INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana — This year’s two best track and field meets will take place at Hayward Field on the campus of the University of Oregon, with the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships on June 23-26 setting the stage for the World Athletics Outdoor Championships on July 15-24. This will be the first time for the World Outdoors to be hosted on U.S. soil. Hundreds of the best athletes in America will be contending for berths on Team USATF, with a bevy of Olympic and World Championships medalists leading the way. Here’s a preview of some of the top entrants in the women’s events:
2022 U.S. leading performance – 10.83, Aleia Hobbs 2020 Olympians entered – Javianne Oliver, Teahna Daniels, Jenna Prandini All three Tokyo team members return, led by Olympic seventh-place finisher Teahna Daniels (Austin, Texas/USATF Texas Southern), but it is a group of four women who have already dipped under 10.9 this year who command attention. Aleia Hobbs (Geismar, Louisiana/USATF Southern), who was sixth at the Trials and picked up gold on the U.S 4x100m relay at the Games, won the USATF NYC GP in 10.83 on June 12. Just behind her in that race was Sha’Carri Richardson (Orlando, Florida/USATF Florida), who clocked 10.85 and has the fastest lifetime best in the field at 10.72. Cambrea Sturgis (Kannapolis, North Carolina/USATF North Carolina), the double NCAA sprint champion in 2021, comes in at 10.87, while Coastal Carolina’s Melissa Jefferson (Conway, South Carolina/USATF South Carolina) has run 10.88. Mikiah Brisco (Baton Rouge, Louisiana/USATF Southern) and Marybeth Sant Price (Denver, Colorado/USATF Colorado), who earned silver and bronze in the 60m at the World Indoor Championships in March, are also in the picture.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 21.80, Abby Steiner 2020 Olympians entered – Gabby Thomas, Jenna Prandini, Anavia Battle Shaping up to be a close contest between Tokyo bronze medalist Gabby Thomas (Austin, Texas/USATF Texas Southern) and NCAA champion and collegiate record-holder Abby Steiner (Lexington, Kentucky/USATF Kentucky), this event also has the 2019 World Championships silver medalist, Brittany Brown (Fort Worth, Iowa/USATF Iowa). Thomas is the fastest with a 21.61 from last year, but Steiner’s 21.80 at the NCAA meet has to make her a contender to be atop the podium. Brown has a season best of 21.99 that she ran to win the Music City meet in Nashville. Olympians Jenna Prandini (Pflugerville, Texas/USATF Central California) and Anavia Battle (Inkster, Michigan/USATF Michigan) went sub-22 at the Trials last summer, as did Tamara Clark (Georgetown, Texas/USATF Texas Southern), who was fourth in that race. Sha’Carri Richardson won the USATF NYC GP in 22.38 and has a lifetime best of 22.00.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 49.99, Talitha Diggs 2020 Olympians entered – Allyson Felix, Quanera Hayes, Wadeline Jonathas World Championships wild card – Quanera Hayes, 2021 Diamond League champion Running in her final USATF Championships after a career unmatched by any American woman in track and field history, Allyson Felix (Los Angeles, California/USATF Southern California) has been an international presence since winning the World U18 100m title in 2001. She has competed in five Olympic Games, with seven golds and 11 total medals. In addition to eight World Outdoor Championships appearances and 18 medals, Felix has won 10 national outdoor titles in the sprints. The most decorated American female track and field Olympian, Felix raced to 400m bronze in Tokyo and has run 50.71 this season. Talitha Diggs (Hellertown, Pennsylvania/USATF Mid-Atlantic) sprinted to her first sub-50 effort ever with a 49.99 to win the NCAA title for Florida, and she comes from a strong line of U.S. champions, as her mom, Joetta Clark-Diggs, won five national 800m golds. Nine other women who have broken 51 seconds are slated to compete in what is a relatively wide-open event this year. Quanera Hayes (Hope Mills, North Carolina/USATF North Carolina) has a bye into the World Championships by virtue of her 2021 Diamond League overall win.