = Performance Score
Ranking Score = Average of Best 5 Performance Scores in a 12-month period (July 1, 2023-June 30, 2024)
In math:
RESULT SCORE + PLACING SCORE = PERFORMANCE SCORE
AVERAGE OF TOP 5 PERFORMANCE SCORES = RANKING SCORE
TOP 32 = PARIS
This Road to Paris list will help you out, because only marks achieved after July 1 of last season are included, and only athletes who have achieved 5 Performance Scores in that time period are listed. That is NOT to say that athletes who achieve their quota of competitions this weekend won’t pop onto the list, because that is very possible, but the Ranking Score that marks ~32nd on the list will probably stay pretty consistent (right now it’s ~1170). The only issue I’ve run into so far on the Road to Paris list is that Jordan Davis is absent, despite being ranked 42nd in the event. Again, more on him later. Very neat story brewing.
A thing to remember about rankings is that Olympic Trials is not just one B Meet, but two. In the field events, having a qualification round plus a preliminary and final later means two distinct competition opportunities. Two competitive chances to throw an Olympic Standard, made all the more possible by lack of automatic qualifying marks from the first round, a great move by meet organizers to allow for more attempts at better marks if athletes need them for Paris. Two very important ranking points days for anyone who does not reach that big 85.50m mark.
U.S. leader Jordan Davis threw 84.45m to win the Division II NCAA title for Southern Connecticut State University. The DII Championships is an F meet. Jordan’s PB earned him a Performance Score of 1180 (1165 Result Score + just 15 Placing Score for 1st). By contrast, his clutch performance at the USATF New York Grand Prix (an A-level comp) earned him a Performance Score of 1203 (only 1083 for throwing 78.72m, but a 120-point Placing Score for second place). This guy’s PB before 2024 was 72.85m, almost 12 meters less than his best now! Also a football player for Southern Connecticut, this surprise talent of the entire 2024 season burst into javelin’s consciousness with 83.77m as a season opener at Texas Relays. That was just outside the top 10 in U.S. history, and with his 84m effort in May, he sits at sixth all-time.
I truly cannot figure out why Jordan isn’t on the Road to Paris list. I actually spoke to him and his coach about it in passing, and they don’t know either. He doesn’t have a photo or birthdate on his World Athletics profile, so it’s possible that some paperwork needs to be filed? By someone? Because there’s evidence (Capers being listed as the fourth American on the list despite only two others (Curtis and Marc) visibly above him) that Jordan will be included, just not yet for some reason that is hopefully easily remedied. I’m rooting hard for a standard to really cement the deal, and his top end so far plus the maturity he showed in his first really big test in New York tell me he can absolutely do this.
Donavan Banks has thrown 80m or more in more than the two competitions shown on his World Athletics profile this season, but he did so in meets not included on the World Athletics calendar (and therefore not eligible for categorization or, thus, performance scores). As his body of work towards rankings stands right now, these two B meet opportunities are huge for him: He literally needs two more meets to achieve a World Rank after a 2023 season that saw him shut it down after May. The Olympic Trials will be the opportunity the 82.90m athlete - now coached by former World Record holder Tom Petranoff - needs to burst onto the Road to Paris list. His consistency this season has been impressive, and he’ll need that (and maybe a little more) both days in Eugene to climb the rankings enough to think about an Olympic roster spot.
Marc Anthony Minichello just collected his second career NCAA Title (a B meet at the DI Championships level, btw), and did so on this very runway. He was third at last year’s National Championships in Eugene, and did the tough job of chasing Rankings points after that meet in an attempt to make it to Budapest. He’s gotten ahead of that beast this year, has been very consistent, and currently sits 30th on the Road to Paris list. As the third American javelin thrower on that list (if Jordan Davis is counted), the Georgia Bulldog is far from safe, but his steady results this year on a runway he knows how to perform on could do him some favors. At just 24, I’ve been really impressed with his ability this season to fit in NCAA responsibilities and professional-level points chasing, and accomplish both goals.
