INDIANAPOLIS — Turning the sprint double and helping her school to the 4x100 gold at the NCAA Championships, McKenzie Long (Dayton, Ohio/USATF Ohio) earned recognition as the 22nd USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2024. Long, a senior, opened her final Saturday of collegiate competition with a sizzling second leg on the Mississippi 4x100 relay, powering her team to gold in 42.34. It was the school's first-ever NCAA title in the event, and their 42.22 in the prelims made them the No. 5 all-time collegiate squad. Less than an hour later, Long rode a just-illegal wind (+2.2) to a 10.82w win in the 100 meters, and 45 minutes following that triumph she completed her sweep of the sprints with a 21.83 to take the 200 gold. That time made her the No. 10 all-time U.S. performer and No. 2 all-time collegiate performer and is the fastest in the world in 2024. Other top performances from last week:
Caleb Dean of Texas Tech set an American collegiate record in the men's 400 hurdles at the NCAA Championship with his 47.23. That time made him the No. 5 all-time U.S. performer, and No. 10 all-time world performer.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone ran a world-leading 48.75 to win the women's 400 at the USATF NYC Grand Prix. It was the third fastest time ever by an American, missing the AR by .05.
Parker Valby of Florida won the women's 5,000 and 10,000 at the NCAA Championships, setting a collegiate record of 14:52.18 in the 5K and running 31:46.09 in the 10K, the seventh fastest collegiate time ever.
Jasmine Jones of USC became the No. 2 all-time collegiate performer in the women's 400 hurdles with her 53.15 to win the NCAA title.
Kara Winger won the USATF NYC Grand Prix women's javelin in her return to competition after unretiring. Winger threw 63.22/207-5, the second farthest by an American 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. 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. Photo Credit: Reed Jones, Ole Miss Athletics