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 1:57.01, Athing Mu 2020 Olympians entered – Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers, Ajee’ Wilson To say Athing Mu (Trenton, New Jersey/USATF New Jersey) had a successful year in 2021 would be an understatement. Still just 19 years old when she won gold in dominant fashion in Tokyo with an American record run of 1:55.21, Mu came back to anchor the Team USATF 4x400m relay to gold. Capping off her year of years, Mu lowered the AR to 1:55.04 at the Pre Classic after the Games. She won the NCAA 400m title in 49.57 to break her own American U20 record and ended up as the No. 4 all-time world U20 performer. As if that’s not enough, Tokyo bronze medalist Raevyn Rogers (Houston, Texas/USATF Oregon) is also back and has run 1:58.44 this year, while World Indoor champion Ajee’ Wilson (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania/USATF Mid-Atlantic) has clocked 1:58.06. Michaela Meyer (Southbury, Connecticut/USATF Connecticut) came up just short of a Games berth with her fourth-place finish at the Trials and she and Allie Wilson (Atlanta, Georgia/USATF Georgia) are part of a group of five women who have also broken 1:59 and will be in the hunt for a spot in the final.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 3:58.85, Sinclaire Johnson 2020 Olympians entered – Elle Purrier St. Pierre, Cory McGee, Heather MacLean The Pre Classic offered a mini-preview of what is in store in this event, with Sinclaire Johnson () taking fourth in a lifetime best 3:58.85 to beat Trials champion and Tokyo tenth-place finisher Elle Purrier St. Pierre (Enosburg, Vermont/USATF New England), who was sixth at 3:59.68. Cory McGee (Boulder, Colorado/USATF Colorado), who was 12th at the Games, lowered her PR to 4:00.34 to take ninth at Pre. Heather MacLean (Brighton, Massachusetts, USATF New England), the third member of Team USATF at Tokyo, hasn’t raced outdoors after placing seventh at the World Indoor Championships in March. Finishing third in the Diamond League final last September, Josette Norris (Tenafly, New Jersey/USATF New England) had a solid year that included an eighth-place finish in the Trials 5,000m, and she dropped her lifetime best in the 1,500m to 3:59.72. Karissa Schweizer (Urbandale, Iowa/USATF Oregon), already on the Worlds team in the 10,000m, could be a serious threat after a 4:00.75 on June 11.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 9:16.00, Courtney Wayment 2020 Olympians entered – Emma Coburn, Courtney Frerichs, Val Constien Uncertainty abounds in this event that has seen U.S. success in recent international championships. Emma Coburn (Boulder, Colorado/USATF Colorado), the 2017 world champion and former American record holder, and Tokyo silver medalist Courtney Frerichs (Beaverton, Oregon/USATF Oregon), the current American record holder, finished well back at the Pre Classic but still ran very respectable times. The U.S. lead is held by BYU’s Courtney Wayment (Layton, Utah/USATF Utah), who won the NCAA title in a collegiate record 9:16.00. Trials third-placer Val Constien is the only other entrant besides the aforementioned trio to have broken 9:20, but Kayley DeLay (Jacksonville Beach, Florida/USATF Florida) of Yale has improved to 9:25.08 and snagged silver at the NCAA meet. 2016 Olympian Colleen Quigley has run one steeplechase since finishing third at the 2019 U.S. Championships but has the experience to run well.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 14:31.11, Alicia Monson 2020 Olympians entered – Elise Cranny, Karissa Schweizer Elise Cranny (Beaverton, Oregon/USATF Oregon) edged Karissa Schweizer at the Trials by .3 seconds, but Schweizer turned the tables at the Olympic Games to top Cranny by .18 and finish two spots ahead in 11th. Cranny romped to a pending American indoor record of 14:33.17 at Boston in February, by far the fastest entry time here, but has raced very sparingly since then. One of her three outings was a world-leading 30:14.66 in the 10,000m in March. Schweizer won the Mt. SAC Relays in 15:02.77 and then clocked 30:49.56 to win the USATF 10,000m in late April. Josette Norris placed eighth at the Trials and has a lifetime best of 14:51.32, while Weini Kelati (Flagstaff, Arizona/USATF Arizona) won at Portland on June 11 with a PR 14:57.07. Fourth in the 10,000m trials, 2015 World Championships 10,000m bronze medalist Emily Infeld (Portland, Oregon/USATF Oregon) has a 5,000m lifetime best of 14:54.09 and was runner-up at Mt. SAC behind Schweizer.