Ranked fourth on distance in the U.S., defending national champion and Tokyo Olympian Curtis Thompson sits at 14th on the Road to Paris list, his Ranking Score of 1241 all made up of marks from 2023 and 2022 (Area Championships carry forward three years). While the 3rd-best-ever American javelin thrower and PanAm Champ from 2023 hasn’t enjoyed the big distances yet this season, his 81m efforts in his season opener and recently at the Iron Wood Classic are right where he was at when he had a big breakthrough in 2022. He’s in pretty good shape right now in terms of rankings, but of course wants to improve on his season’s bests, and winning yet another national title is always the safest bet.
Capers Williamson, with an entry distance that has him 8th on the Trials list by seed mark, is actually listed as Next Best on the Road to Paris Rankings. Since three athletes per country go to the Olympics in each event, this denotion means that three other American athletes are ahead of him on that particular list. Which again means that Jordan Davis is not actually lost in the ether. But great results for Capers at this Olympic Trials could mean a second straight U.S. Team (he qualified for Budapest on Rankings in 2023), and his first Olympic one. The tallest athlete in the field truly started the party on this runway last year, so there’s no reason why he can’t pull this off. His season’s best might be 76.45m, but he’s an 80m+ javelin thrower.
Mike Stein is another NCAA athlete who could make some waves here, and is looking for redemption after his trip to the NCAA Championships for the Iowa Hawkeyes earlier this month didn’t turn out the way his big PBs this season might have predicted. Mike, Iowa born and raised and self-taught high school javelin thrower, got out to 75.59m during his freshman year (2023). His opener this season was 79.26m, and he further improved to 81.19m in May to win a Big Ten title. At only 20 years old, his Road to Paris Performance Score marks include his U20 PanAm Games Gold from August of 2023, valuable international experience regardless of distance or age level. He’s been surprising people all year, and could climb the rankings really well with these two big opportunities starting Friday.
Chandler Ault, Ethan Dabbs, Samuel Hankins, Dash Sirmon, and Ethan Shalaway are all within distant striking distance on the Road to Paris list to make some headway this weekend with great performances, but GREAT is truly the operative word. Brett Thompson and Cameron Bates have had moments of greatness in the last few seasons. All of these athletes earned their places on the start list, and must compete to see who is the best that day. They’re all capable of greatness!
I encourage you, dear reader, to dive into the Road to Paris list, the World Rankings criteria, and the Scoring Tables, and crunch some numbers of your own! What will your favorite javelin thrower need to throw Friday and Sunday to up their average of 5 performances enough to jump into the top 32? Stay tuned! I’ll share my own findings before Sunday’s final.
Athletes prepared for 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field
Track Town, U.S.A. is electric this week as athletes and fans arrive in Eugene, Oregon for the 2024 U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field. To kick off the event, athletes Eric Holt, Athing Mu, Kyree King, Keturah Orji and Harrison Williams joined media members for a press conference ahead of competition.
Eric Holt, entered in the men’s 800-meter and 1500-meter, is feeling privileged and grateful to be running in the trials. After taking a year off, he is ready to live in the moment and compete.
Photo by Charlie Townes
“Every round you have to be on your A game, you cannot take it lightly. Anything can happen in these rounds, they can be brutal. You got to treat every round like it’s the finals,” Holt said.
The men’s 1500m qualifying round is Friday, June 21 at 5:22 pm Pacific time, and the men’s 800m qualifying round is Thursday, June 27 at 4:30 pm Pacific time.
Athing Mu, competing in the women’s 800-meter at her second Olympic team trials, feels ready to go after a hamstring injury earlier this season. Mu won gold at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in both the 800-meter and in the women’s 4x400-meter relay, but she has not competed since September 2023.
“This is my second Olympic trials. 2021 was a going-through-the-motions year for me. It was all a new experience for me,” Mu said. “Going through the second cycle, it’s great to already know what it's like to make the team and what it's like after making the team.”
The women’s 800m qualifying round is on Friday, June 21 at 4:17 pm Pacific time.
