INDIANAPOLIS — Winning the World Athletics U20 Championships title in the men's 110 hurdles and bettering the American U20 record in the process, Ja'Kobe Tharp (Murfreesboro, Tennessee/USATF Tennessee) earned recognition as the 26th USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2024. It is his second AOW award this year. Tharp, who just completed his freshman year at Auburn University and was the NCAA silver medalist for the Tigers, zipped to a 13.05 in Lima, Peru, to lead a 1-2 Team USATF finish and claim the national U20 record, bettering the ratified mark of 13.08 that was set by Wayne Davis in 2009. His time also made him the No. 5 all-time world U20 performer over the 39-inch barriers. Earlier this year, Tharp set an American U20 record over the 42-inch hurdles with a 13.18 to win the Southeastern Conference gold on May 11, earning him USATF AOW honors, and he matched that time in the semifinal at the NCAA Championships. He won the USATF U20 title in 13.12. Other top performances from last week:
Addy Wiley bettered the American record in the women's 1000 at Bialystok, Poland, clocking 2:31.49 to break the ratified AR of 2:31.80 that was set in 1999. Wiley also won the 800 at Szczecin, Poland, earlier in the week with a 1:56.83 PB.
Yared Nuguse bettered the American record in the men's road mile with a 3:51.9 to finish second at the New Balance Kömeile in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Tara Davis-Woodhall continued her unbeaten skein in the long jump in 2024 with a 7.02/23-0.5 leap at the Rome Diamond League meet, her 10th straight win this year.
Now in its 23rd 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. 2024 Winners: January 17, Weini Kelati; January 24, Cooper Teare; January 31, Nico Young; February 7, Fiona O'Keeffe; February 14, Elle St. Pierre; February 21, Grant Holloway; February 28, Jalani Davis; March 6, Elle St. Pierre; March 13, Rachel Glenn; March 20, Grant Fisher; March 27, Myrle Mensey; April 3, Jordan Davis; April 10, Hillary Bor; April 17, Jacious Sears; April 24, Christian Miller; May 1, Payton Otterdahl; May 8, Gabby Thomas; May 15, Ja'Kobe Tharp; May 22, Rai Benjamin; May 29, Joe Kovacs; June 5, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone; June 12, McKenzie Long; July 10, Valarie Allman; July 17, Rai Benjamin; July 24, Quincy Wilson; September 4, Ja'Kobe Tharp. We welcome your nominations! To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about their performance to communications@usatf.org. Join the conversation with USATF on X, Instagram, and Facebook using the hashtag #USATF.