INDIANAPOLIS -- Winning his 24th career USATF national race walk title, Nick Christie (El Cajon, CA/USATF New York) earned recognition as the 39th USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2026.
Christie, who earlier this year set an American record in the half marathon race walk and then won the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships gold in New York City, won the USATF 30K Championships at Hauppauge, New York, by more than five minutes with a 2:16:27 clocking.
An Olympian at 20K in 2021 at Tokyo, Christie hit the 10K mark in 43:19 and went through 20K in 1:28:04. He covered the final 10K in 48:23 to beat runner-up Jason Cherng by 5:12. In January at the USATF Marathon Race Walk Championships, Christie set a pending American record of 2:11:30 for the distance en route. The ratified AR is 2:12:53 by Kevin Eastler in 2006. Other top performances from last week:
Nat Larson, 64, had the highest age grade score among the men at the USATF Masters 5K Cross Country Championships. Larson ran 18:03 to win his age group and score 91.09%. Carmen Graves took the women's USATF Half Marathon Trail Championships crown at Moab, Utah, in 1:40:16.
Maria Michta-Coffey won the women's crown at the USATF 30K Race Walk Championships in New York, walking 2:33:18 to take the title by more than two minutes.
Camren Todd was the men's champion at the USATF Half Marathon Trail Championships in Moab, Utah, clocking 1:23:28.
Suzanne La Burt was the top women's age grade scorer at the USATF Masters 5K Cross Country Championships with a 21:28 that earned her a score of 86.34%. Now in its 25th 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.
2026 Winners: January 15, Jonathan Simms; January 22, Michelle Rohl; January 29, Josh Hoey; February 5, Roisin Willis; February 12, Jordan Geist; February 19, Cole Hocker; February 26, Cynthia McNamee; March 5, Chase Jackson; March 12, Lauren Harris; March 19, Garrett Kaalund; March 26, Cooper Lutkenhaus; April 2, Rudy Winkler; April 9, Max Thomas; April 16, Sam Mattis; April 23, Tahmar Upshaw; April 30, Kaitlin Bounds; May 7, Karissa Schweizer; May 14, Anna Cockrell; May 21, Tatyana McFadden; May 28, Masai Russell; June 4, Joe Kovacs; June 11, Gabby Thomas; June 25, Tate Taylor; July 1, Jamal Britt; July 8, Nikki Hiltz; July 15, Jamal Britt; July 22, Cierra Jackson; July 29, Noah Lyles; August 13, Tate Taylor; August 27, Ethan Strand; September 3, Masai Russell; September 10, Chase Jackson; September 17, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden; September 24, Emma Grace Hurley; October 8, Aidan Troutner; October 15, Clayton Young; October 29, Suzanne la Burt; November 5, Jessica McClain; November 12, Nick Christie.
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.
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