Kyree King, an Oregon alumnus competing in the men’s 100 and 200-meter, feels prepared for the trials after placing first with his team in the 4x100-meter relay at the World Athletics Relays in the Bahamas last month. King is ready to run at Hayward Field again and feels the pressure as he competes for a spot on the Paris team.
“You come here and you have to be ready. If you’re not ready here, you won’t go to the Olympics. You have to be ready now and you have to be ready then,” King said. “I’m here for a purpose. Not to be in the moment, but to be the moment. I know my purpose here.”
The men’s 100m qualifying round is Saturday, June 22 at 6:22 pm Pacific time and the men’s 200m qualifying round is June 29th at 7:33 Pacific time.
Keturah Orji, competing in the women’s triple jump, is feeling hopeful about her career and the chance to make the United States team for a third and final time. She placed 7th in the 2020 Toyko Olympic Games and 4th in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. She is hoping to come out and perform better than before at one of her favorite tracks.
“I love competing at Hayward. I’ve had most of my successes here. The crowd knows the athletes and knows the sport here, and I love that,” Orji said.
The women’s triple jump qualifying round is on Friday, June 21 at 6:50 pm Pacific time.
Harrison Williams, competing in the men’s decathlon, made it clear that he is not satisfied and is far from done when it comes to his career. Williams finished 7th in the world last year and is hoping to get even further in Paris this August after his lingering hip injury.
“It was a tough physical and mental challenge to come back after my injury in 2022,” Williams said. “Team USA is the hardest to make, especially the decathlon. To make the team is a great boost of confidence.”
The men’s decathlon and women’s heptathlon are competing in the mornings from June 21st through June 24th.
Retired USA Track and Field Athlete and current NBC panelist, Trey Hardee, feels ecstatic about the trials being at Hayward this year.
“I appreciate everything about this venue. Even at my lowest moments, the crowd brought me out of those moments here. It’s impossible to recreate and describe but there’s something about the magic that brings out people’s best performance here,” Hardee said.
Ready or not, these athletes along with 900 more are competing for a spot for the USA Track and Field Olympic Team starting tomorrow, June 21st. Limited tickets are still available at TrackTown24.com.
Six collegiate records broken during 2024 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Hayward Field
Photo by Charlie Townes
Hayward magic was alive over the weekend, seeing six collegiate records broken from June 5th through 8th as athletes from 121 schools competed at the 2024 NCAA Division I Track and Field Championships.
University of Texas Austin’s Leo Neugebauer won the men’s decathlon with 8961 points, the sixth-highest score in the world of all time and a new collegiate record for the event. His day-one score of 4685 points gave him the NCAA all-time best day-one score. Neugebauer is now one of just seven men in the world to amass more than 8900 points. Neugebauer is expected to head to Paris to represent team Germany at the Olympic Games.
“There is no limit, all I have to do is stay consistent, putting in the work every single day,” Neurgebaur said following his competition.
Photo by Maggie Troxell
The men’s competition concluded with the University of Florida winning the men’s team title for the third consecutive year. Their 41-point performance bested Auburn University by just one point.
“I was very excited. I knew that not only did we have to be third or better (in the 4x400m), but we also had to be right behind Alabama and USC, and that happened. It’s a great feeling, these things never get old,” said Florida head coach Mike Holloway. “We have a standard at Florida. We fight for it every day. It is the final to fight for it this year, so let’s go fight.”
On the women’s side, Nebraska’s Rhema Otabor won the women’s javelin with a distance of 64.19m (210-7). Her 4.7m personal best earned her the collegiate record and national record for the Bahamas.
“I still think it’s an unbelievable experience. I can’t believe that I just threw that. I still can’t believe it. Usually, I have time to process it, but I don’t think it was enough time,” Otabor said.
University of Oregon’s Jaida Ross won big this season in women’s shot put, and finished with the national title in the event. She broke the collegiate record at the NCAA West Prelims where she threw 20.01m (65-7¾). This weekend, Ross threw a distance of 19.57m (64-2½).
“This means the world to me – I have my North Medford coaches here. They just told me that the only other NCAA champion from North Medford was Dick Fosbury, so this is a pretty cool thing to have my name on. I’m super proud of this,” Ross said following her win.