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 12.40, Alaysha Johnson 2020 Olympians entered – Keni Harrison, Christina Clemons, Gabbi Cunningham World Championships wild card – Nia Ali, 2019 World Champion World record holder and Tokyo silver medalist Keni Harrison (Pflugerville, Texas/USATF Texas Southern) tops what is again a very strong field in one of Team USATF’s best events. Harrison won the Trials in 12.47 and then made the podium at the Games in 12.52. She has a lifetime best of 12.20, the WR she set at London in 2016. This year’s revelation, Alaysha Johnson (Fort Lauderdale, Florida/USATF Florida), sped to the best time by an American in 2022, going 12.40 to win the USATF NYC GP. This is Johnson’s best season since 2019 and she has trimmed .29 off her previous PR. Gabbi Cunningham (Holly Springs, North Carolina/USATF North Carolina) picked up bronze in the 60m hurdles at the World Indoor Championships in March and finished seventh at the Games, while Christina Clemons (Lawrence, Kansas/USATF Missouri Valley) was a Tokyo semifinalist and silver medalist at the 2018 World Indoors. NCAA champion Alia Armstrong (New Orleans, Louisiana/USATF Southern) of LSU set a lifetime best of 12.55 on the Hayward track, and her former Tiger teammate Tonea Marshall (Weatherford, Texas/USATF Southwestern) has a personal best of 12.44. Nia Ali (Jacksonville, Florida/USATF Florida) is the reigning world champion and has a bye into this year’s World Championships.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 51.61, Sydney McLaughlin 2020 Olympians entered – Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, Anna Cockrell World Championships wild card – Dalilah Muhammad, 2019 World Champion When you have the two fastest women in history and the reigning world champion and Olympic champion in the field, it’s hard not to get a bit giddy about the prospects for a very fast race, though with one large caveat. Sydney McLaughlin (Playa Vista, California/USATF Southern California) twice broke the world record last year, the first time to win the Trials in 51.90 and then a stunning 51.46 for Tokyo gold. Right behind her was former world record holder and 2019 world champion Dalilah Muhammad (Fort Worth, Texas/USATF Southwestern), who crossed the line at the Games in 51.58. Muhammad has a bye into this year’s Worlds so may not run every round here, but if she doesn’t there are still plenty of exciting prospects. Shamier Little (Farmington, Arkansas/USATF Arkansas) is the fifth fastest performer in history with a best of 52.39 and was the 2015 world silver medalist. Double 2021 NCAA hurdles champion Anna Cockrell (Fort Worth, Texas/USATF Southwestern) was third at the Trials in a lifetime best of 53.70, and this year’s collegiate champion, Britton Wilson (Richmond, Virginia/USATF Virginia) of Arkansas, is hot on her heels with a best of 53.75 and a flat 400 PR of 50.05.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 1.98m/6-6i, Vashti Cunningham 2020 Olympians entered – Vashti Cunningham, Rachel McCoy Winner of 10 U.S. titles in her young career, it’s easy to forget that Vashti Cunningham (Las Vegas, Nevada/USATF Nevada) is only 24 years old. The precocious Cunningham won the World Indoor gold in 2016 at age 18 and then was a finalist at the Rio Games. She added a World Indoor silver in 2018 and a World Outdoor bronze in 2019, tacking on a sixth-place finish at Tokyo for good measure. When she is on, she is one of the world’s top talents, and she has a best of 2.02m/6-7.5. Her training partner, Jelena Rowe (Las Vegas, Nevada/USATF Nevada), and her Games teammate, Rachel McCoy (Austin, Texas/USATF Texas Southern), will contend with veteran Inika McPherson (Houston, Texas/USATF Gulf) and South Carolina’s Rachel Glenn (Long Beach, California/USATF Southern California), the 2021 NCAA champion, for the other two World Championships berths.