by Lia Skoufos, MS
This article is part of a USATF Campus exclusive series to help understand the World Athletics Rankings. For track enthusiasts and elite athletes alike, this series aims to provide clarity, analysis, and education on all things World Rankings and how they impact Team USATF. For more information on how the World Rankings system works, see this article.
From May 5-12, one U.S. athlete in the top 100 of their respective event had the biggest absolute improvement to their World Ranking, improving their position by 13 spots from 98th to 85th. 2025 NCAA weight throw champion Daniel Reynolds is building consistency in his first year out of college. With a win at the AF Twilight in Colorado Springs, Reynolds threw the hammer within one meter of his personal best for the second time in six days. More importantly for his world ranking, he extended his streak of throws beyond 70 meters this season to four meets. Last season, his average mark in competition was 69.55m. Conversely, he has not thrown below 70 meters this year and with this mark at AF Twilight, only one mark from 2025 remains in his ranking score. Should Reynolds have another competition similar to any of his other marks from this year, he should continue to improve his world ranking. When assessing improvement based on percentage increase in ranking (e.g. 2nd to 1st is a 50% improvement as is moving from 30th to 15th), the top U.S. athlete climbed from 25th to 17th for a 32% improvement. At the Sycamore Open in Terre Haute, Indiana, 2024 Olympian Erin Reese unleashed a 2.5-meter personal best in the hammer throw with a mark of 76.76m, making her the 24th best female hammer thrower of all-time and the 6th best U.S. woman in history. This is not her first personal best of the season – and of the five marks that comprise her ranking score, four are from the 2026 season. As a result, she is at minimal risk of her score dropping, but with five more opportunities for the women’s hammer throw on the USATF Tour, she will undoubtedly be looking to continue this momentum. More details on rankings, results, and scenarios can be found on the World Athletics website. You can also experiment with my World Athletics Rankings Dashboard & Calculator and World Rankings Over Time Dashboard, hosted exclusively on USATF Campus.
Lia Skoufos is a Sports Scientist at USATF specializing in throwing events. She holds a BS in Kinesiology from the University of Illinois Chicago and MS in Sport and Exercise Analytics from Marquette University and supports a range of analytics-based projects at USATF. In addition to her work with the throws group, she focuses on creating data-driven visuals and bridging the gap between technical analytics and practical applications by translating complex information into clear, actionable insights for coaches, athletes, and all USATF Campus members.