Nickisha Pryce from the University of Arkansas won the women’s 400m with a time of 48.89, a personal best that broke the NCAA collegiate record and the Jamaican national record. The University of Alabama’s Doris Lemngole set a new collegiate record in the women’s 3,000m steeplechase by running a seven-second personal best in 9:15.24.
“I didn’t expect that. My goal was to run under 9:20. I am so happy to break the collegiate record. When I was finishing up I saw the 9:15, I was so happy,” Lemngole said.
University of Florida’s Parker Valby won both the women’s 5,000m and the women’s 10,000m over the weekend. Her time of 14:52.18 for the 5,000m broke the collegiate record–which she set less than two months prior. Valby now has six NCAA individual titles to her name.
Photo by Charlie Townes
The women’s competition concluded with Arkansas winning the 2024 women’s team title with a score of 63 points after they dominated the women’s 4x400m with a collegiate record time of 3:17.96. Their relay team of Nickisha Pryce, Kaylyn Brown, Amber Anning, and Rosey Effiong also swept the women’s 400m earlier in the day.
“Thank you to all of the ladies who contributed to this championship. It’s a collective effort. It’s the Arkansas way. We could be stronger in one event this year, and another (event) next year. We want to push, we don’t want to settle,” Arkansas head coach Chris Johnson said. “We want to push and see if we can get to the next level. By having the right staff, the right athletes, and the right attitudes, we can create something special.”
This was also the first year in NCAA history that the men’s and women’s collegiate wheelchair 100m championships were featured during the NCAA Division I Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Illinois’ Evan Correll won the men’s division with a time of 14.33 seconds, and Hannah Dederick, also from Illinois, won the women’s division with a time of 16.15 seconds.
Although the 2024 collegiate season is finished, some of these stellar athletes will return to Hayward Field at the end of June with hopes of representing the United States at the 2024 Olympic Games. Tickets for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field, taking place from June 21st through June 30th, are still available at TrackTown24.com.
NCAA Athletes whose Championships mark qualified them for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials- Track & Field:
100 meters:
McKenzie Long (Ole Miss)
Jaydn Mays (Oregon)
Kaila Jackson (Georgia)
Thelma Davies (LSU)
200 meters:
McKenzie Long (Ole Miss)
JaMeesia Ford (South Carolina)
Jadyn Mays (Oregon)
Jayla Jamison (South Carolina)
Robert Gregory (Florida)
400 meters:
Johnnie Blockburger (USC)
Kaylyn Brown (Arkansas)
Rosey Effiong (Arkansas)
Isabella Whittaker (Penn)
Jan’Taijah Jones (USC)
Brianna White (Tennessee)
800 meters:
Shane Cohen (Virginia)
Sam Whitmarsh (Texas A&M)
Juliette Whittaker (Stanford)
Roisin Willis (Stanford)
5000 meters:
Parker Valby (Florida)
100m hurdles:
Grace Stark (Florida)
Rayniah Jones (UCF)
Jasmine Jones (USC)
Destiny Huven (Arkansas)
Aasia Laurencin (Michigan)
110 meter hurdles:
Darius Luff (Nebraska)
Ja’Kobe Tharp (Auburn)
Ja’Qualon Scott (Texas A&M)
Malachi Snow (San Jose State)
De’Voin Wilson (Houston)
400-meter hurdles:
Caleb Dean (Texas Tech)
Chris Robinson (Alabama)
Ja’qualon Scott (Texas A&M)
Corde Long (Alabama)
Jakwan Hale (Tennessee)
Jasmine Jones (USC)
Rachel Glenn (Arkansas)
Akala Garrett (Texas)
Sydni Townsend (Houston)
Abbey Glynn (Colorado)
Shani’a Bellamy (LSU)
3000-meter steeplechase:
Parker Stokes (Georgetown)
Nathan Mountain (Virginia)
Gable Sieperda (Iowa State)
CJ Singleton (Notre Dame)