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 4.81m/15-9.25, Sandi Morris 2020 Olympians entered – Katie Nageotte, Sandi Morris Winning the Trials with a lifetime best 4.95m/16-2.75 and then clearing 4.90m/16-0.75 to take gold in Tokyo, Katie Nageotte (Powder Springs, Georgia/USATF New York) had a dream season in 2021 with five meets at 4.90m or better. She will have her hands full with two-time World Indoor champion Sandi Morris (Mableton, Georgia/USATF Arkansas), the silver medalist at the 2019 World Outdoor Championships and the American outdoor record holder. Morris has the best mark by an American woman this year and is one of only three women ever to have cleared 5.00m or better outdoors. Olivia Gruver (Seattle, Washington/USATF Potomac Valley) was the odd woman out at the Trials, finishing fourth on the basis of more misses at earlier heights, but she, Emily Grove (Vermillion, South Dakota/USATF Dakotas) and Bridget Williams (Fairlawn, Virginia/USATF Virginia) will be ready to claim a Worlds berth should either of the top two falter.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 6.97m/22-10.5, Monae Nichols 2020 Olympians entered – Tara Davis, Quanesha Burks Long jump legend Brittney Reese has retired, opening the door for new faces to move up and into the international picture. Last year’s NCAA indoor and outdoor champion, Tara Davis (The Colony, Texas/USATF Southwestern), sailed out to a collegiate record 7.14m/23-5.25 at last year’s Texas Relays, and then topped 7m again to take the runner-up spot at the Trials. Davis placed third at the Pre Classic and had an indoor best of 6.84m/22-5.25 in February. Quanesha Burks (Baton Rouge, Louisiana/USATF Southern) set her lifetime best of 6.96m/22-10 to take third at the Trials, and she is coming off a third-place finish at the Rome Diamond League meet. She finished fourth at the Pre Classic and was fifth at the World Indoors in March. Texas Tech’s Monae Nichols (Winter Haven, Texas/USATF Florida) is the U.S. leader, but Florida’s Jasmine Moore (Grand Prairie, Texas/USATF Southern) came through to take the NCAA title and complete a jumps double. World Indoor fourth-place finisher Tiffany Flynn (Ellenwood, Georgia/USATF Georgia) matched her Trials placing and has a best of 6.80m/22-3.75.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 14.76m/48-5, Keturah Orji 2020 Olympians entered – Keturah Orji, Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore American record holder Keturah Orji (Atlanta, Georgia/USATF Georgia) is a two-time Olympian and finished seventh at the Tokyo Games and seventh at the World Indoors in March. She has won seven U.S. titles and has nine of the 10 farthest outdoor jumps ever by an American woman, topped by her AR 14.91m/48-11. Tori Franklin (New York, New York/USATF New York) has the other all-time top-10 mark, a 14.84m/48-8.25, and is a former American record holder. The youngest of the trio from the Tokyo team, Jasmine Moore, completed the NCAA horizontal jumps double recently and brings a best of 14.39m/47-2.5.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 20.21m/66-3.75i, Chase Ealey 2020 Olympians entered – Raven Saunders, Jessica Ramsey, Adelaide Aquilla World Championships wild card – Maggie Ewen, 2021 Diamond League champion This is the deepest the American talent pool has ever been in the women’s shot, and with the unpredictability of the rotational technique, any one of a half-dozen athletes could come away with the title. World Indoors silver medalist Chase Ealey (Holman, New Mexico/USATF New Mexico) has been on a tear this season, riding a five-meet outdoor winning streak that includes victories at the Doha and Oslo Diamond League stops. At Oslo she blasted a lifetime outdoor best of 20.13m/66-0.5 that made her one of only five U.S. women ever to break the 20m barrier outdoors. Trials champion Jessica Ramsey (Memphis, Tennessee/USATF Tennessee) is one of those five, claiming a personal best of 20.12m/66-0.25 from that winning throw, and Olympic silver medalist Raven Saunders (Tuscaloosa, Alabama/USATF South Carolina) should soon be joining that group after coming close with her 19.96m/65-6 at the Trials. Ohio State’s Adelaide Aquilla (Westlake, Ohio/USATF Lake Erie) smashed the collegiate record with a 19.64m/64-5.25 to win the NCAA title, and Maggie Ewen (Dilworth, Minnesota/USATF Minnesota) secured a bye into the World Championships with her 2021 Diamond League title.