Allman’s discus record earns her USATF Athlete of the Week honors

INDIANAPOLIS — Checking off the final box in what is the best season ever by an American woman in the discus, Valarie Allman (Austin, Texas) earned recognition as the 28th USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2021. 

Allman bettered her own American record with a massive 71.16m/233-5 throw at the ISTAF meet in Berlin, adding more than a meter to the mark she recorded in August 2020. Her throw moved her to No. 18 on the all-time world performer list and gave her nine of the ten farthest throws ever by an American. 

The Olympic champion also added the Diamond League title to her trophy case with a win at Zurich three days before her big throw in Berlin, becoming the first American to ever win the crown in that event. Only Croatia’s Sandra Perkovic has thrown farther than Allman’s AR in this millennium. 

Other top performances from last week:

• Biya Simbassa won the men's title at the USATF 10 Mile Championships, covering the course in 46:18 as he picked up his first national championship win.
• Nell Rojas was the women's winner at the USATF 10 Mile Championships, clocking 52:13 for her first national title.
• Jenny Hitchings, 58, broke her own American age 55-59 10 Mile record by running a 1:01:15 at the Buffalo Stampede in Sacramento.
• Also at Sacramento, Jacob Nur set an American age 65-69 men's 10 Mile record by running 1:01:00.
• Brian Pilcher smashed the American men's 65-69 record in the 20K with a 1:18:24 at the USATF 20km Championships that clipped almost two minutes off the existing record.
• Ben True won the men's USATF 20km Championships by one second in 59:53.
• Erika Kemp was the women's winner at the USATF 20km Championships with a comfortable margin in 66:20.
• Fred Kerley became the first man to win Diamond League titles at 100m and 400m, adding the dash crown to the 400m title he took in 2018 with a 9.87 victory in Zurich.

Now in its 20th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week when there are high-level competitions and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week. 

2021 Winners: January 21, KC Lightfoot; January 28, Ryan Crouser; February 4, Bryce Hoppel; February 11, Athing Mu; February 18, Elle Purrier; February 25, Jaylen Slade; March 4, Grant Holloway; March 11, Emmanuel Bor; March 18, Tara Davis; March 25, Emily Sisson; April 1, Tara Davis; April 8, Kenny Selmon; April 15, DeAnna Price; April 22, Athing Mu; April 29, Rudy Winkler; May 6, Trayvon Bromell; May 13, Sha’Carri Richardson; May 20, Athing Mu; May 27, Ryan Crouser; June 3, Maggie Malone; June 10, Trayvon Bromell; June 24, Ryan Crouser; July 1, Sydney McLaughlin; July 21, Maggie Malone; August 25, Athing Mu; September 2, Courtney Dauwalter; September 9, Michael Cherry; September 16, Valarie Allman. 

We welcome your nominations! 

To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about his/her performance to communications@usatf.org. 

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