Yasin Sado (Virginia)
Alexander Korczynski (Northeastern)
James Corrigan (BYU)
Jackson Shorten (Princeton)
Olivia Markezich (Notre Dame)
Janette Schrafft (Iowa State)
Sophie Novak (Notre Dame)
High Jump:
Jenna Rogers (Nebraska)
Cierra Allphin (BYU)
Cheyla Scott (Oregon)
Tyus Wilson (Nebraska)
Caleb Snowden (Arkansas Pine Bluff)
Pole Vault:
Chloe Timberg (Rutgers)
Long Jump:
Claire Bryant (Florida)
Alyssa Jones (Stanford)
Chrstyn John (JC) Stevenson (USC)
Jeremiah Davis (Florida State)
Malcolm Clemons (Florida)
Triple Jump:
Salif Mane (FDU)
Russell Robinson (Miami at Florida)
Brandon Green JR (Oklahoma)
Jeremiah Davis (Florida State)
Shot Put:
Jaida Ross (Oregon)
Tarik Robinson-O’Hagan (Ole Miss)
Jason Swarens (Wisconsin)
Discus Throw:
Veronica Fraley (Vanderbilt)
Jayden Ulrich (Louisville)
Shelby Frank (Minnesota)
Corinne Jemison (Michigan)
Michaela Hawkins (Colorado State)
Javelin Throw:
Skylar Ciccolini (Missouri)
Trinity Spooner (LSU)
Marc Minichello (Georgia)
Chandler Ault (Washington)
Heptathlon:
Timara Chapman (Texas A&M)
Jadin O’Brien (Notre Dame)
Decathlon:
Peyton Bair (Mississippi State)
Hayward Magic brings new records at the 2024 OSAA Track and Field State Championships
Photo by Charlie Townes
Hayward Field was electric over the weekend with high schoolers from all over Oregon competing in the 2024 OSAA and OnPoint Community Credit Union Track and Field State Championships. Hundreds of students participated in the three-day event from May 16th through May 18th. School records, season bests and personal records were broken all three days for students.
On Thursday, Daisy Lalonde led the girl's 2A 3000m run. The junior from East Linn Christian won at Hayward for the second time at 10:26.50. Jaya Simmons from Valley Catholic won the 3A girls 3000m with a PR of 10:05.29.
“It’s hard to believe. I’m super excited to win this year and even more excited to come back next year. I’m excited to get my time down and do my best to improve,” Lalonde said.
3A’s Ronan Gantzo won the boy’s 3000m run with a time of 8:58.94. The Oregon Episcopal sophomore’s second state win was followed by Vale’s Trevor Stewart, who ran a PR by 15 seconds in 8:59.45. Gantzo also won the boy’s 3A 1500m run with a PR time of 4:04.25.
Oregon track & field signee Maleigha Canaday-Elliott won the 6A girl’s triple jump with a PR of 12.55m (41-02.25). The McDaniel senior’s distance put her at number one on the 2024 Oregon High School Outdoor Rankings and number 12 on the United States High School Outdoor Rankings. Her PR was three-quarters of an inch behind the state record set in 2005.
On the final day of the weekend, the Lake Oswego boys and girls swept the 6A 4x100m relays. Riley Ha, Josie Donelson, Cenaiya Billups and Marina Turpen won the girls’ division with an SB of 47.92. Matthew Altman, James Bauman, Baron Kurland and Henri Danzelaud won the boys' division with an SB time of 41.48. Both times are ranked first in Oregon 2024 High School Outdoor Rankings.
“We’re feeling really good. We had some success in our 4x100m these past few years and to finish off our senior season with another 4x100m win is a really good feeling,” the girls’ team said.
Drew Smith from Sherwood won the 6A boys javelin throw. His PR of 60.27m (197-09) ranked him first in the 2024 Oregon High School Rankings and ranked 21st in the United States Outdoor Rankings.
Ida B. Wells’ Asher Danielson won the 6A boys’ 1500m with a time of 3:54.31. The senior is ranked second in the state of Oregon and also placed second in the 3000m with a time of 8:14.93. The winner of the 6A boys’ 3000m was Eugene’s own Malachi Schoenherr of Sheldon High School, who ran 8:14.18.