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 71.46m/234-5, Valarie Allman 2020 Olympians entered – Valarie Allman, Rachel Dincoff World Championships wild card – Valarie Allman, 2021 Diamond League champion Few athletes have taken over the world stage with such panache, and Valarie Allman (Austin, Texas/USATF New York) is seeking a world title to go with the Olympic gold she won at Tokyo. Shattering the American record on several occasions, Allman’s latest was a 71.46m/234-5 at La Jolla in April that was the best mark in the world in 30 years. She doesn’t need to win to claim her World Championships berth because of her bye for winning last year’s Diamond League title, but it will likely be hard for Allman to resist going all out again on the Hayward stage. Rachel Dincoff (Tallahassee, Florida/USATF Inland Northwest) has bettered her personal record significantly with a 65.46m/214-9, and Laulauga Tausaga (El Cajon, California/USATF San Diego-Imperial) is not far behind her with a 64.21m/210-8 lifetime best. Veronica Fraley (Clemson, South Carolina/USATF North Carolina) won the USATF Throws Festival with a big PR of 62.30m/204-5.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 79.02m/259-3, Brooke Andersen 2020 Olympians entered – DeAnna Price, Brooke Andersen, Gwen Berry World Championships wild card – DeAnna Price, 2019 World Champion Much like the shot put, this is the strongest and deepest the women’s hammer has ever been in the United States. Trials champion DeAnna Price (New York, New York/USATF New York) leads a group of four women who sit atop the all-time American performer list, with Price’s American record throw of 80.31m/263-6 ranking her as the second-best woman ever behind only Polish legend Anita Wlodarczyk. Price has a bye into the World Championships by virtue of her 2019 win in Doha, leaving the ring open for current world leader Brooke Andersen (Phoenix, Arizona/USATF Inland Northwest), who was 10th at Tokyo, and rapidly-improving Janee Kassanavoid (Manhattan, Kansas/USATF Missouri Valley). Olympic 11th-place finisher Gwen Berry (Nashville, Tennessee/USATF Tennessee) is the former American record holder and is always a threat to claim a team berth. NCAA runner-up Alyssa Wilson (Toms River, New Jersey/USATF New Jersey) of Texas State set an American collegiate record with her 74.78m/245-4 at Eugene two weeks ago.
2022 U.S. leading performance – 65.73m/215-7, Maggie Malone 2020 Olympians entered – Maggie Malone, Kara Winger, Ariana Ince Rounding back into top form at just the right time, American record holder and Trials champion Maggie Malone (Phoenix, Arizona/USATF Arizona) hit a world-leading 65.73m/215-7 to win the Jerome Classic in Canada. Four-time Olympian and former American record holder Kara Winger (Colorado Springs, Colorado/USATF New York) is also near top form, as evidenced by her wins at the Mt. SAC Relays and USATF Throws Festival, where she notched her season best of 63.75m/209-2, and Ariana Ince (Chula Vista, California/USATF San Diego-Imperial) went out to 62.74m/205-10 to win at Chula Vista on June 11. NCAA champion Ashton Riner (Eltopia, Utah/USATF Inland Northwest) of BYU and bronze medalist Madison Wiltrout (Connellsville, Pennsylvania/USATF Three Rivers) of North Carolina have both bettered 60m this season. Follow along as the nation’s best compete for a spot on Team USATF at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22. The Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships will be broadcast on NBC, CNBC, and USA and webcast on USATF.TV. More information on how to watch can be found here. A full schedule of events can be found here. Join the conversation with USATF on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook using the hashtag #USATF.