“This win means a lot. All the years running combined and coming out with a state championship is great,” Danielson said. “Coming into this race and really wanting to win, it feels great.”
Lake Oswego’s Josie Donelson also won the girls' 6A 400 meters with a PR new state meet record of 52.83. The senior’s time earned her the number-one spot on the 2024 Oregon High School Outdoor Rankings and number six for the United States High School Outdoor Rankings. Second place was McDaniel’s Aayden Gallagher who also set a PR and new state meet record of 52.98.
The electricity continues next weekend as the world’s best athletes come to Hayward Field next weekend for the Prefontaine Classic. Tickets are still available to purchase at PreClassic.com/tickets.
More scenes from the 2024 OSAA Track and Field State Championships, by Charlie Townes
Ducks close out regular home season with Twilight meet
Photo by Charlie Townes
On Friday evening, athletes came out to a rainy Hayward to compete in the Oregon Twilight, closing out the 2024 regular home season for Oregon Track and Field. University of Oregon Track and Field seniors were also celebrated, coming together halfway through the meet to be congratulated by the crowd and run their final lap at Hayward Field together.
Eugene’s Ducks and Bowerman Track Club athletes had strong showings, recording multiple wins and personal bests throughout the evening on both the track and the field.
University of Oregon junior Ella Nelson won the women’s 800 meter by 0.48 seconds in 2:07.35, followed closely by teammate Mia Barnett with a time of 2:07.83. Bowerman TC’s Christina Aragon finished third in 2:09.34.
Bowerman TC’s Duncan Hamilton placed first with a season’s best 3:42.28 in the men’s 1500 meter, just ahead of teammate Mo Ahmed in 3:42.54. University of Oregon sophomore Tomas Palfrey finished third in 3:42.63, giving him a new personal best in the event..
All eyes were on Eugene native and Duck sophomore Maddy Elmore, who is currently ranked 11th in the nation for the collegiate women's 1500m. She stayed neck-and-neck with Bowerman TC’s Kaylee Mitchell, who ultimately pulled ahead to place first. Mitchell set a new PR in 4:09.45 en route to the win, while Elmore finished second with a time of 4:11.05.
University of Oregon’s Benjamin Balazs placed first in the men’s 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 8:45.36, a PR for the freshman.
In the final women’s track event of the night, The University of Oregon women swept the women’s 5000 meter. Freshman Dalia Frias placed first with a time of 15:56.33, with Maddy Elmore right behind her with a time of 15:56.94. Melissa Berry finished third in 16:47.83.
The men’s 5000 meter closed out the action on the track for the evening, seeing Charles Hicks of Bowerman TC win in 13:29.36. Portland’s Matt Strangio came behind with a time of 13:41.64, and University of Oregon’s Devin Hart placed third in 13:47.56.
On the field, Oregon’s Isabella Nilsen won the women’s pole vault with a mark of 3.78 meters. Saige Baumann from Lane Community College placed second with a PR of 3.63 meters, which placed second on the NWAC College Outdoor Rankings.
Oregon junior Jaida Ross came out on top in the women’s discus throw. The reigning Pac-12 Field Athlete of the Week threw 58.53 meters, a personal best in the event. Fellow Duck thrower Colleen Uzoekwe won the women’s shot put with a throw of 14.09 meters.
Fans can expect to see some of the stellar athletes they witnessed this weekend return to Hayward Field for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships on June 5-8, 2024 and the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field on June 21-30, 2024. Tickets for the U.S. Olympic Team Trials - Track & Field are on sale now at TrackTown24.com
2024 Eugene Marathon sells out, rewrites event's top times lists
Photo by Charlie Townes
On Sunday, the second day of the Eugene Marathon weekend, nearly 10,000 athletes came together to run the 13.1 or 26.2–mile course through the streets of Eugene.This is the first time in the history of the event that the marathon has sold out.
Runners started at 7:00 a.m. and ran through local neighborhoods, along the Willamette River, and finished at the finish line at Hayward Field. Matthew Hernandez and Kate Landau came away with the victories for the 17th annual marathon.
Matthew Hernandez won the men’s 26.2–mile marathon in 2:22:31. His 5:26 minute pace helped him cut in the front and win the division by 15 seconds.
“This race means everything to me,” said Hernandez. “I’m going to continue to move it forward and grow as a runner.”
Kate Landau won the women’s 26.2–mile marathon in 2:40:53. Her 6:08 minute pace time got her on the top-ten all-time best women’s marathon times for the Eugene Marathon, placing her at fifth on the list.
The half marathon followed a similar route, running through local neighborhoods, over the Willamette River, and finished at Hayward Field. Alex Ostberg won the half marathon for the men’s division and Moira O’ Connor Lenth won the half marathon for the women’s division.
With a time of 1:05:02, Alex Ostberg won the male’s half-marathon division for the 2024 half marathon. His time also placed him second on the Eugene Marathon all-time list, beating Andrew Lemoncello’s time in 2015 by two seconds. Ostberg also coaches for the Bowerman Track Club in Eugene, Oregon.
“I couldn’t turn down a chance to race in my backyard. I work out of Hayward almost every day of the week and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity,” Ostberg said. “I’m really grateful to come out here and run hard and push myself.”
With a time of 1:17:21, Moira O’ Connor Lenth won the women’s half marathon division. Her 5:54 pace gave her a PR in the event. The Seattle native was neck and neck with second place Hillary Heskett for most of the 13.1 miles, but ended up pulling away to win by 19 seconds.
“I’ve done this race a couple of times before,” Lenth said. “It’s one of my last big races before I start my residency for med school. It’s a pretty important race. It was pretty special to PR.”
Thousands of people showed up at Hayward this weekend cheering on loved ones and strangers as they raced. The half and full marathons close out the 17th annual marathon weekend in Tracktown U.S.A.
Check out photos from the 2024 Eugene half and full marathon, by Charlie Townes
Eugene Marathon kicks off with Oregonian wins in the Eugene 5k
Will Baker-Robinson wins the Eugene 5k presented by OCCU
Photo by Charlie Townes
The Eugene Marathon weekend kicked off on Saturday with the Eugene 5k presented by OCCU and the Kids Duck Dash presented by OCCU. Will Baker-Robinson won the men’s division of the 5k with a time of 15:08, and Chelsea Oda won the women’s division of the 5k with a time of 16:55. Both are from Portland, Oregon.
“I went to University of Oregon, I’m a former Duck. I think it’s one of the best races to do in the region,” Oda said.
Flap Jack and Flap Jill, the Krusteaz mascots, were out running as well. In the 5k, 17 men beat Flap Jack and received free pancakes for a year. 28 women beat Flap Jill and received free pancakes for a year.
Photo by Charlie Townes
“This race was amazing. It was so much fun, the fans were amazing,” Flap Jill said after the race.
The 5k was followed by the 1k Kids Duck Dash presented by OCCU. Over a 1,000 kids from ages 2-12 raced around the University of Oregon campus and the local neighborhood, crossing the finish line at Hayward Field.
The Eugene Marathon continues on Sunday, April 28 with the half and full marathons beginning at 7:00 a.m. Pacific time.
Check out photos from the 2024 Eugene 5k and Duck Dash, by Charlie Townes
Q&A with Bee Trofort-Wilson, sports and portraits photographer and member of Black Women Photographers organization
Photo provided by Bee Trofort-Wilson
For the third consecutive year, TrackTown USA and Black Women Photographers are working together to provide paid opportunities for Black women and non-binary creatives to cover select track & field events this summer at Hayward Field. This will be the first year that will include videographers in addition to photographers.
Apply today to be a part of the Black Women Photographers and TrackTown USA 2024 cohort at BlackWomenPhotographers.com/TrackTown-USA. Application deadline is Friday, March 8, 2024.
We sat down with Bee Trofort-Wilson, a talented commercial and editorial portrait, sports, and fitness photographer, as well as a member of the Black Women Photographers organization. She’s photographed athletes from all over the world at some of the biggest track & field meets in the world, including The Prefontaine Classic and the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.
What sparked your journey into photography, especially within sports?
Growing up, sports was my first love, and art was my second. Being in the magnet art program from middle school to high school, and studying art in college, photography allowed me to mix both of my passions, and taught me my voice as an artist. It allowed me to stay in the game, celebrate athletes, and share stories that often go unseen.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the 2022 USATF Outdoor Championships. Photo by Bee Trofort-Wilson
What is your favorite memory while taking photos at Hayward Field?
My favorite memory at Hayward Field was the Athlete Portrait studio during World Champs [2022]! Capturing athletes from all around the world, showcasing their personalities, and creating lasting branding portraits for them to treasure throughout their career has been an unforgettable highlight for me! The Google Translate app was my best friend that week!
Donald Scott at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Photo by Bee Trofort-Wilson
What is a key piece of advice for black women aspiring to work in sports photography?
My advice is to "Bee Fearless" and remember "your voice matters." Don't allow fear to stop you from going after what you want! If there's an opportunity you seek, go after it, even through the disappointments. Your voice and your art are more powerful than you know! And network!
Allyson Felix at the 2022 USATF Outdoor Championships. Photo by Bee Trofort-Wilson
Q&A with Taylor Sims, sports photographer and member of Black Women Photographers organization
Photo provided by Taylor Sims
For the third consecutive year, TrackTown USA and Black Women Photographers are working together to provide paid opportunities for Black women and non-binary creatives to cover select track & field events this summer at Hayward Field. This will be the first year that will include videographers in addition to photographers.
Apply today to be a part of the Black Women Photographers and TrackTown USA 2024 cohort at BlackWomenPhotographers.com/TrackTown-USA. Application deadline is Friday, March 8, 2024.
We sat down with Taylor Sims, a talented sports photographer and a member of the Black Women Photographers organization. She's captured some of the biggest moments in track & field, including The Prefontaine Classic and the World Athletics Championships Oregon22.
What sparked your journey into photography, especially within sports?
My journey into photography started in college. I saw an ad for a camera that I liked and had enough money saved up so I was able to purchase that camera when I went home for the weekend. I started taking pictures of my friends and of others around campus and fell in love with it. I got into sports by taking pictures at a local gym three times a week. I reached out to the owner of the gym to offer creative content services and it's been going up since then. Shooting content for that gym allowed me to build up a sports portfolio and that led to more jobs and contacts in the sports industry.
Sha’Carri Richardson at the 2022 Prefontaine Classic. Photo by Taylor Sims
What is your favorite memory while taking photos at Hayward Field?
Hayward magic is 100% real and you feel it when you're near or when you're far away. This is such a hard question because I have so many favorite moments and memories! My favorite memory while taking photos at Hayward was during the World Championships in 2022. There was a fan with a sign waiting for Allyson Felix to finish interviews and after the interviews finished, the fan thought Allyson didn't notice her but she did. As Allyson walked over to this young girl, she began to cry hysterically and I was in the right place at the right time to capture that exchange between them. As Allyson just spent time with her and comforted her, the tears just kept flowing and the fan couldn't believe that moment was happening. That was special to me because in that moment I realized how important role models and idols are. Not just to young kids but to everyone! It was just beautiful and I'm happy I was there to capture it.
Allyson Felix and a young fan at the 2022 World Athletics Championships . Photo by Taylor Sims
What is a key piece of advice for black women aspiring to work in sports photography?
My advice would be to shoot your shot and shoot it often. Don't be afraid to reach out to brands, athletes and organizations when you want to start building a portfolio or are looking for paid work. Don't be discouraged by the no's that come your way, just continue to stay grounded and focused on your craft until the right doors open for you.
Lastly, don't put yourself in a box when it comes to sports, try anything that you can. You never know how much you can enjoy it until you get out there and you never know who you may run into while you're on a job or just out shooting for experience. Have fun ladies!
Anna Cockrell at the 2022 Prefontaine Classic. Photo by Taylor Sims
Follow Taylor Sims on Instagram: @fromtaylor_